Recursive Function

As my social networking applications continue to grow, i.e. Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc I am constantly trying to find ways to incorporate them into my professional life, and utilize them in a way that provides value. LinkedIn has been a tool that I have loved and hated since I started using it, but really didn’t know why.

Ever since I started using Facebook, I realized my issues with LinkedIn. It is a great tool for networking and adding business contacts, whether they are close friends or associates you have only met through email. The user interface is pretty clean, and because it has maintained its principals based around business networking the signal vs noise ratio ensures that you aren’t getting poked or superpoked by friends and colleagues.

However, the static nature of LinkedIn has severely limited the way that you can use it. The interaction factor, or lack thereof has essentially made it another Rolodex to keep track of. The ability to add recommendations and ask/answer questions has started to make it a little bit more interactive, but overall it is still just another application that I check in on every other week or so, or anytime I make a new connection. I haven’t figured out a way to leverage it than for piling up my list of contacts. I am sure that there is some value if you are looking for a job or recruiting for one.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could create niche groups for thought sharing, set up “meetings” and conduct interviews online? Wouldn’t it be useful if you could hold e-Events and virtual networking events where people shared ideas and business problems freely? I think there is a large untapped potential, especially as more and more people, not tech related, are starting to use it. The need for smart business discussion is always going to be there, and LinkedIn has the built in user base to help expand to networking “2.0″. Will it get there? I hope so, but for now, I will continue to use it and hope for more, and if not, maybe someone else can get started on the next killer networking app, I would be happy to beta test it for you.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 3:40 pm and is filed under Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.