With over 800 million users connected to the platform, LinkedIn is one of the largest professional networking sites. Users from more than 200 countries are connected to it, and as you read it, there will be many more joining in. LinkedIn is a social networking site that specializes in jobs and business. This platform caters to all your professional needs, from finding suitable candidates to fixing a perfect job. Offering both paid and free services, LinkedIn is also a perfectly designed analytics tool. It can be a fantastic tool for your career, but you need to know the advantages and disadvantages of LinkedIn.
Advantages of LinkedIn
It’s surprising to know that marketing through LinkedIn can help you make millions. Nearly 45% of LinkedIn users earn more than $75,000 a year. That’s not it; if you are just looking for a perfect company to join, you are likely to get a genuine opportunity here. Here are some advantages of LinkedIn services to consider at first.
1. LinkedIn is a Tool for Finding Jobs
A study found that 122 Million LinkedIn users received a call for an interview through LinkedIn. Almost 36 million users got hired by the companies who contacted them through this platform. You can search through millions of job postings at any time from anywhere in the world. This platform allows you to find your dream career. LinkedIn has also been proven to be more effective than other social media sites when getting people hired. In fact, 49% of hiring managers and recruiters report that they have hired someone through LinkedIn. It’s also great if you’re looking for employment at one specific company since many companies require their employees to be on LinkedIn while others let them decide whether or not they should sign up with the site.
2. LinkedIn is a Fantastic Way to Network
Networking can be complex, especially if you have trouble networking with people in person or on the phone. LinkedIn makes this easier since it allows you to connect and communicate without being physically present together. LinkedIn also gives many advantages when networking professionally by allowing individuals from different companies to share ideas and experiences. Everyone on this platform has access to more information about the best practices within their industry. Many hiring managers find it really easy to look for the right skills and communicate with the candidates through LinkedIn.
3. LinkedIn is Free to Use
LinkedIn is free to use, well, mostly; this means you can create an account and begin networking with others for no cost. This makes LinkedIn a great option if you are looking to the network without paying for the privilege. You can use its services when it comes to building relationships through your personal profile or company page. It is also easy to search other users’ profiles within the platform to find common connections that may assist you in the future. Another benefit of using LinkedIn is that you merely have to pay for its overtime use.
4. It’s a Great Place to Share your Knowledge
LinkedIn has become a hub for professionals to find answers and network with others in their industry. This advantage makes it an excellent choice to build up your reputation knowing what you are talking about. You will indeed be suggested to make more connections with like-minded professionals worldwide based on your area of expertise. Having built your online presence will leverage you in terms of a strong reputation. This means you can answer questions or post updates that may benefit those looking for relevant information. That’s why LinkedIn is a valuable tool when it comes to marketing yourself. This way, you can ensure that people remember your name even after leaving college or university.
5. LinkedIn can be used to Advance Your Career
Using professional social media sites like LinkedIn allows you the chance to keep your name out there and in front of potential employers or clients. It’s not just by chance that companies often ask you to share your LinkedIn profile along with your Resume. Besides allowing you to find a perfect opportunity, LinkedIn is also a perfect tool to assess a company based on genuineness, work culture, and employee-friendliness. This is where networking on platforms like these come into play as it provides you with an accessible way of finding employment. Even if you are unable to gain entry through recruitment sites, LinkedIn is your ultimate tool to give your best shot.
Disadvantages of LinkedIn
Although the social networking tool is perfect for professional use, LinkedIn use can be a few disadvantages over time. The following segments list out all the downsides of LinkedIn you may come across while using it.
1. LinkedIn is not for Personal Use
More and more people are signing up to professional networking sites every day, but these platforms lack something. There will always be those who prefer using different websites such as Twitter, Snapchat, or Instagram for their socializing needs. Since this website focuses solely on building relationships between professionals, this may be its notable downside. Another issue with using LinkedIn is the lack of popularity among younger users hailing from most colleges or universities. In addition, if you never learned how to use this platform early enough in your time at college, it can make learning here more difficult.
2. You Must Have a Professional Email Address in order to Join
This is the case with most types of social media sites that are meant for professionals. It can be an issue when you want to use LinkedIn but do not know what your future career choices will end up being. Once you register at LinkedIn, you need an email Id that will be your professional one. All the contacts and people linked to your email will be added to your LinkedIn profile soon after registering. Signup through professional email is essential as you can’t be casual here to communicate with a network of people. If you don’t have one, create one right away.
3. Some People Feel LinkedIn is for older Professionals
It certainly can be an issue when you are born in the wrong decade and have trouble finding jobs once all of your peers have moved on from college or university. There are many other reasons why using LinkedIn may not always seem like the best idea to some people. For example, if you were younger but had just started your first job, you would usually want to spend your time socializing with others within your age group. You are less likely to use LinkedIn to communicate with people having more experience than you. On the other hand, there are fewer hashtags and trending stories to find on LinkedIn. This makes LinkedIn a bit of an old-fashioned networking site.
4. Spams are Common
According to a study, a user spends 17 minutes on LinkedIn every month on average. Even if you don’t spend your time on this network, there is still a chance that some spammy messages will find their way into your inbox. No matter how hard you try to avoid them, you’ll be pinged every time for everything or anything happening in your network. Beware, there will be spam from unknown marketers too. This may lead to frustrations because you may feel disturbed and distracted by something irrelevant.
5. You’ll be asked for Premium Services
While LinkedIn is a free site, for the most part, there may be some situations in which you have to pay money to make it easier for your profile to stand out from others. It’s not a surprise to know; however, you can make a workaround just fine, even when this does not end up being an issue. But do heed to the fact that if you are marketing something, you’ll have to pay a sum to get attention from viewers and convert the leads through analytical tools.