Thoughts about the future of linkedin

MMLGF 9: Linkedin Groups Privacy and Visibility

Fernando Arámburu — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:34:38 +0000

In this long series of post about Linkedin Groups I’ve been writing in the last two or three months I talked about some interesting things like new features linkedin groups should add, exporting information, accessing linkedin groups from your home page and more and more… Although I talked too much, I haven’t said a word about Linkedin groups visibility and privacy.

Linkedin groups are on these days semi-public. why? Because you have to invited or ask for being added to any group if you want to be part of it. Maybe you find a group by word of mouth, by doing a search or by any way you want but…

… But what if we don’t want to own a semi-public group? What if we want or need some group to be really open or really private so nobody see it?

I thought three different kind of groups’ privacy will be just perfect for users.

Public Groups: There are some groups just open to anyone, without the need to register. It looks like current Linkedin Answers where everybody can ask and answer.
Semi public Groups: These groups will only let members participate in the groups where non-members must ask for subscription. This is the way Linkedin groups are being created these days that let users create groups for specific regions or businesses.
Private Groups: That kind of group let companies and people start their own groups without appearing in any Linkedin groups’ directory. That option would let businessmen do/prepare and invite people to meetings online as well as be informed from many different sources or communicate with partners or clients in a silent way.

As Private groups are not listed and you just can be member of by invitation , maybe this kind of groups should not be free but let Linkedin or any business social network implementing this decide…

This is post #9 of the (M)aking the (M)ost of (L)inkedIn (G)roups (F)unctionality (MMLGF) Series. Ideas for free

Linkedin API is or is not for delevopers?

Fernando Arámburu — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 02:38:17 +0000

I must say that I’m really surprised… I own a blog about LinkedIn and particularly about the future of LinkedIn and how new features and new ideas for LinkedIn could not only benefit LinkedIn company but also and QUITE more important LinkedIn users.

I also must say that I’m kind of a developer and I’m waiting for LinkedIn API to launch some little online application that would make LinkedIn experience better.

Why am I writing then? Well, I write about the future of LinkedIn just for fun, not to make money. I’m building that “test” addin application just for fun and not for money, I’m doing that in my free time so hearing that LinkedIn will open only to approved company sounds really sad (even though they approve me in the future or not) but also very hard and painful.

I mean… I definitely won’t wait for an approval… I definitely won’t wait for they keeping some part of any of my possible revenue because it will my work. If I build a great application by using their API, they will also win, because people and more people, and more traffic, and more and more things can be done in their website, so if I win they win… BUT.. if I lose with my application that uses LinkedIn API, I lose money and time and they lose NOTHING. So, this is not fare at all…

Providing an open API for developers (as they announce some time ago) means really to be OPEN, and this is not being OPEN AT ALL. If that happen I will definitely try to move to Facebook, XING, Marzar or whatever other business social network that works in an open way.

Web World is looking forward to be open and I won’t be part of an “open to just some approved companies” website. I will definitely do my dev staff and blog staff and spend my free time in another thing… (I’m writing at same time I’m thinking) or do I have to be paid by LinkedIn because I’m giving them some ideas (even though they probably don’t read my blog :D) that they could transform to earn money from that. Or even they share their revenues with us (users): I mean.. they earn money not only because of linkedin website service but also because of us that enter, use and navigate the website and provide them with traffic, information and lot more…

Sorry for this “no positive at all” vision but as a free time LinkedIn add-in developer and blogger about LinkedIn I’m really not happy…

Linkedin strategy for upcoming "not so open" platform

Fernando Arámburu — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 00:52:17 +0000

I’m back at blogging after two weeks approximately with some “possible” not good news for developers and people that are waiting Linkedin’s API.

Why? Well.. Reading Mashable.com I found an interesting post about a New York times’ article about Linkedin strategy for the upcoming API.

I guess all can be resumed to the next phrase:

“We have no interest in doing it like Facebook with an open A.P.I. letting people do whatever they want,” Mr. Nye said.

Mr. Nye is the chief executive of Linkedin, so he has the power to the decide the future of linkedin.

“So LinkedIn will have to approve any company that wants to tap into its system. Mr. Nye says he is looking for two kinds of applications. First, there are deals that enable LinkedIn members to tap into their connections in other places, for example, while using applications like Salesforce.com. Second, some applications will be allowed to add features to LinkedIn’s own site. Mr. Nye offered, as an example, a module connected to a trade show or conference that integrated travel planning and other features.”

On June 24th they mentioned they will open to developers… and they are just openning to some companies not to developers at all…

What can I say?… I have no words…

As a resume.. It looks like they are building a “not so open” platform.

Book Review: I’m on LinkedIn Now what???

Fernando Arámburu — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 14:49:51 +0000

Jason Alba’s, founder of successful www.jibberJobber.com, new book “I’m on Linkedin, now what?” is very close to be released (on next monday: September 24th). Today I received a mail from him and I remembered I did write nothing about this book yet.

As Darlene McDaniel also said: “I am privileged to be one of at least 100 people that had an opportunity to get a pre-press soft copy of the book to review!”. Well, so my review on this excelent book will be different … I will collect some ideas written by other people that looks perfect for me

Mike Schaffner in his blog wrote:

“I like Jason’s book for a number of reasons. Jason gives a refreshingly honest and balanced review of LinkedIn. He’ll tell you what is good about LinkedIn and what is not so good; how to use it and how it shouldn’t be used. Basically he not only tells you about what it is but also what it isn’t. He makes suggestions and supports them by telling you why he makes a particular recommendation. I really appreciate that kind of information.”

Phil Gerbyshak mentioned:

“‘I’m on LinkedIn – Now What???’ provides a useful guide for all those looking to better utilize the power of LinkedIn”

Megan Fitzgerald at her blog said:

“I’m on LinkedIn — Now What??? is a user-friendly guide to using one of the most powerful networking tools out there. In his down-to-earth, well-informed style, Jason Alba does a fantastic job of clarifying what LinkedIn really is — and what it isn’t. He takes you through all of the features and shows you how to make choices about how to make the tool work for you.”

And the always important words of Vincent Wright, My Linkedin Power Forum’s owner:

“If this book were available the first year LinkedIin started, it would have helped LinkedIn to be better understood and would have helped thousands of professionals get the most out of LinkedIin.”

As a final word, I guess Jason Alba’s own words are perfect:

“By the time you finish this book you should have a solid understanding of what LinkedIn is, how to use it and why things on LinkedIn work the way they do”

And yes, he did it!!!. When you finish reading this book (I did) you achieved all that…

Want to read more reviews? Here are some:

Linkedin Groups upgraded?

Fernando Arámburu — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 21:28:47 +0000

I started today reading a post about new features at Linkedin groups on the Vincent Wright’s great blog “Linkedin Business Discussion Index”.

Some hours later, I saw that the official Linkedin Blog also wrote something about Linkedin Groups new features: “What’s new in LinkedIn Groups? Learn more”.

So, when I had time, I enter into Linkedin.com and look at the new features on Linkedin Groups…

I hate to say but I’m a little dissapointed about all new features… I mean, sometime ago I wrote a post about a new Linkedin Groups version and I was expecting a really new and quite evolved new version of Linkedin Groups but to be a really bad man (maybe reallistic) what I see is just:

a new form to add dinamically new groups.
a “See all my groups” link on the lower, right side of your home page.
a better group management interface.

I mean, this is not bad at all, because always (and twice always) new features are welcome, but … this is the new version I mentioned sometime ago? or this is just an upgrade before a big launch of a new Linkedin Groups version?

MMLGF 8: Exporting your LinkedIn groups activity (Blogging?)

Fernando Arámburu — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 18:51:12 +0000

Everybody knows that LinkedIn provide us with some tools and also with a website where we can do direct marketing about ourselves and our needs, and also find people (doing marketing about themselves) that can be future clients, partners or providers.

In previous posts on this long series, I’d been writing ideas like:

Implementation of those ideas would add great value and would let you do direct marketing easily. But, what other thing would add more value to you and your direct marketing task? The answer is exporting as RSS Feed, Web Services, etc all your LinkedIn (groups) activity.

Exporting your LinkedIn groups’ activity (for example your questions, your answers, some specific search or just whatever you can imagine) would be definitely great.

Why this is great? Because you will have the chance to show what you do, what you think, what you are looking at, what you are looking for and what you ……. (Complete with the verb you want).

So what? You would use all that staff not only inside LinkedIn but also outside of it.

What are the benefits for users?

If you export what you ask, then you can put those questions anywhere and, first, bring traffic and readers to LinkedIn. Second, promote your question anywhere probably getting more answers and, third, be aware of how important your questions are, how much readers your questions have by using some RSS Feed tools like feedburner.com.
If you export your answers then in some way these spread answers you do can be taken as a group and share all together like if you were writing a blog. So, your answers are your blog…
If you export some specific search, then you are building a feed with some kind of “what I’m reading”.
If you export what you ……. (Completed before with the verb you wanted) then you can do what you want (do business, implement your website with “best answers”, etc.)

This is post #8 of the (M)aking the (M)ost of (L)inkedIn (G)roups (F)unctionality (MMLGF) Series.

MMLGF 7: LinkedIn Groups activity included on Linkedin Search

Fernando Arámburu — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 13:31:53 +0000

In previous posts on this MMLGF Series I talked about using the information you and your LinkedIn groups produce by adding it to your public profile. That way you can do marketing about yourself (or maybe about your company services as well, or even your objectives whatever those would be) even better than now.

This issue is very important because you can show yourself better and actively but I guess there is somewhere your LinkedIn groups’ activity should be included: LinkedIn Search.

How your LinkedIn groups’ activity can be used in Search? I imagine lot of ways but I guess there are some places where/when that feature should be included:

You answer a question and your answer was classified as a good one, then some related words (maybe using some keywords included in the question) can be added to your keywords so you can be found when someone looks for that precise keyword.
Like LinkedIn Recommendations we can think about having some “expertise” from your activity / number of answers / questions so you can make a gift to someone that you know or consider he/she has great expertise. It’s like a recommendation that impact directly into your chance to be found when someone makes a search.

For sure those ideas would bring more participation and traffic to LinkedIn because what you do is used by LinkedIn for you directly and indirectly. With directly, I mean what you do will let you do direct marketing about your needs and I consider indirect usage when LinkedIn takes some keywords on your good answers on a topic at a LinkedIn Group and add these as a way to find you.

This is post #7 of the (M)aking the (M)ost of (L)inkedIn (G)roups (F)unctionality (MMLGF) Series.

MMLGF 6: Making Connections with LinkedIn Groups members

Fernando Arámburu — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 16:13:45 +0000

One of the most important features at LinkedIn is to establish direct connections with other people that let you:

Do business with them
Consume/provide services from/to them
Grow your network for future business
Grow your network so your chance to be found and find the right people grows too.

With LinkedIn groups your chance to find someone you want to connect with grows drastically. At LinkedIn Groups you are making direct contact with lot of people you’d like to meet like ones that:

Offers some services you also offer
Consume some services you offer
A possible client
A possible partner
Entrepreneur in your industry
Innovators in your industry

In the process of writing this series of posts, LinkedIn added a feature that is perfect for this topic… When you add someone to your network at LinkedIn, you always must say how you meet the guy you are inviting (Colleague at work, university), friend, family and a new one: LinkedIn groups.

These new choice let you add a user to your network without knowing user’s email address by just saying you want to add a user because you have met him/her at a LinkedIn Groups. This way, you can make direct contact with some business related people that you meet in a group quite more easily than before.

This is post #6 of the (M)aking the (M)ost of (L)inkedIn (G)roups (F)unctionality (MMLGF) Series.

MMLGF 5: Your LinkedIn Groups at your LinkedIn home page

Fernando Arámburu — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 01:16:08 +0000

Showing LinkedIn Groups’ activity into your public profile is with no doubts something really useful as a way of marketing yourself. But doing marketing of yourself must be followed by some tool that let you manage, work and monitor the stuff you are trying to promote.

Accessing LinkedIn Groups you are member of into your home page (not your public profile) would make your home quite more useful and dynamic than now. For example, we can think about adding it:

· Specific group’s information, like details, questions, member list, etc. for each group

· Last questions asked in each or all groups.
· Links to questions you asked or answered to get direct access to them.
· List of group members who are more involved with it.

Accessing your LinkedIn groups from your LinkedIn home, getting some information about them and sharing some of your LinkedIn groups’ activity at your public profile should add great value not only to you but also to LinkedIn. You are adding value because you are promoting yourself better, and also having direct access to what you are interested about. LinkedIn is also adding value because offering a better access to your groups let you interact, participate and promote yourself better, and that cause more traffic, more information and more value to LinkedIn website.

This is post #5 of the (M)aking the (M)ost of (L)inkedIn (G)roups (F)unctionality (MMLGF) Series.

Facebook is extending APIs to compete with Linkedin

Fernando Arámburu — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 21:01:56 +0000

Some months ago Facebook publish APIs to become a great (or very great) and amazing social network where people not just only communicate their selves using Facebook functionality but also to extend it and use it the way they want.

On the weekend I saw one post at insidefacebook (here) talking about new APIs to stay on top and to start competing with the still “uncertain” linkedin API and also with the biggest Facebook Application: Slide.

The two new API methods are:

* friends.getLists
* friends.getListsMembers

Those two methods let developers build Facebook Applications that get access and clasify people in many ways…

Based on these method names, “Friend Lists” could be buddy lists that you might use to organize your friends. For example, “Work Friends” or, say… “Top Friends”.

Why these methods are Linkedin related? Well, Justin Smith at his post at insidefacebook.com mentioned:

This will be a welcome change for everyone whose LinkedIn networks have migrated to Facebook. Consequently, this could mean accelerated LinkedIn attrition: per-Friend-List privacy settings could substantially decrease the need of many to actively maintain their LinkedIn accounts as well.

As a conclusion, Facebook is working really hard, not only in making its API more and more powerful each day, but also to stay on the top of social networks. And they are doing quite well!!!!

Maybe, before Linkedin API is ready, we have some more Facebook API’s methods to have Linkedin functionality completely inside their website.