LinkedIn is Dead. Long Live LinkedIn.

May 15, 2021

Career / Business

Shmuel Bookstein, CPA was not one to potchka around online. But a colleague with similar credentials had been pulling in some big clients lately. The only marked difference between him and the firm’s rising star was LinkedIn. Shmuel had posted his résumé details on LinkedIn years ago but had ignored the social media platform ever since. However, bringing in new dollars was what could earn accountants lucrative partnership slots. And clearly, this hotshot was doing something right with business social media.

What’s LinkedIn’s magic? How does the platform help create financial opportunities?

LinkedIn has Changed

In 2017, I wrote my first TVOL article about LinkedIn, the world’s dominant platform for business social media. Most of America’s working adults have profiles on the site, as do many millions of businesses. That hasn’t changed, and LinkedIn remains a crucial tool for job seekers, headhunters, salespeople, and companies looking to grow. However, the focus of the site has pivoted strongly over the years. This shift has destroyed one major benefit of LinkedIn, although, in many ways, it has become an even more powerful business tool.

Let me explain.

LinkedIn as a Super-Rolodex

The original premise of LinkedIn was based on “chavra chavra is lei,” i.e., your friend has a friend, too. The typical user back then would post his profile and connect with a circle of close contacts—family, friends, colleagues, etc. This list would therefore have, at maximum, hundreds of first-level connections. But here was the genius part of the site—your narrow circle of trusted contacts could be vastly expanded through searchable access to your connections’ trusted connections (the chaverim of your chaverim). Through your direct network of 200 personal contacts, each with a similar-sized list on average, your reach was immediately expanded to a 40,000-person network (your 200 contacts x 200 contacts)!

LinkedIn’s Network Effect

Having access to a searchable database of 40,000 vetted people is hugely beneficial. In the early days of LinkedIn, you were able to quickly research and contact potential vendors, bosses, job candidates, or clients who were very likely to trust you because of the shared common connection. This linkage made networking via LinkedIn super-fast and efficient. But this system worked because people connected only with contacts they knew well. Over the past few years, most LinkedIn users began connecting even with strangers, sometimes thousands of them. This habit widens your database significantly but degrades the vital trust required to make automatic connections possible.

Destroyed by Microsoft

Why did this adjustment happen? In 2017, LinkedIn was purchased by Microsoft. The software conglomerate began pushing the site in the direction of the other social media platforms that emphasize content-sharing as much as contact-connecting. And as a content platform, it’s usually worth connecting to those beyond your own limited circle. Whether your goal is to produce or consume content, you probably want the broadest base possible. People began to connect with multitudes of LinkedIn strangers to expand their content horizons and thereby destroyed the original powerful intent of the platform. Gaining access to a list of thousands of stranger “contacts” is virtually useless for building quick trust.

A Social Media Giant is Born

So chavra is lei is almost dead on LinkedIn. On the other hand, the business-related content side of the site is booming. It has become much easier to gain a large audience on LinkedIn by consistently posting interesting information and interacting with others who comment on it. Shmuel’s colleague is probably writing tidbits about taxes, or even general observations and musings, to show large audiences that he is a knowledgeable and likable fellow. Meanwhile, his profile, clearly identifying his professional credentials and specialty, is always just a click away.

Offering Client Bonanzas

Getting many people to know and like you or your company is what networking is all about. And showcasing an innovative product can bring immediate customer inquiries for further information. If thousands of people interact favorably with a product or service provider, the chance of them becoming clients goes up dramatically. Many businesses and professionals who avoid the wild, unrestrained social media scene are still comfortable within LinkedIn’s staid business environment. In this role of content platform, LinkedIn has opened up entirely new vistas for them. Many entrepreneurs and salespeople, including Shmuel’s associate, have earned significant business referrals via the site.

LinkedIn for Learning

Think of it now from the other angle—those who visit the site to read, view, and learn. Even if someone is not looking for new clients or a job, there is a lot of excellent content constantly being created on the platform. Shmuel’s colleague is motivated to post valuable tax insight to attract a loyal following and even to answer questions directly to people who may not have access to that level of expertise. As millions of niche experts in their fields post and engage on LinkedIn, it offers a trove of valuable insight at no cost.

A Multifunction Business Tool

Even if you don’t post or engage with the content of others, it’s crucial to maintain an updated and compelling profile. LinkedIn still functions as the ultimate, if impersonal, professional database; if someone searches your name or for your business, your LinkedIn profile will typically be among the first results. LinkedIn is also still a powerhouse for job listings, sales leads, business data, and education. Those who ignore the platform are forgoing one of the most important business tools of the day.

Caution Always Required

But the free-wheeling nature of social media adds risks and challenges—especially to Orthodox Jews. All users of social media face heightened dangers of cybersecurity breaches and attracting negative publicity for poorly crafted posts. On a frumkeit level, many have noted the phenomenon of people dropping their guard online—interacting in ways they never would in a physical presence. Some frum professionals therefore stick to their guns and avoid even LinkedIn, the tamest of social media. For the rest of us, ongoing rabbinical guidance about proper boundaries and practices is definitely warranted.