LinkedIn, a professional networking site, invites users to go into creator mode, a setting designed to encourage users to post more of their own content, perhaps with the goal of becoming influencers or, in corporate jargon, thought leaders.
One of the new features, Creator Mode, changes the way profiles are displayed to highlight the topics users discuss most on the platform. After selecting creator mode, users can post hashtags based on their interests that appear under the job title in their profile. Essentially, designer mode moves the Activity and Features sections, which highlight posts and links shared by the user, up so they appear before the bio fields under Info.
Creator Mode, launching this week, will also allow people to follow others with the new settings rather than adding someone to their professional network. The Follow button was still available, but users had to search for it in the settings menu.
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Networking on LinkedIn has evolved from finding a new job and interacting with other professionals to learning new skills, seeking career advice and reading industry news, according to the study
Keren Baruch,
Group Product Manager on LinkedIn.
As our ecosystem grows and the world of work evolves, we see that content is now central to the way professionals interact not only with their work, but also with their industry, their colleagues and their communities, Baruch said.
Market research firm eMarketer estimates that the number of U.S. adults who have a LinkedIn connection at least once a month will grow from 62.1 million last year to 64.7 million this year, rising to 70.9 million by 2024.
But LinkedIn also faces competition from startups that offer a new edge, such as the audio app Clubhouse and Upstream, which connects professions.
LinkedIn’s creator mode allows users to indicate on their profile that they are content creators on the platform.
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The changes at LinkedIn, which was acquired by Microsoft Corp. in 2016 for about $26 billion, come months after the company overhauled its platform and rolled out its own version of the story-posting format popular on Snapchat and Instagram.
The new creator mode should encourage more people to post to LinkedIn, especially business people who already create content for the platform.
It democratizes the process and makes it simpler and easier for more professionals who don’t necessarily spend a lot of time and attention developing their personal brand and presence, but would like to do so more, he said.
Dory Clark,
assistant professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Ms Clark has 188,000 followers on LinkedIn.
Unlike most social media platforms, LinkedIn is a place for professionals to promote themselves and their successes, according to
Jason Lemkin,
CEO of SaaStr Inc, an enterprise software and content website company. Lemkin has nearly 190,000 followers on LinkedIn and regularly posts comments on industry news or repository content on SaaStr.
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What LinkedIn allows you to do, which is very powerful, is to become a microthought leader in a small space, Lemkin said.
According to users, one of the disadvantages of the creator mode is the increased risk of spam. LinkedIn says users can report posts they consider spam, misleading or fraudulent, and the company will investigate.
LinkedIn should also offer users a way to make money in creator mode, according to
Jasmine Escalera,
A career coach with nearly 5,000 followers on LinkedIn.
I don’t think there’s a content creator who isn’t trying to make money off the content they put out, Escalera said.
LinkedIn said it is listening to its users on this issue.
By continuing to listen to our members’ feedback, we will continue to evolve the way we create more value for our creators, Baruch said.
Email Anne-Marie Alcantara at [email protected].
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