There is quite a discussion over at LinkedIn about the business social media platform. Some people are saying that LinkedIn is RIP because posts are more general in nature and one woman even said that guys have been “hitting on her” via messages. What we are forgetting is that social media platforms are defined by users, not by the brand.
I would tend to agree that LinkedIn has some problems, but then the social media is a combination of business, motivation and people trying to “sell” others on their services. Still, if someone becomes annoying or posts irrelevant stories I can choose to “unfollow” them and delete them as a contact. The bottom line is that LinkedIn is evolving as users evolve their needs and wants.
Facebook, on the other hand, is thinking of ways to get people to post most personal stories at a time when users are using Facebook as website to share news stories. More people are using Facebook, not to see what friends are doing, but as an aggregate news feed which is scary because then they are relying on Facebook to provide them with relevant news.
Social media and Internet use are synonymous today. People don’t have enough time to surf various websites so sites that can quickly report the news headlines are useful. While much has been made about content marketing little is mentioned about the overwhelming depth of content that’s not being read.
Facebook and Instagram are on a roll right now gathering a lot of users and money. However, I would theorize that these platforms will continue to evolve as users determine how to use them. LinkedIn could step in and take action to delete posts that they feel are not in alignment with the brand, but in the end users will determine what the site becomes.