Here’s something that I’ve encountered on LinkedIn that made me look at it with the
And I click on connect. He’s got that option on which requires an email address — 100% optional, I respect that, we’ll play by the house’s rules.
What happens next is I’m sent on this page where LinkedIn recommends me
One could be fast to say “Oh yeah, it’s people like you who connect like that (blindly with everyone) that ruin the platform for us”. They would continue saying “You should only connect with someone when you either know them or you’ve seen their full profile first — then you request the connection”.
That’s old school thinking i.e. resistant to change and it will come around you and bite your ass. Hopefully, it’s not the case for you, dear reader.
What happens is this:
I see a piece of content that you’ve put out and then I want to connect with you. A piece of content that I’ve interacted with and that provided me value — or at least have shown me that there’s something going on in your head that resonates with me.
Why is that important? Because on LinkedIn, much like other social media platforms but more so here, everyone is:
— expert at something
— a professional public speaker
— motivational
— an X mastermind
— a star
And that’s fine. The only problem is, these statuses are so prevalent that it’s already oversaturated.
So how do we tell the difference? Not by who you say you are but by who you show you are. Which is, by posting.
Going meta
Take me for instance. I’ve said “ass” and I’m not shy around swearing or using “explicit language”. If you’re one of those people who think that’s highly offensive and think it’s inappropriate to use this in “professional language” but then use the same words while having a beer, I’m more than happy to part ways with them. I’ve got some news though: we’re already too transparent through today’s social media — all of us. But that’s for another article.
If you really never ever speak like that, then we wouldn’t go well in a
If you’re like that, more power to us. Hope we’ll meet one day.
But hey, I’ve started from a minor experience aspect analysis (which is what I do at chagency_acumen) and got into a bigger-picture rant (which is what I do day to day). The point of that was to explain why fixing it would mean a better experience for people.
And in other words, it’s just that the platform matured and this is an aspect that was not changed along with it.
Back to the first point
To recap, here’s how it goes. I engage with your content, we resonate, I go on your profile. I might be fast enough to read the headline but most of the time I make sure first that we’re connected — and that’s where the sin is committed by LinkedIn.
Nonetheless, I go back to your page to see what else’s been going on in your life.
LinkedIn, please fix this. I understand the point of showing people other possible connections — how about a pop-up from the lower right corner?
I made this quickly, I’m sure if Microsoft had $26.2 Billion cash to buy LinkedIn, they’ve got enough resources to have their designers come up with a more elegant solution, given more time.
P.S: The “Reid Hoffman — I don’t even know who this guy is” was obviously a joke
About Ch Daniel
I run chagency, an experiences design agency that specialises on helping tech CEOs reduce user churn. We believe experiences are not only the reason why users choose not to leave but also what generates word of mouth. We’re building a credo around this belief.
If I’ve brought you any kind of value, follow me and get in touch here: LinkedIn | Twitter | Email
I’ve also created an infinitely-valuable app for sneaker/fashion enthusiasts called Legit Check that impacted hundreds of thousands over millions of times – check it out at chdaniel.com/app
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