LinkedIn looks a lot more like Facebook these days, and it bugs me.

I see more people choosing to post political stories and their personal take on those headlines.  I come across many “what I did at home this weekend” posts with photos better-suited for Instagram. Geeze! What’s happening to my favorite business platform?

Copy-Paste-Paste-Paste

The shift to more personal content may be the flight from Facebook where many people I know (including myself) say they don’t like what that platform’s become.

Another reason could be that people use social media scheduling tools. I know, I know. It’s much easier to do a copy-paste-paste-paste across your assorted social accounts, keeping the images, content and hashtags the same. But this time-saver doesn’t honor the nuances of the different platforms. As a social media manager and marketer who advises clients about these things, this strategy is on my don’t-do list.

I was on a rant about this the other day and emailed a long-time friend of mine in Kansas City, Megan Neher, a public relations pro who runs MNPR. Megan still does the more traditional PR work of getting her clients on TV and in print. But today’s PR pros, including Megan, manage social media accounts for clients. They also work with influencers in hopes the big-name bloggers and well-known Instagrammers will favorably mention their clients’ products and services.

When Megan responded to my email rant, she seemed calmer about the Facebookification of LinkedIn than I was. She sees a little bit of what I’m talking about but not many political posts. She relies on social media schedulers (I do, too) and sometimes shares the same content across platforms. But Megan looks for ways to take advantage of what she sees as the differences between the social channels.

What works On LinkedIn (and elsewhere)

Megan has a heart for nonprofits and has worked with many over the years. When it comes time for those organizations to communicate on social, here’s how Megan decides what fits where:

• Facebook is great for something that tugs at the heartstrings.
• LinkedIn is typically something corporate or about an organization’s employees.
• Twitter is used for timely and news-worthy content and for events.

I like that breakdown (thanks, Megan!).

There’s another KC friend I wanted to reach out to for this article. He’s a former co-worker from my financial services days. We’re connected on LinkedIn and I’ve always considered him somewhat of a LinkedIn guru. I’ve been noticing that he posts a great many thought-of-the-day image-photo posts and the occasional walking or running pic. These posts seem out-of-place to me, but maybe he knows what he’s doing and I’m just set in my ways. But a #sweatieselfie shared with your business connections? I’m not a fan so I held back from asking for his thoughts.

This Shift’s been Happening for a few years

Change is the norm with social media, and LinkedIn’s gone through many over the years. The platform showed up in 2002 and I started my account in 2007. Since then, I’ve seen LinkedIn grow and morph, sometimes not for the better. Others have noticed changes, too.

I proved that by googling is LinkedIn becoming Facebook? and found several dated nuggets:

• 

  A chicken on Linkedin? That’s NSFW content!

  On a 2011-dated Quora thread, someone said that if LinkedIn kept trying to be like Facebook, it would be a big misstep and that it needs to try harder to be more than just a mobile Rolodex. (I had one of those. Did you?)

• In 2017, LinkedIn Is the New Facebook: Here’s What You Need to Know, mentions the term “Facebookification” — and here I thought I made that word up — and ends with this line: LinkedIn is the new Facebook. Deal with it.
• A 2019 Guild article, Is LinkedIn Becoming Facebook-ized?, called out many of the platform’s weaknesses — such as, how LinkedIn groups are too sales-y (I got fed up with them years ago!) and how there’s an abundance of “low-grade recycled ‘articles.'” (The writer guy, Ashley, made me chuckle out loud when he said: “I’m pleased for the girl and the chicken but I expect this kind of stuff on Facebook, not LinkedIn.”)

I Love Linkedin, Warts and All

Knowing I’m not the only one to gripe about LinkedIn makes me feel better — misery loves company — and my annoyance is growing milder. There are more important things to be upset about in this world, and the Facebookification of LinkedIn is the smallest of small potatoes.

I still enjoy using LinkedIn and am on the platform almost daily because:

• It’s my favorite networking tool (even way before the pandemic) for keeping in touch with my network. And I value those 1,600+ connections more since becoming self-employed almost five years ago!
• I’m a fan of the photos and videos people use to add life to their posts. They make for a more interesting scroll through my newsfeed.
• I’m glad that, back in 2018, LinkedIn added hashtags. Categorizing content is a #win and I enjoy following certain hashtags, such as #typography.
• I’m a data-focused marketer who finds it fun to see LinkedIn’s algorithm in action. When a weeks-old, seemingly dead post of mine gets new life when someone comments on it, it’s fun seeing the thing take off again. It reminds me of the computing power that’s behind the scenes.

On the flip side, I deplore LinkedIn’s search functionality! The search box isn’t easy to find. There aren’t enough filters, and LinkedIn wants you to pay more to do a deep search. The results aren’t dependable, so I tend to get better ones by jumping over to Google to search for LinkedIn accounts there. Grrrr!

[Deep breath.]

LinkedIn is Business Casual Now

While I’d love it if LinkedIn stayed more business-focused, its business-casual vibe isn’t likely to revert. Many of us are working from home now and may do so for the rest of our careers. “Work” is different today, and I like the changes I see. Social media is deeply ingrained in our lives, and the bleed-over from one platform to another will only continue.

I’m looking back at how Megan ended her email to me:

I hope that LinkedIn remains more for business messaging — just as you do. I like having some personality in LinkedIn posts, but I don’t think that has to mean you tell people what you’re having for dinner or what you did in your garden last weekend! There’s a professional way to work personality into your business/professional posts.

I agree and that’s what I’ll continue to do on my LinkedIn account and in the social media management work I do for clients. You won’t find me talking about the chickens I see down the road when I’m walking by working hard on my Stepbet challenge. (Both true.) You’ll see my sometimes-provocative, always-transparent and business-centered LinkedIn posts. Because that’s my strategy for LinkedIn, and it’s working for me.