Dec 23, 2021
Why are the LinkedIn “My Data” Files so Lame?
Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate using LinkedIn on an almost daily basis to learn about new trends or developments in Smart Manufacturing and education. And I try to share the few tidbits that I feel might be useful to others when I come across them.
It’s the only platform that allows a focus on more of the business side of social media with the possible exception of Xing, but that is mostly for German or German-speaking folks, so has limited use for the rest of us.
LinkedIn for me is primarily about networking and finding people that I can work with, learn from, or collaborate in the area of Industry 4.0, IIoT, and Smart Manufacturing.
So I thought that downloading my data file from LinkedIn would help me analyze in a more systematic way my interactions with others — and maybe find people that I have overlooked but could be important to engage with more directly.
But, alas, the information that LinkedIn shares with you is really only the information that you can glean yourself on the platform. No new insights at all!
Above is the screen that shows you what information is available to you, and that is really all you get! The files you get are flat and boring. And contain no new insights
I can’t help to believe that LinkedIn is showing us only the very tip of the proverbial data iceberg — and not the rich, and actually useful, information that is below the surface. I’m sure that the LinkedIn databases have this information and would be useful for us, as the generator of that data, to have access to it too.
So, LinkedIn, if you are curious, the following are the things that I would find most useful to learn about my data. It might even make a paid subscription worth its price (hint, hint).
I want to know who is seeing my content, who is liking my posts, who is re-sharing it. I want to know who in my network is actually engaging with me — and also who isn’t engaging or who isn’t using the platform. It would also be nice to get a file that shows all the interactions that I have initiated with my network.
In my mind, I envision a spreadsheet that could summarize the interactions by contact name or by the content. One that a nice pivot table could be created to show what content was most valuable to whom, so more like it can be created and shared.
Or to find out who your hidden champions are, the people that believe and amplify your content. That 1% of people that makes the effort on the LinkedIn platform worth the effort. In short, I want a way to be able to analyze my network.
Does anyone else feel the same way?
