If Forced to Choose It’s LinkedIn By a Landslide

Here I go. I am about to become another voice in the melee that we call social networking. If I scream out in the crowded internet public square where everyone else is screaming about social networking will I be heard? Probably not. Regardless, I am still going to give my opinion on the cleanest and most effective way to network with professional folks: LinkedIn. I don’t work for them or have some affiliate deal or anything like that. I just like it because it seems to work well for me so I’m going to share with you.

Social networking / marketing / whatever is a highly personal choice. It’s almost like buying a car because the way that you network through all the different venues like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Plaxo blah, blah, blah, blah is a reflection of who you are. Now remember, I am speaking from a purely B to B professional’s point of view here. I am not interested at all in people’s weekend exploits or their favorite color or their astrological sign. If I am learning this kind of stuff from someone it’s because I have a real relationship with them. You remember those, right? The thing where you actually speak to someone or maybe even shake their hand then you talk to them (phone or in person counts here) and you relate to them. Sharing stupid human tricks with anyone with an internet connection is not relating. It’s just plain odd.

So back to LinkedIn. I can learn about what someone does or has done for a living. I can then see if there is a chance for us to help each other based on the experience we bring to the table. I can then be given an introduction by an intermediary or I can contact them directly. They in turn can make the same assessment about me based on my profile. No judgments on activities other than mostly business stuff. I like that. LinkedIn keeps business and personal separate matters separate in an appropriate way. I have reconnected with people through LinkedIn that I figured were simply just part of my past experiences at jobs from other lives. It has been interesting to get back in touch via LinkedIn though because since it is work related it is safer.

Is it risky? Not nearly as much as the other networking options, in my opinion. I am more concerned about protecting my connections from someone that I let in than I am of something happening to me. There is a level of social responsibility that is more easily exercised on LinkedIn than on other social outlets. As for people lying? I suppose that has a lot to do with your worldview. What I mean by that is that you think everyone is good then you would suspect that most people are telling the truth. If you come from the other side of the tracks you will be a bit suspect of most folks until you really get to know them. Just like I tell my kids to be careful about dealing with strangers I feel the same way about these outlets. If you don’t go into this environment with your eyes wide open you could get burned. I will say though that it seems much less likely on LinkedIn than at the other social networking hot spots. Naïve? Maybe. The beauty part is that being stalked by a business predator is lot more safe than what lurks in the bowels of some of the other options out there.

So there. I said it. I am a LinkedIn fan. I have a Facebook page but I never check it. I think I have something with Plaxo only because I get an e-mail from them from time to time. I have a Classmates.com account because it’s safer than a real reunion. However, if I were forced to pick one option over the rest,  it would be LinkedIn because it fits me well.

SMB Takeaway: Among the myriad of social networking options, LinkedIn does the best job of keeping things professional by far. The other social networking options work for their own reasons but when it comes to business LinkedIn is head and shoulders above the rest.

Thanks and have a great day!