LinkedIn Updates Video Capability

Just last year, LinkedIn had built in a video feature that only influencers could use. I guess this was their testing stage and it lasted for quite a while. In fact, a lot of people were disappointed because there was a lot of hype for nothing. 

Stemming from the time Microsoft acquired LinkedIn back in late 2016 for $26.2 billion, the platform has seen some drastic shifts. Some of these changes have been great (like video), and some have been not-so-great (like the premium model). 

But the acquisition came at a good time. Like it or not, LinkedIn is going through a major overhaul.

Russ Glass, VP, Head of Products for LinkedIn said in a recent interview “The first half of 2017, we’ll launch more product than in entirety of 2016”.

Let’s review some of the ways we all predicted how Microsoft would add value to LI: 

·       LinkedIn identity and network in Microsoft Outlook and the Office suite

·       LinkedIn notifications within the Windows action center

·       Enabling members drafting résumés in Word to update their profiles, and discover and apply to jobs on LinkedIn

·       Extending the reach of Sponsored Content across Microsoft properties

·       Enterprise LinkedIn Lookup powered by Active Directory and Office 365

·       LinkedIn Learning available across the Office 365 and Windows ecosystem

·       Developing a business news desk across our content ecosystem and MSN.com

·       Redefining social selling through the combination of Sales Navigator and Dynamics 365

2017 has been full of updates and changes to Linkedin in hopes to increase the amount of time spent on the actual platform. As of right now, only 25% of the platform’s 450 million users used it monthly. This is compared to 66 percent of Facebook’s monthly users returning each day to use the site. And let’s also keep in mind, Facebook has reached 2 billion monthly users! 

So, I feel confident in saying that LinkedIn has some catching up to do in terms of customer experience. One of those updates hit our newsfeed on July 17th with a new ability to post videos directly from your phone to your timeline. 

Before this change, if you wanted to share a video you would need to post a YouTube link, making it difficult to share clips from your phone that you didn’t want uploaded to YouTube. 

And to most, this will be yet another update on yet another social media platform. But to anyone in the B2B space, they had better heed the signals. In the 2015 Linkedin started to re-design their app, and it was a huge hit. In 2016 the company was acquired and some major changes took place. Now in 2017, update after update has LinkedIn looking more and more competitive with its B2C cousins. 

Although they’re not even close to hitting 2 billion monthly users, I am saying that the leadership at LinkedIn is making the right calls. And if I had to put my money on whether or not they’re going to win, I’d put all my money up for grabs. Because mark my words, LinkedIn will go down as a steal for Microsoft. This platform is akin to a loaded gun, and they’re just now starting to tap into its true potential. 

Excited to see what the future holds for LinkedIn!