Obnoxious LinkedIn Behaviour
Carl Messenger-Lehmann ????
Owner @ Hyperweb Communications Inc. | Strategic Direction, Marketing
My Adult children view LinkedIn with Suspicion.?
They think of it only as “the place to go to look for a job”
Many of you know better. But some of you…. Ummm...
When the pandemic hit, every marketer or wannabe marketer and consultant took to LinkedIn. Overnight our inboxes were filled with suggestions on how to grow your Business / you Network / and your Sales. People who had never networked before flocked to the platform. Everyone who was now virtual, out of work or looking for a side gig was told “you should be on LinkedIn” and the platform grew exponentially.
And as a result, we started seeing behaviours from people who didn’t fully grasp the professional networking aspect of the platform.?
People treated it like other platforms they knew. Photo of my Baby (Check), Kids Graduation (Check), Buy my product (Check)
At its best, LinkedIn is a place to connect with colleagues/peers to discuss topics in your profession/industry.?
It’s a place to share your expertise, build credibility and connect with like-minded individuals.?
Business Insider describes LinkedIn as follows
"LinkedIn is a social network that focuses on professional networking and career development. You can use LinkedIn to display your resume, search for jobs, and enhance your?professional reputation by posting updates and interacting with other people.”
It’s a place to connect with others and get introduced to someone in a trusted way.
Yes, it’s a place to find a job, and Yes it’s a place to do business. But treating it as a transaction is to misunderstand the Platform.?LinkedIn is about authentic conversations.?
What it’s shouldn’t be
I’ve seen some pretty?Obnoxious LinkedIn behaviour.
The ones that stand out for me are?
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1. The InMail Direct Ads:??These are the equivalent of Spam. And to overgeneralize, every Financial Planner, Sales Trainer and HR / Recruiter embraces this.?
Someone wrote a LinkedIn Playbook and sold it to entire industries. Crazy.?
2. The Direct Sell Post
Metaphor - you just walked into the middle of a business meeting and tried to sell me a widget.
3. The Soap Box Posts
I’m going to post insults until you see my way.?Sorry - I think you were looking for a Flamewar - please visit your favourite Facebook discussion group.
Some of these issues get resolved over time, and LinkedIn adjusts their algorithms/updates policies.
Some of these issues are related to “Automation Tools” like Duck Soup or Cleverly. IE People trying to take shortcuts to being authentic. (I know this because we’ve tried this in the past)
And some of these issues are people who either don’t understand or don’t care. You know, the "anything for a Sale mentality”.
At the end of the day, the context you bring to LinkedIn is what will determine your success here.?
Take a transactional approach and you might get "something", but it’ll be a short-lived success.
Invest in the platform / build genuine relationships and participate, educate without expectation and watch success follow.?
Am I wrong? Go ahead and start a flame war with me. I dare ya! :-)
Vice President @ ProResults Plumbing?? | Certified Performance Coach | Real Estate Broker
2 年So true, many especially millenials don't see the true value of the platform. I attended a business development event four years ago where the ever so innovative Gary Vaynerchuk stated that Linkedin will be the next Facebook within the next decade.
Great read Carl…it’s unfortunate that LinkedIn is becoming more like FB and losing the true intent behind the platform - connecting people and building professional business relationships..hopefully it’s not too late
Driving Business Success with Strong Foundations & Scalable Structures | Strategic Messaging | Targeted Lead Generation for Real Results
2 年Great post Carl Messenger-Lehmann and I agree completely. LinkedIn, for me is all about building relationships. It's kinda like the difference between a customer and a client. My definition ... a customer is a one time transactional experience and a client is an ongoing relationship.
Principal @ Instant Imprints | Visual Communications and Promotional Solutions
2 年Great observations Carl. I have been looking at content styles on this platform for sometime now. And OBJECTIVE of being on this platform is key. The majority, IMHO, seem to be here for vanity metrics that are chased on other platforms. This results in their content styles being in line with that of the crass Facebook or its associate platforms. Unfortunately, those type of content do gain a lot of "engagement" in terms of likes and oohs and aahss.. But the more knowledgeable of them (like you) do use the platform in an engaging and educative way that is bound to see results
Director Business Development at HI-Performance Construction
2 年Thank you for the article Carl Messenger-Lehmann. I do have to say that LinkedIn is my favourite platform. No they don't compare and they serve different purposes as you said. But I think LinkedIn is just what I need in this stage in my life. I'm so over the wedding photos, baby photos and puppy photos.