Zach Galifianakis Look Alike Commercial

Is it just me or is the entire premise of this commercial that the guy on the left looks like Zach Galifianakis?

Linkedin: Creep Like a Professional

I was browsing through Linkedin today trying to get a better feel for the marketing and e-commerce industry when I realized why its so important that your settings allow you to be recognized when you've viewed somebody's profile. Furthermore the reason behind this is the central difference between how our generation networks on Facebook and how they should adapt their networking philosophy to Linkedin. Before I get into it let me briefly explain the setting options:

1. Totally Anonymous

It is what it sounds like. You will be browsing completely anonymously and nobody will have a clue you've viewed their profile.

2. Anonymous With Profile Characteristics

This option keeps your profile anonymous while sharing general characteristics about you. For example if mine where on that setting and I viewed your profile it would read "Your profile was viewed by: Someone in the Intern function in the Marketing and Advertising industry from Greater New York City Area"

3. Your Name and Headline

This option means if I view your profile my full name and headline will be displayed and you could follow that link to view my profile.



Initially when I got a Linkedin profile I kept my settings to either anonymous or anonymous with profile characteristics. I did this for the same reason you probably have those settings right now...you don't want to look like a creep. With the sudden rush of connectivity in our society one of the most frowned upon characteristics a person can have is being downright creepy. Some of the most popular Facebook scams are the "do such and such and see whose viewed your profile" because we are all so interested in who's creepin' on us.

As a generation of Facebook users we have certain networking instincts that are deeply embedded in all of us. The goal of Facebook is to maintain your social brand...aka not look like a dork. This requires maintaining a degree of exclusivity and self image. For Facebook users trying to build their professional brand on Linkedin it is important to recognize the difference between the goals of each and how to go about them.



On Linkedin the goal is to expand your professional brand and network. The more attention you can draw to yourself the better. Obviously some of the core principles of Facebook networking still apply. Don't spam people or overwhelm them with inappropriate content. Don't say or do anything you wouldn't like to be held accountable for. The essential difference is that you are trying to reach as many people as possible, namely, people that can help you get a job. This is particularly true for young aspiring professionals (the general audience of this blog). Over my two years here at Geneseo I rapidly learned that if I want to do something outside an introductory finance job in the Rochester area I better learn to network and do so aggressively. Linkedin has proven to be my most effective tool for doing so.

So why change your settings to announce how creepy you are? The second part of the answer is rooted in a basic web traffic/e-commerce principle. Think of your Linkedin as a store that sells your brand. You can find heaping servings of Mark Dougherty here on my Linkedin profile. Instead of your storefront being on the street with a door leading in its on the web with links leading in. The more "doors" you can create leading into your storefront the more potential customers (aka employers) you can let in. When creeping around the division of that company you are interested why not leave a trail of doors leading to your storefront? Maybe they'll think your a Linkedin nerd. I'll be the first to admit to such a title. However, employers aren't looking for bros to help them get their drink on, their looking for competent individuals who make themselves marketable and easy to find.

Let the Face-commerce Begin!

We all knew it was inevitable. Today Facebook launched a program called "Deals" which enables users to shop through Facebook. The program is being tested in five cities (San Francisco, Austin, Dallas, Atlanta and San Diego) and offers steep discounts similarly to the group buying sites mentioned in my previous post The Rebirth of Student Discounts Through Collective Buying. I anticipate this to be a major threat to overnight group buying sensations Groupon and Living Social. Imagine the dismay of finding out there is a rival service that already hast 600 million members in addition to an endless quantifiable amount of their personal information and behavior patterns. Looks like we'll find out if Groupon can live up to the hype and if people are willing to let Facebook dominate yet another aspect of their lives.

Interesting Video About Education

Here's an extremely interesting video my friend Harrison shared with me about education. I've always felt our education system only allows a select few to reach their potential while alienating and discouraging the rest. This video does a great job of breaking down some of the issues at heart into a way that is easy to understand.