Three Truths About LinkedIn Groups & Where They Fail

http://beingcheryl.com/ Cheryl Harrison

I agree Nate. The only LinkedIn group I (somewhat) actively engage in is one that I am a) an administrator of and b) is really an in-person networking group fueled by LinkedIn (Columbus Marketing Executives.) Other than that I am in a lot of groups because of the network it exposes me to, NOT because the groups, in and of themselves, are valuable.

http://beingcheryl.com Cheryl Harrison

I agree Nate. The only LinkedIn group I (somewhat) actively engage in is one that I am a) an administrator of and b) is really an in-person networking group fueled by LinkedIn (Columbus Marketing Executives.) Other than that I am in a lot of groups because of the network it exposes me to, NOT because the groups, in and of themselves, are valuable.

http://www.whattheythink.com/ Eric

I have to vote truth as well. I find my self deleting most LI update emails. I do scan them quickly so maybe there is value in that, but I haven’t gotten much out of the few groups I’m in on LI. We do use them to push stuff out, but even that has shown limited value.

And we all 3 sat through Lewis’ preso. We missing something Lewis?

http://igster101.wordpress.com/ Craig Ignatowitz

LinkedIn is to me, a lot like all the other Social Media things I belong to, the groups seem to be,as you say a vehicle for push marketing. I belong to several groups, some because they concern things like the Submarine Service and others because they looked like a good way to network. I rarely do anything with them these days.

http://www.whattheythink.com Eric

I have to vote truth as well. I find my self deleting most LI update emails. I do scan them quickly so maybe there is value in that, but I haven’t gotten much out of the few groups I’m in on LI. We do use them to push stuff out, but even that has shown limited value.

And we all 3 sat through Lewis’ preso. We missing something Lewis?

http://igster101.wordpress.com Craig Ignatowitz

LinkedIn is to me, a lot like all the other Social Media things I belong to, the groups seem to be,as you say a vehicle for push marketing. I belong to several groups, some because they concern things like the Submarine Service and others because they looked like a good way to network. I rarely do anything with them these days.

nateriggs

Cheryl,

Thanks for the comment. I manage the TMCA group on LinkedIn which is for marketers in transportation. It’s a challenge getting anyone to actually engage on a LinkedIn Group, yet people seem to have no problem on Facebook. My opinion there is that you can share better content – pictures, video etc. – where as on LinkedIn, your locked into sharing stuff that just doesn’t draw interest or a click.

Seems like the only reason LinkedIn groups are there is for network expansion. Wonder if that’s really the purpose?

nateriggs

Cheryl,

Thanks for the comment. I manage the TMCA group on LinkedIn which is for marketers in transportation. It’s a challenge getting anyone to actually engage on a LinkedIn Group, yet people seem to have no problem on Facebook. My opinion there is that you can share better content – pictures, video etc. – where as on LinkedIn, your locked into sharing stuff that just doesn’t draw interest or a click.

Seems like the only reason LinkedIn groups are there is for network expansion. Wonder if that’s really the purpose?

nateriggs

Thanks for the comment Craig. I seem to remember it being different a few years ago when groups first came to be popular. People would dialog and reply to comments, and now it seems that you can almost hear the crickets chirp on a group page. Do you think this could be a result of the over saturation of groups?

nateriggs

Thanks for the comment Craig. I seem to remember it being different a few years ago when groups first came to be popular. People would dialog and reply to comments, and now it seems that you can almost hear the crickets chirp on a group page. Do you think this could be a result of the over saturation of groups?

nateriggs

Eric – you bring up a good point. Could the problem lie in the delivery method? Have we all become use to overfilled email in boxes and the ease of the delete button? Would LinkedIn groups get more attention if comments were tweeted out to a members profile with a bit.ly link that brought you back to the group page? There would be some challenges there (mainly due to LinkedIn’s opt in policies) but I wonder if that would up engagement… Thanks for the thought!

nateriggs

Eric – you bring up a good point. Could the problem lie in the delivery method? Have we all become use to overfilled email in boxes and the ease of the delete button? Would LinkedIn groups get more attention if comments were tweeted out to a members profile with a bit.ly link that brought you back to the group page? There would be some challenges there (mainly due to LinkedIn’s opt in policies) but I wonder if that would up engagement… Thanks for the thought!

http://igster101.wordpress.com/ Craig Ignatowitz

It would seem there are a hundred new groups a day. This confuses me in the same way as adding 567890 members to your network. What’s the point?Aside from a bigger pool to spam.

http://igster101.wordpress.com Craig Ignatowitz

It would seem there are a hundred new groups a day. This confuses me in the same way as adding 567890 members to your network. What’s the point?Aside from a bigger pool to spam.

http://www.agent-seo.com/ Jacob Stoops

Yeah. I view LinkedIn as more of an online resume rather a good way to connect to people. In fact, I rarely communicate with anyone over LinkedIn, and find that the groups I’ve joined is more of a burden than a benefit. All I ever get is my weekly spam-like updates, with no real interactive value. Kind of annoying, but I have to have a LinkedIn account otherwise I’ll be “Out of the Know” in the social media world…even if it doesn’t provide me with any real value.

http://www.agent-seo.com Jacob Stoops

Yeah. I view LinkedIn as more of an online resume rather a good way to connect to people. In fact, I rarely communicate with anyone over LinkedIn, and find that the groups I’ve joined is more of a burden than a benefit. All I ever get is my weekly spam-like updates, with no real interactive value. Kind of annoying, but I have to have a LinkedIn account otherwise I’ll be “Out of the Know” in the social media world…even if it doesn’t provide me with any real value.

Richard Basile

Every group I’ve joined on LinkedIn I did so for the sole purpose of connecting with its members. The signal to noise ratio on the distributions detracts from any other value these groups may have. I remain subscribed to the group updates for the simple reason that I need a job and am looking out for the rare opportunity. I’m an Oracle developer in a Microsoft town, so I’m looking for that needle in a haystack. See how I just used your comments to pimp myself out? That’s what I happening within the group discussions. Period.

Richard Basile

There is still value in LinkedIn. First and foremost, it has helped me to reconnect and stay in touch with people; LinkedIn is a giant rolodex. Second, I did land at least an interview with a target company when a recruiter from that company found my profile. Third, it has helped me to develop a list of target companies by searching profiles of other with skills similar to my own. Finally, LinkedIn has helped me to research the people who are interviewing me prior to the fact. Now, if only I can turn all of this into a job!

Richard Basile

Every group I’ve joined on LinkedIn I did so for the sole purpose of connecting with its members. The signal to noise ratio on the distributions detracts from any other value these groups may have. I remain subscribed to the group updates for the simple reason that I need a job and am looking out for the rare opportunity. I’m an Oracle developer in a Microsoft town, so I’m looking for that needle in a haystack. See how I just used your comments to pimp myself out? That’s what I happening within the group discussions. Period.

Richard Basile

There is still value in LinkedIn. First and foremost, it has helped me to reconnect and stay in touch with people; LinkedIn is a giant rolodex. Second, I did land at least an interview with a target company when a recruiter from that company found my profile. Third, it has helped me to develop a list of target companies by searching profiles of other with skills similar to my own. Finally, LinkedIn has helped me to research the people who are interviewing me prior to the fact. Now, if only I can turn all of this into a job!

http://www.zyvexpro.com/ Mike Nemeth

I’ve found LinkedIn groups to be useful product development sounding boards only when there is a clear purpose to the group – specific industry focus, etc… It’s the ‘Bright Ideas’ and other generic groups that haven’t impressed me at all. I actually found your LinkedIn status update as I logged in to change email settings and stop the endless flood of updates from groups that aren’t useful to me.

http://www.zyvexpro.com Mike Nemeth

I’ve found LinkedIn groups to be useful product development sounding boards only when there is a clear purpose to the group – specific industry focus, etc… It’s the ‘Bright Ideas’ and other generic groups that haven’t impressed me at all. I actually found your LinkedIn status update as I logged in to change email settings and stop the endless flood of updates from groups that aren’t useful to me.

http://juliakinslow.wordpress.com/ Julia Kinslow

Nate:

It takes guts to admit what many of us have already been thinking about LinkedIn groups – some groups are very engaging, others not so much.

I have found success in using groups as a forum for asking challenging questions that I can’t seem to get an answer to through regular search means. Also, I have found them useful in getting residual hits to my blog posts often a week or more beyond their original posting dates through the weekly digest e-mails. I don’t get this result from Twitter or Facebook.

I think clutter could be reduced if individuals stick to using groups as they were originally intended — for connecting with others in your area of interest and for asking thought-provoking, relevant business questions. Upon posting, an individual should ask him/herself: will this add real value to the group, or just be another opportunity for promotion of my products and services?

If things remain the way they are for LinkedIn groups, we will continue to give them our “continuous-partial attention.” (via Linda Stone)

http://juliakinslow.wordpress.com/ Julia Kinslow

Nate:

It takes guts to admit what many of us have already been thinking about LinkedIn groups – some groups are very engaging, others not so much.

I have found success in using groups as a forum for asking challenging questions that I can’t seem to get an answer to through regular search means. Also, I have found them useful in getting residual hits to my blog posts often a week or more beyond their original posting dates through the weekly digest e-mails. I don’t get this result from Twitter or Facebook.

I think clutter could be reduced if individuals stick to using groups as they were originally intended — for connecting with others in your area of interest and for asking thought-provoking, relevant business questions. Upon posting, an individual should ask him/herself: will this add real value to the group, or just be another opportunity for promotion of my products and services?

If things remain the way they are for LinkedIn groups, we will continue to give them our “continuous-partial attention.” (via Linda Stone)

http://GenuineChris.com/ GenuineChris Johnson

Let’s change this.

Let’s set an example of what a linked in group can be for other people.

Let’s find a topic, which could be “how to be relevant,” or “how to be a people helper,” and make it grow. Let’s make it such that other folks can do it, and let’s either set the settings to no digest spam or just suggest they do.

I have Benefited from Linkedin Groups. But only because it gathers together people interested in crap I sell, not because I’ve ever had a relevant discussion there.

http://GenuineChris.com GenuineChris Johnson

Let’s change this.

Let’s set an example of what a linked in group can be for other people.

Let’s find a topic, which could be “how to be relevant,” or “how to be a people helper,” and make it grow. Let’s make it such that other folks can do it, and let’s either set the settings to no digest spam or just suggest they do.

I have Benefited from Linkedin Groups. But only because it gathers together people interested in crap I sell, not because I’ve ever had a relevant discussion there.

nateriggs

I apologize for having to comment in sequence. Dis.qus will be part of my redesign (when that happens – cobblers son argument here

Julia – great comments. Crowd-sourcing in active groups is a great way to build connections and a strong knowledge base (just ask Perry Maughmer about that one). It’s a shame that the percentage of active groups on LnikedIn is growing smaller.

GenuineChris – you are on to something and it’s a good idea. If you start the group, I’ll join up

nateriggs

I apologize for having to comment in sequence. Dis.qus will be part of my redesign (when that happens – cobblers son argument here

Julia – great comments. Crowd-sourcing in active groups is a great way to build connections and a strong knowledge base (just ask Perry Maughmer about that one). It’s a shame that the percentage of active groups on LnikedIn is growing smaller.

GenuineChris – you are on to something and it’s a good idea. If you start the group, I’ll join up