The Recession Has Been Good to LinkedIn

 As one of the only profitable online networking sites, LinkedIn just got more profitable. During this recession, more and more people have been signing up who have either lost their jobs or fear a loss. Traffic has more than doubled this February from February of last year.

This rise in LinkedIn mirrors the offline world. When many people lose their jobs they decide that this is the time to start networking. Frankly, that is too late. While it is better late than never, it takes time to build relationships. While unemployed, it is nice to already have established relationships that you can tap into right away rather than quickly build some new ones.

My fear is that all of these new LinkedIn users will stop networking both offline and online once they find a job. I hope people realize that networking is a continuous process that should never stop.

To read more about LinkedIn's rise, go to Recession lifts social networking site LinkedIn.

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Comments

[Beth Bridges]

I work for a Chamber of Commerce and we have seen a dramatic increase in attendance at our networking events. We've kicked up our promotional efforts, but I definitely think we're feeling some of the same effect. In fact, I wrote a blog post a few days ago saying almost the same thing about hoping they will stick with it once things turn around.

[Jason Jacobsohn]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I also hope people stick to it for the long run.

[Jeremy Jacobs]

Very thoughtful post Jason. Networking (on or off-line) is a long term reputation building exercise.

[Jason Jacobsohn]

Thanks Jeremy. Yes, long term is important to remember.