LinkedIn announced today that it’s added an applications feature inside the wildly-popular business social networking site. This means you can now add interactive functionality to spice up your personal profile page and hopefully drive more awareness on the site. Initial applications include WordPress (for embedding blog posts into your profile), Reading List from Amazon (share your favorite books), Box.net (for sharing files), SlideShare (for sharing documents), and several others. I would expect this application pool to grow extensively over the upcoming months.
Personally, I’ve not used LinkedIn as extensively as I have in the past because of my growing interest in Facebook. For me, Facebook has been a much more intimate affair and effective means of communicating while LinkedIn has always seemed a bit cold and distant. Sure, I have my 500+ contacts but aside from an occasional update, I don’t interact with these folks through LinkedIn. My hope is with the new LinkedIn applications functionality I will gain benefits that cannot be obtained through Facebook and therefore increase LinkedIn’s relevance for me.
I read about this earlier today with some interest, but I like how LinkedIn has been the professional alternative to Facebook. I’d rather not have the former become more like the latter. But that’s just me…
Every traditional site that has some semblance of social networking built into it is rolling out an application platform. It’s an arms race to the finish. May the users win.
Nothing seems to be easier than seeing someone whom you can help but not helping.
I suggest we start giving it a try. Give love to the ones that need it.
God will appreciate it.