LinkedIn announced last week that Tweets will no longer be displayed on LinkedIn.
- No more automatic feeding of your Twitter activity into LinkedIn
- No more broadcasting of Tweets with #in or #li on LinkedIn
Some people seem to think this is awful, but I think it is a good thing and here’s why:
- The LinkedIn News feed was getting very noisy with Tweets from people who never visited LinkedIn – People tended to set their Twitter to feed automatically into LinkedIn and then forgot about the platform.
- Not all the things you say on Twitter are appropriate for LinkedIn – Each Social Media platform has its own personality – On LinkedIn you are always a business person whereas on Twitter you are a business person but also show your human side. Conversations about walking your dog or chatting to other people on Twitter were not suitable for LinkedIn.
- Frequency of Updates – Most tweets only have a short life span and so it is okay to tweet frequently. Updates on LinkedIn last longer. Many LinkedIn users were annoyed by the number of automated tweets drowning the updates by genuine LinkedIn users.
- Twitter has its own language and jargon – Not everyone understands hashtags or what RT and DM mean.
- Many updates were duplicated. People often set up Twitter to feed automatically into LinkedIn and then used a tool like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck to publish the same content into LinkedIn again.
If you want to broadcast the same content to both LinkedIn and Twitter, you still can by:
- Posting on LinkedIn and make you sure you tick the Twitter box
- Use a third party dashboard like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite to publish content
What do you think about LinkedIn’s announcement? Did you use to have your Twitter feeding automatically into LinkedIn? Love to hear your viewpoint in the comments below.
Nicky Kriel
Nicky Kriel is a Social Media Coach & Trainer inspiring, educating and empowering Business Owners to use Social Media more strategically. She is also the author of How to Twitter for Business Success. For more information visit http://www.nickykriel.com or to find out about her courses that she runs in Guildford visit http://www.nickykriel.com/courses
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Hi Nicky,
Personally, it could have increased my already “time expensive” commitment to social media platforms…..not social media, but their supporting platforms. Why?
I use twitter (@martinstillman – only for business comms) as it’s fast, simple, concise and allows me to post links to my web site or blog topics with speed and ease. Automatically sending that on to LinkedIn, allowed me to ensure my business contacts saw those links too – with one simple posting.
So for me, the solution is ifttt.com (if this, then that) which allows me to continue as before, with tailored programmable treatment of each tweet…..
Maybe ifttt.com should become an acquisition target for LinkedIn or Twitter, as an early stage structural shakedown in social media that already feels overdue?
Hi Martin
I have had a look at it and I’m not sure what benefits ifttt.com has over other tools like Hootsuite. I get business through Twitter and LinkedIn because I build relationships through them not because I automate everything. Social Media doesn’t have to take that much time each day if you use it strategically. Before Tweets streamed automatically into LinkedIn, it was generally recommended you update your LinkedIn status 3 times a week. (Adding a connection, adding to a discussion or updating your profile are included as updates.) The noise from the Twitter feed made updates less effective. It will be interesting to see what happens now.
Nicky
Hi Nicky,
I guess my point is that I only use Twitter for Business Comms and want that to go to whoever wishes to follow me on Twitter – but also to my Business Contacts on LinkedIn – so for me, the same (and not profligate) messages on both platforms, personally written and not automated, suited my need.
I understand and accept the point regarding LinkedIn noise and from this perspective (where others don’t use Twitter as I do) I can appreciate the positivity of the change.
As this can (for those who wish) be circumnavigated by re-posting via Hootsuite or ifttt.com, not having it has to be better!
Hi Martin
I know you don’t use Twitter for general conversation. I think you will find that by continuing to update LinkedIn regularly your visibility on LinkedIn will improve as it is less noisy now. Thank you for contributing to the discussion.
Nicky
This is a welcome relief for me. I have been frustrated that my carefully-written LinkedIn posts vanish for everyone in a sea of garbage. What’s wrong with using Tweetdeck to choose content suitable or LinkedIn and ticking the appropriate box? That seems an ideal approach to me. I had taken to ignoring everyone else’s updates because they were so irrelevant and banal – lazy use of a valuable platform. So how could I expect anyone else to see mine? My LinkedIn network is exactly that – a cultivated network of business contacts generated over several years. These people deserve a different set of messages, info and update to my Twitter network. Some overlap, sure, but not the volume of updates that get put out on Twitter. You wouldn’t autofeed your Twitter stream to Facebook (unless you were ignorant or mad) so why on earth would you do it for your valuable business contacts?
Hi Kathy
I agree with you. I stopped paying attention to my LinkedIn updates because they were predominantly Tweets. It will be interesting to see what impact this has in the long term.
Nicky
Nikky,
This is a huge relief! Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
Jide
Hi Jide
Hopefully LinkedIn will return to the way it was before it allowed tweets to be broadcasted on LinkedIn. Thank you for leaving a comment.
Nicky
If it means people are going to make more of a concious effort when it comes to their marketing can only be a good thing
Hi Lianne-Carla
The problem with automation is that people set it up and forget about it. I agree with you that a conscious effort makes a difference. Thank you for your input.
Nicky