LinkedIn

Good post over on Heather's blog about LinkedIn.

For those of you who don't know, LinkedIn started as a "networking" tool but has evolved (from what I can see on my perch) as a way for salespeople and recruiters to get leads.

People are growing their "network" to numbers in the 1000's. Is that "networking"? Or is that creating a spammable electronic phone book, professional reputation be damned (after all, we all have to eat).

One thing that LinkedIn does well is respond professionally and courteously to online discussions about their product.

Konstantin Guericke from LinkedIn posted the following comment to Heather:

Heather,

I think you were more than fair. We recommend people only invite professionals they know well enough to recommend them to their trusted colleagues. Part of our membership agreement is that members only invite people who at least know them, so most members click "report" to let us know they received an invitation to connect that was unwelcome and violated the membership agreement, which BTW applies to all of us and is designed to set some minimum (not recommended) standards that facilitate a positive and productive experience for all members.

So by giving people a chance, you have been more than fair, and I think the response makes it clear those two were not really in it for a professional relationship, but just to inflate their network.

Since we have offered the ability to break connections directly from the connection list, we find that more and more members are right-sizing their network to those people they feel make them look good when they introduce them to others. I personally only make an introduction when I feel the recipient is going to thank me for introducing the person to them. I think the result of fewer weak connections is a stronger network, which should benefit everyone.

-Konstantin
www.linkedin.com/in/konstantin

To which I responded:

Heather,

Very noble of you. You are, however, one of the few who isn't out there using LinkedIn as a massive spam tool.

While I certainly appreciate Konstantin coming out to a public forum and commenting, I think it's naive to view LinkedIn (except in some extreme cases) as anything but the following:

1) A fantastic source of leads for recruiters and salespeople.

That's about it. Networking is (was it ever) obsolete on LinkedIn, especially when you consider that it seems like most people's definition of "networking" today is spam, cold-calling, and pestering. LinkedIn, by the way, encourages this type of behavior by allowing people to email job openings, profile updates, etc., to their entire "networks".

A better question for Konstantin is "what is LinkedIn doing about the following groups":

LinkedIn Lions
MyLinkedInPowerForum
LinkedIn for Recruiters
LinkedIn Innovators

plus others in a similar vein? Most of these groups exist to pump up the connection numbers of their members. If they exist for any other reason, I fail to see it.

I mean, there are people out there with 10,000+ connections. Is that networking? And isn't that a clear violation of LinkedIn's membership agreement that "members only invite people who at least know them"?

Probably the wrong forum, but am interested in learning more from Konstantin. And don't get me wrong -- I'm in the "LinkedIn" is great camp, but lately have started receiving up to 5 invites a day from people I have NEVER heard of. I know I'm a popular guy, but still :-)...

In other words, Konstantin, very good of you to respond, but your response either indicates that you don't have the answer to the spam problem, or you're seeing your product through rose-colored glasses. And how many people have ever been suspended as a result of over-zealous "requests to network"?