In the late Autumn LinkedIn made several changes to the design and presentation of Profiles. They are almost all good.
In the plus column
- On the plus side, Profile photos are bigger. Hopefully this will let some members realise how terrible their photos are and do something about it. Seriously though, having a decent photo should be a priority on a business/social network.
- The ‘new’ Profile design includes many built-in prompts to help you make improvements. They are mostly helpful, numerous, and a good way to navigate this most recent tranche of technical updates.
- The one very useful change I want to highlight is the ability to re-order your Recommendations. When in edit mode, simply grab any Recommendation, then drag it to the desired rank position. Recommendations were previously listed chronologically ie with the latest at the top of the list. That had a certain logic; but being able to choose the order is much more useful, as it allows you to bring to the top those recommendations you wish to showcase. This order will no doubt change dependent on your evolving LinkedIn strategy.
In the Dog-House
- There are some features I am putting in the ‘minus column’. For example my LinkedIn Profile annoyingly suggests I should complete a section called ‘Test Scores‘. I have no idea what Test Scores means.
- The ‘Endorsements‘ feature was unveiled prior to the main Profile updates and it is safe to say the jury is still out. When I spoke at ‘Social Media for Professionals’ many people asked me about Endorsements: were they worth seeking? Should I endorse others? What value have they got? At the time this new feature was just days old and I didn’t have a view. Now time has passed, I feel Endorsements are very cosmetic, compared to Recommendations. Nonetheless they are easy to get and give, and I’m not going to lose any sleep about the number of Endorsements I have.
More LinkedIn updates in due course.