March 27, 2011

Why LinkedIn Today rocks

Earlier this month, LinkedIn announced LinkedIn Today, a new functionality on the site that “delivers the day’s top news, tailored to you based on what your connections and industry peers are reading and sharing”. I first dismissed this as just another way of keeping up with your networks (i.e. another “stream”), but I quickly discovered that it’s more than that.

So how does it work? Basically, it aggregates the most shared links on your network in one page. To quote the official announcement, LinkedIn Today “can help you cut through all the clutter, so you can discover the top headlines you need to read to be better informed everyday”. The links are not curated by editors; they are automatically generated by what your professional networks share.

Below are just some pros and cons I’ve noted after accessing LinkedIn Today on the web and the iPhone app.

Pros:

Cuts down the noise. LinkedIn Today is not just like Twitter streams or Facebook newsfeed. It’s really more similar to Twitter trending topics, but more specific to your network. Seeing what your professional network is reading and sharing the most is an efficient way of keeping up with news that really matters to you.
Works on mobile, so it’s easy to keep up. By mobile, I mean the iPhone, of course. Not sure if it’s available for Android users.
Visual. The site pulls pictures from the articles, so the page isn’t boring.
Allows you to follow sources, so your networks don’t necessarily have to share an article for you to see it.
Allows you to customize what you see based on your industry or interests. You can even save articles that you like for future viewing

Cons:

Not integrated to the homepage. As far as I can tell, LinkedIn Today is a standalone page; I can’t find it on the home page or on any of the major tabs. You can get to the page directly via http://www.linkedin.com/today
Pics may appear wonky. In the main headline, some images appears overstretched or not appearing at all. The layout of the page can be cleaner and slicker.
Missing some industries - for now at least.

These are small things though, and I expect LinkedIn Today to get better as the company continues to develop it. Overall, I think LinkedIn Today is a great new functionality that definitely makes me an even bigger fan of the site.

For job-seekers, LinkedIn Today gives you another reason to post updates on your LinkedIn. By posting regularly, your articles might appear on your network’s LinkedIn Today pages, and this may help you further establish your expertise.

Still curious how LinkedIn Today works? Here’s short video that explains it: