Should LinkedIn profit from our Amazon.com book recommendations?
As you know, LinkedIn recently introduced Applications. One application, Reading List by Amazon, allows us to recommend books to our friends, colleagues, and other professionals. The catch is that every item purchased from Amazon.com via this application provides LinkedIn referral fees through the Amazon.com Associates program.
As users, we already add to LinkedIn's value proposition by maintaining profiles. In addition, we spread the word about LinkedIn to a great extent, from promoting LinkedIn on our business cards and in our e-mail messages to inviting our colleagues to connect.
I'm not against LinkedIn generating revenue from applications or from providing the services that they do; however, generating revenue from a third-party affiliate program by using our recommendations does not feel right. If our recommendations for books causes those books to be purchased, shouldn't we be rewarded instead? Shouldn't we, at least, have an option to change the Associates referral code from "linkedin-20" to our own?
Please tell LinkedIn how you feel about this issue! Visit the Reading List by Amazon applications page and send feedback by selecting "Feedback" from the top-right menu.
LinkedIn Application: Reading List by Amazon
http://tinyurl.com/readinglistbyamazon
You can learn more about the Amazon.com Associates program at:
http://associates.amazon.com/
Clarification added 8 months ago:
In response to the "I feel guilty about not paying for LinkedIn, so I don't mind LinkedIn taking advantage of me as long as I don't have to pay $19.95 per month" arguments, I have this to add: that attitude gives LinkedIn far too much credit. "Free" is part of their business model. Don't mistake good tactics for purehearted generosity.
http://www.americanheretic.com/2008/10/29/you-have-free-wishes/
Answers (9)
Dave M
Dave attracts more trade show attendees to your booth than any other traffic builder ★ DaveMaskin@yahoo.com LION
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No matter what suggestions and recommendations we give to Linkedin, they'll just ignore us and do what they want to do.
I agree with the idea of allowing the option to using our own referral codes, but I don't have a problem with things defaulting to their own. They are a business, after all, and the purpose of a business is to make money (or so they say). Letting us have some of it, too, though, would be nice.
considering they offer a free to general use for us, and I find this extremely valuable for communication and keeping contacts updated. I feel they can do what is 'reasonable' to get additional revenues. Considering those recommendations come from a database that is hosted by the company, everyone wins.
-andi
I think it's fair considering LinkedIn is free. I honestly don't think this is a significant source of revenue for them: ~4% for referrals that only a percentage of people post on their profiles and 0.01% average of other people click on? It's probably not even enough for a company beer fund.
FRANK F
●Ex-Banker / Futurist ●30-yr Track Record ●Keynote Speaker ●Interim-contract CEO ●120-day Refocus / Re-invent/
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I am a published author, and I have no problem with it. I have added the Amazon application, with my own books listed on it, lol.
We are using this platform for free. If we wish to continue doing so, then LinkedIn must earn some revenue from somewhere. So allowing them to have this sliver of affiliate revenue is a small price to pay.
Annemarie D
at Bristol-Myers Squibb
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Hi Morgan, I have no problem with it either. LinkedIn is a great service available to all at no cost. Yours, Annemarie
It's ok for LinkedIn to find new revenue streams such as this. It should however pass on something to the users who's input or recomendations help them profit most. Such as free Upgraded memberships. If people percieve that they are also profiting in some way they would most likely be ok with participating.
Well, I am in an interesting position in regards to properly answering this question.....
First of all, I don't "USE" any social networking sites at all. The only time I login to linkedin, or facebook, or myspace, or any other site is when someone goes out of there way to add me, or ask me something, as per this question....
So, in accordance with that, it doesn't really impact me at all.
My official opinion on the subject is that it's bogus. If amazon is going to give linkedin money, they should at least give us a discount as well. You know, every amazon order placed via a linkedin referral would get 5% off or some bs. There's no way amazon wouldn't come out ahead in the process.
=P
-Mike
Erin H
Lead Designer at HumaNature Studios (MMO design), Author, Game Design Consultant
Like other answerers, I have no particular beef with this, but neither because LinkedIn is free nor because they should be passing along benefit. Rather because a) there is no requirement to recommend books, and b) there is personal benefit to having a solid list of recommended books on one's LinkedIn profile. I.e, members are actually benefiting from uploading reading lists by expanding their perceived expertise on the LinkedIn network, which can then result both in accelerated interactions (answering "what books should I read?" with "check out my LinkedIn profile") and increased perception of one's professional orientation (you can learn things about people by what they read).
Frank's answer above is interesting from a game design standpoint, and LinkedIn does already employ many game mechanics (get your profile to 100%, improve the "level" of your connection icon by reaching high #s of connections). I do think that LinkedIn could enhance this by allowing member-generated revenue to gradually earn them paid membership benefits. This system is basically an extension of an invitation/referral system, and LinkedIn would benefit by further empowering their existing core/power users by providing them with earned benefits, because these benefits would likely be distributed throughout the network by bringing more people to the LinkedIn website. So this is a win-win benefit proposition if they wanted to invest the development time.
If LinkedIn were demanding or even subtly requiring (making recommending books part of the percentage of completion of one's profile, for instance) the answer might differ, but as things stand users are still getting far more from the service than vice versa, which is always a good balance in a social network.
