Colin's Blog My thoughts on everything.

Facebook vs. LinkedIn (again)

On Friday, Nick over at AllFacebook.com posted about the one killer Facebook feature that would make LinkedIn irrelevant. I think he's only half right... extending the privacy functionality to allow the creation of multiple privacy profiles would be huge.

LinkedIn's killer feature, though, would have to be replicated in Facebook for it to really cause LinkedIn any pain. LinkedIn's 'degrees of separation' feature that permeates the UI is what makes the app so powerful. Leveraging my existing network is actually easier in Facebook than in LinkedIn, but it's that latent, hidden network that LinkeIn unlocks. If I need to get in touch with someone at, say, Facebook Inc., I simply plug it the search bar and LinkedIn can tell me how to get there through my network.

Facebook, on the other hand, doesn't give me any access at all to the outer ring of my network - my friends' friends. Let's say I'm going to be spending a week in Calgary and I'd like to know where to eat near my hotel. None of my friends live in Calgary, but I'm sure some of them have friends or family there. What better way to get the local scoop on a city?

Already several times I've written notes or status messages saying "Anyone know anyone who lives/has/works/knows X?" Being able to search the extended network in a controlled way would allow me to message a single person and say "Hi, I'm friends with your nephew -- I'm coming to Calgary next month and wondered if you could recommend a good restaurant downtown."

That would be cool.

Related posts:

1. The Value of LinkedIn
2. Granular Facebook Privacy Settings – FINALLY!
3. Wanted: Random Group Facebook App
4. LinkedIn Hack Lets You Add Strangers To Your Network
5. Resume app for Facebook