When Likes are not as Likeable!

There’s a pandemic on social media that’s been destroying great content. “Likes” have deformed to be a “Yeah! I acknowledge that!” than a real “Like”. As a tool for pandering minions to show their bosses they admire them, or perfunctory followers who feel that liking is the heartbeat of social, the inconsequence of the “Like” has been unnerving me lately.

While social media algorithms have their own way of attributing value to engagements, the idea of relative engagement could be a more reliable parameter for effectiveness, where weightages get accorded with a “Like” being the least. But, that’s not how it counts.

the idea of relative engagement could be a more reliable parameter for effectiveness

In a world where everyone has a point of view on everything, why does professional social make people tongue tied? And here, I’m talking Professional Social AKA LinkedIn. As a keen student of “LinkedIn University”, I’ve liked those that I’ve really liked, and shared and commented on topics that I really loved. Talking love – I’ve often found an itchiness when stabbing that “Love” icon on Instagram or Twitter – because honestly “Love” can’t get so under-rated – with just a week past Valentine's can anyone disagree! Can’t I just “Like” stuff and not “Love” it?! I love LinkedIn for its choices of responses though—the fact that you can Like, Love and do other things. Human emotions are a mixed bag, and at least LinkedIn seems to get it. Though of course the new double-click for “Like” makes it easier for the “Lazy Likers” (yay! It’s not just politicians who can identify a new species! But I’m not going to hazard a vernacular version of the same.) The “Lazy Likers” are the couch-potatoes of social and they do more harm than good by skewing social statistics in more ways than one. But statistically speaking, I’m guessing that LinkedIn’s likes would be a much smaller percentage of total engagement compared to other platforms. Not a statistic that’s out there though.

The “Lazy Likers” are the couch-potatoes of social and they do more harm than good

But then, while POVs also run riot of FB and Twitter—the home-ground of the vain-world and the breeding-ground of the troll-world, guess an intellectual application is a lot tougher than a gut reaction that the non-professional platforms afford.

Social is for impact! Make it count!

Like I said my angst is singularly with the LinkedIn engagements where probably similar and saner professionals coexist. In this world of social, it’s not just about sharing but about perspectivizing and leveraging connections. And that comes with expressions that’s beyond Likes.  The more we increase our share of engagement on LinkedIn with perspective and responses, the more we will thrive. And there are limits that this can get stretched to, much like @Gary Vaynerchuk most recent advice https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/garyvaynerchuk_good-morning-linkedin-im-here-to-remind-activity-6768178631261863936-CKMI

Social is for impact! Make it count!

Don’t just like – do a little more!