What are LinkedIn Applications?

This is a funny question, and I think it is only asked because LinkedIn has not done a good job branding this functionality in their user interface.  Let me explain in more detail.

Branding problem #1: LinkedIn Applications were introduced on October 28, 2008.  The Reid Hoffman authored text in the introductory article mentioned nine applications that were released.  But in the video of the same day, Reid talks about ten applications. What’s going on here? After doing some research, “Polls” was added to the list of nine applications to make ten.  Which raises the question: Is “Polls” an Application or an afterthought?

Branding problem #2: If you go to the Applications page by accessing it on your left-hand navigation bar you will go to the page where you can sign up for the ten applications (including “Polls”, but if I am not mistaken it was only recently added here).  But what about this “Events” application that I have heard of, that Allen Blue, Linked-In Co-Founder and Vice President of Product Strategy, plans to discuss as his Keynote speech to the ECEF (Exhibition & Convention Executives Forum)?  Where is it?  How do I access and install it?  And why does the “Polls” application get special privilege with a special link and not “Events”?

Branding problem #3: (taken from the above ECEF link) “Allen Blue…will also present LinkedIn’s new events platform and explain how it brings “word-of-mouth” to the marketing of events.”  So is “Events” an _application_ or a _platform_.  Reid Hoffman introduced Applications as being built on the “Applications Platform”.  So is events not even an application but a platform?  And there will be more “Events” being developed from the “Events Platform”?

Bradning problem #4: So we have an Applications link on the left-hand navigation bar.  But have you noticed the option to “Add an Application” at the bottom of the right-hand column of information on your LinkedIn Home Pag? OK.  Another way to add the same ten applications?  Wait…there are more Applications here!  Aah, this is where the “Events” application is!  But what about this “Job Search” and “Answers”…why are they here?  They aren’t Applications, are they?

If you are as confused as I am you can see why I ask this question.  In an ideal world, an “Application” is an optional and additional module that is created using the LinkedIn API to access profile and other personal information and provide unique functionality.  I am not an engineer and I could figure that out.  In this respect, “Polls” and “Events” are questionable as these are simply user generated content like “Answers”.  I mean, if “Answers” is considered an “Application”, maybe you can say that the “User Profile” is an “Application”.  And don’t get me started on “Job Search”…

I mention all of this, because when I recently asked a question on Answers on “What is Your Favorite LinkedIn Application?“, what do you think generated the most responses?  Yup, “Answers”!  Is “Answers” even an application?  I’ve come back in full circle…

On a serious note and to be fair to LinkedIn, applications do deliver what Reid promised: they allow professionals to communicate, collaborate, and share information to make them more effective and competitive.  I do not doubt this, and although Applications in general seem to be under-utilized, I urge you all to take another look at them and take one or two of them out for a test drive.  If they don’t work as advertised send LinkedIn your feedback.  We can help LinkedIn improve upon itself in this way, and I always try to use my blog to not only provide a pay-it-forward type of advice to you all, but also to inform LinkedIn of how to better itself.

OK, maybe I haven’t fully answered the question I posed, but I have done my best.  And the more you learn about LinkedIn, the more you will realize that there are a lot of things that there really aren’t clear answers for.  Take how they count your five “Introductions”…still can’t figure that one out so I will answer that on another day…

But because of my silly mood seeing that it is April Fool’s Day, I can’t resist ending my blog like this:

If LinkedIn is a networking platform for professionals, doesn’t LinkedIn need to be a little bit more professional itself in their user interface and branding of their functionality?

Your honor, I rest my case.  LinkedIn is guilty of misleading branding!