LinkedIn: “_______ follows you and is inviting you to connect”
Me: Clicks “Accept”
LinkedIn: “Take care when connecting. For your safety, we recommend you only connect with people you know and trust.”
Am I the only one getting mixed messages here?
Of the thousands of people who have followed me and asked to connect with me here on LinkedIn, there are only a relative handful I know and trust. Almost none of my clients or social connections in real life are active on social media. I thought the idea of business social media like LinkedIn was to gain exposure to more people so that a few would evolve over time into people that I know and trust. No? I have met a few interesting people on LinkedIn who I now trust after following their content and having occasional phone or text message communications. This is probably less than 10 people.
On Friday afternoon in a group training session about LinkedIn strategy I mentioned that I hardly know anyone of the 3,000+ listed as my connections. We are connected because they asked and I clicked “Accept”. I mentioned that I share content here almost daily for years but never built a client lead, but rather a few peer connections. Another business adviser in the group mentioned that she is cutting back on the number of her LinkedIn connections. Now I wonder if that a smart strategy.
Discussion evolved to the conclusion that the sole purpose of LinkedIn activity for me should be to find possible speaking engagements or possible live in-person connections. That would be a radical shift. It sounds like an attractive strategy, but why have I not read anyone else adapting this strategy?
It seems likely that a LinkedIn strategy reassessment will be a priority for me in the near future.