Welcome to a new episode of LinkedInformed, this week we are back to our normal format and I want to concentrate the main topic of this episode on why we should understand the importance of working with the LinkedIn algorithm and not against it.

Working with Ali

Ali is short for Algorithm, in this case LinkedIn’s algorithm.

Whether we like it or not LinkedIn is constantly collating data about us. Which groups we join and which conversations we get involved in, what skills we have and how often they are endorsed (and by whom), which companies we follow, who we connect with and how much we interact with them.

Ali also measures which status updates and publish posts we click, like or comment on.

It may sound creepy but that’s just how things are in social media and the wider Internet.

Understanding this and understanding how to use it to our advantage is one of the key aspects to being successful on LinkedIn

LinkedIn can only react to actions, it can’t (as yet) interpret feelings or opinions – just actions. I was reminded of this recently when someone contacted me to complain about the amount of inappropriate posts and status updates they were seeing on their homepage. When I asked them what they were doing about it, their answer was that they were commenting in order to show the person that posted that they disapproved….BIG MISTAKE!
Not only does this ensure that the post is distributed further it also teaches Ali that you are interested in this type of content….no wonder they were seeing more and more inappropriate content!

Once you understand how Ali works you can start to perform actions that get Ali working for you! A great example of someone who does this is Kate Lister, I chatted with Kate to find out how she tries to ‘beat the algorithm’ with her actions.

Click on the above image to view her profile

In the links below you will find a link to a fascinating list of patents that LinkedIn have filed over the years, the most recent one relates to this very issue – i.e. how LinkedIn decides what to show you on your feed.

Interesting links

• The list of LinkedIn patents
• Methods and systems for recommending a context based on content interaction The inventors of this patent are listed as Jen Granito Ruffner (who left LinkedIn over 6 years ago!), Allen Blue and Sarah Alpern

This weeks tool is not especially relevant to LinkedIn but I wanted to share it because I use it all the time and I think its very, well….cool!
This is another Google Chrome extension called Eye Dropper

Question:

I am no longer able to invite or accept any invitations because I have reached the 30,000 limit. Why is this and do you know anyway around it?

Answer : 

This is not a new rule but I believe it is new that they are now applying it more strictly. Previously you were able invite new connections once you reached 30k but it seems they have closed that opening.
Quite why I’m not sure but to my knowledge, there is no way around it.

The bigger question is this….Why on earth do you need so many connections?!!

Disconnecting could be an option for you, unless you are already well over the 30k limit.

That’s it for this week, don’t forget to leave a voicemail or email me with any questions or suggestions, till next time.

Have a great week.

Thank you so much for listening. I value your support and interest.

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