Now LinkedIn will let you leave voicemail messages (just not for me, please)
Featured
LinkedIn has been trying to make its business networking platform more like Facebook of late, with features like presence, and Google-like smart replies. Now, it's introducing voice messages just like Facebook and Facebook-owned WhatsApp.
"Whether you're responding while walking or multitasking, or need to give an in-depth explanation, voice messages let you more easily and quickly communicate in your own voice with your connections," LinkedIn said in a blog.
Personally, I loathe having to open voice messages on WhatsApp and have never received one on Facebook Messenger, but for the sender, at least, such services can be helpful if they're on the go and can't stop to type a message. And that's LinkedIn's justification for releasing the feature.
LinkedIn thinks its new option will be a time-saver for users who find typing laborious in some situations. On the downside, this feature could rapidly become a real pain for those who already get bombarded with written messages from strangers promoting products and services on LinkedIn Messages.
LinkedIn points out that people speak about four times faster than they type and that it's helpful when you're on the go and need to explain complex ideas that could be more difficult to type and edit.
Also, it argues that leaving a message can be more convenient for the recipient who can listen and respond when they get a chance; obviously, the same can be said of a written message, which has the added benefit of being able to be previewed in a lockscreen notification.
See also: Working in IT: Why we love it, why we hate it (free PDF)
Finally, LinkedIn contends that voice allows users to be more naturally expressive, making it "easier for your tone and personality to come through, which can sometimes get lost in translation in written communications."
The voice icon layout looks similar to the one used by Facebook Messenger. Users can tap the microphone icon and then tap and hold the microphone in the circle to record the voice message. Lifting the finger off the circle ends the message. Users can also cancel the message by sliding the finger away from the microphone icon while holding it down.
Messages can be received on the web and mobile and will be rolling out global over the next few weeks.
Microsoft bought LinkedIn in 2016 for $26.2bn and while it's often criticized by users irked by requests to connect from strangers, the professional social network brought in about $5bn of its $110bn revenues for Microsoft in fiscal year 2018. At Microsoft's recent earnings announcement it claimed to have 575 million members.
Related coverage
LinkedIn launches AI Academy to bolster internal AI skills
The program divides AI training into multiple levels designed for different job roles, with instruction led by AI experts from LinkedIn's core AI team.
Microsoft touts LinkedIn, Graph API and AI foundations of its new Bing ad service
Microsoft's new Audience Network service will use data not just from Bing, but also MSN, Outlook.com and Edge, to give advertisers more ways to target their potential customers.
LinkedIn IDs machine learning as its most rapidly expanding job category
LinkedIn analysis of emerging job categories since 2012 finds tech and data-related jobs rising the fastest.
LinkedIn bug allowed data to be stolen from user profiles
Private profile data -- like phone numbers and email addresses -- could have been easily collected.
Why QR codes could be LinkedIn's killer app(TechRepublic)
TechRepublic's Jason Hiner explains how QR codes could kill the business card and make LinkedIn's mobile app an essential tool for business tech professionals.
LinkedIn's top places to work includes a lot of tech companies(CNET)
Even though Silicon Valley is facing a reckoning, people still want to work there, according to LinkedIn's survey of top 50 companies to work in 2018.