LinkedIn has hit the streets of San Francisco and New York in the LinkedIn News Trucks. Armed with coffee from Martha & Brothers in SF and Brooklyn Roasting Company in NY respectfully and the newly launched LinkedIn Today, the trucks wanted to gather real time information about LinkedIn Today.
LinkedIn Today
LinkedIn Today has been discussed on this blog at its launch. I find it very useful (as discussed in a comment with Joel Libava, @FranchiseKing) as I am able to follow certain industries that I have not paid all that much attention to in the hustle and bustle of every day life. Sure, a lot of it is repetition and we can find it in so many other places and the top stories are generally the ones on the other sites but it is condensed in one spot. We all have our favorite sites that we check to be sure that we are in the know and some come directly to us in our inbox, RSS, etc. However there is something different about LinkedIn Today. Not only are the stories contained in one spot it also gives us a chance to see who is sharing them. Are you connected to them? Have you been exposed to them previously? It is a chance to delve in and see who is sharing in your industry or even another industry to learn about other areas. I see it as such an opportunity to expand your connections.
LinkedIn Today Prominent Profile Display
LinkedIn Today is now prominently displayed on your page. Located directly underneath your Status Update and above All Updates. This encourages use as previously you had to go to the page directly via linkedin.com/today. Is this the right move? It is hard to say as some may be annoyed by it however with 100 million users, I cannot imagine that ALL will ignore this and not use it. It may entice more to share articles and try and have theirs or those that they like be showcased however, will this be the beginnings of the popularity contest that we are trying to avoid? There are platforms for that. Yes, the articles features are by popularity so this already exists but the share me so I can share you and so on could kill the credibility.
LinkedIn Hits the Streets
According to , Product Marketing at LinkedIn
The reaction to the product and the LinkedIn Today Trucks experience has been very positive. Users were most interested in finding out when we’d be rolling out LinkedIn Today functionality on their platform of choice (Android, iPad, etc.).
Free coffee gets people talking, this we know. Seeing a LinkedIn wrapped truck giving out free coffee is definitely not expected on the streets of New York and despite being housed in San Francisco, it is not the ordinary. Having the ability to go out in the streets and ask people, many times provides valuable information as they are caught off guard and do not have a whole lot of time to think about their answer. If they are not aware, using or do not like something, it is very clear pretty quickly. On the flip side, you have given them some coffee so as a “payment” they happily provide their thoughts on how to improve. As the trucks were out the end of March, was the feedback received the prompt to move LinkedIn Today to each profile page?
With the new location of LinkedIn Today on your LinkedIn profile page, will this take advantage of it? Also, if you had seen and also talked with the folks at LinkedIn on the truck, please share your experience.
photo credit: LinkedIn Blog
