Don't just add contacts, actually network with LinkedIn

There's some great social media platforms for professional networking out there. Some are more inclusive while others limit membership. The following are some examples of some of these popular tools:

1. LinkedIn

2. University alumni online groups (AU, UM, etc.)

3. Twitter job search

But one thing to keep in mind, is that these tools are limiting. You can build your LinkedIn contacts in quantity, but if you adhere solely to at-home-on-the-computer-in-your-pajamas-networking, you'll find difficulties when you need to draw upon your network. B/c such a network may be wide (many contacts), but not deep (weak contacts).

Don't get me wrong, I think these tools are great, and have benefitted professionally from them. But in my opinion, these should be used to facilitate face-to-face interactions, attendance at events, keeping in touch with, etc. etc. B/c otherwise, you're just another loose contact, barely remembered, not even in the back of someone's mind.

With that in mind, perhaps we should approach some of these tools sometimes as a picture of our network, and sometimes as tools for networking. The picture will show some contacts stronger than others, but still requiring pre-internet cultivation in the form of personal messages, grabbing coffee, happy hours, etc. And you still have to go that extra mile and help others to make yourself visible when your time of need comes. But if you let LinkedIn become your networking rather than represent it, you might have problems actually finding that next job...

Increasing the social divide?

Social networking undoubtedly brings many of us closer together. You can easily reach out to people all over the world within your network, staying in touch through mediums such as facebook, Twitter, etc. I'm sure you could argue somehow against, but with that given...

What about those that don't take part? The people that don't like sharing their information. Or those that don't like being on the computer all time. Or just like anonymous.

I might be talking about a tiny % of the population, but I definitely know people that fit that description. And they're not elderly non-technology users. They're young, smart, etc. etc. They just don't take part. For now I'll call them conscientious loners. [I don't mean loner with a negative context, but choosing to be alone]

With conversational marketing, many people are sharing more information and connecting with more people. They're influencing companies from the ground up, taking part in the brand image and making themselves heard. But the conscientious loners (CL) aren't in the conversation. They stay out of internet-propogated-networks. They don't even come up on the innovation adoption curve unless you use Paint:

My question is whether these people are more isolated now. Prior to online social networking they might've been more social in traditional ways. There's winners and losers from every movement or major societal change (when Asian countries entered light manufacturing industries, South Carolina's furniture industry fell apart). Anyways, maybe this is just a shout out to those we're leaving behind.