Here is why you shouldn’t use LinkedIn as your primary platform for your professional identity
Last Updated on 16 June 2025 at 19:37
‼️ This publication, with more than 4’400 words, the equivalent of some 18 full pages in a large professional A4 format, offers you some practical advice on how to use LinkedIn only as a complementary communication platform and to avoid falling into the trap of creating content for the sole benefit of monopolistic structures. This very detailed article also explains the technological and business mechanisms why you should not use the LinkedIn network as the main platform for your professional identity.
By the way, according to TrustPilot reviews, LinkedIn’s poor reputation is once again confirmed. The score is around 1.6 out of 5, maximum.
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Table of Contents
The fauna of the LinkedIn system
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The type of content on LinkedIn
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The lowdown on LinkedIn
On LinkedIn today, we have marriage proposals (yes) received by some of our members (even men) or misogynistic troll harassment. Even the CEO of LinkedIn recently had to react to the latter, writing that it is “unacceptable”.
But his outraged reaction will not solve anything in practice. Other than issuing a few press releases before announcing his “quiet” resignation and departure in June 2020, what still matters is only the engagement rate (presence and participation on the network).
It has been years since these problems were
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And the very low level on LinkedIn
I recently saw a message on my LinkedIn feed from a“very big influencer” who wanted to give away a super secret recipe for success with his startup, launching his company on a path of growth that would allow him to reach the moon in his beachwear and at the same time surpass all the established giants of the digital economy.
The only condition was to write in the comments the word of his“magic” product.
More than 1,700 people (including some so-called professionals) wrote this word and without question. The computer algorithm was panicked (read manipulated) by such “strength“. If this happened in real life, imagine a giant cult choir repeating the same word over and over.
To receive what ?
A week later, the invitation to register on a website and fill in a form with personal data. And that’s not all: these people then received an e-mail inviting them to pay a small fee to gain access to this obscure knowledge.
How many people finally paid ?
This data is unknown, but the fact that one’s name was put on the“pigeon list” was probably enough to provide a very interesting commercial value to the so-called“influencer“. Among other professions, the influencer was also a great role model for miserable businesses.
By the way, it seems that this method of collecting e-mail addresses and personal data is already known since 2010: they are stupid enough to give them away themselves (article in English). This method has always existed, except that now it has become easier with the effect of a large number of people on the same network.
As they say, every day, a new pigeon rises. There is nothing new under the sun other than the reinvention of hot water.
The LinkedIn business model
Most people forget that LinkedIn and any other social media platform sell your data, your attention, your time, and your content. The platform may be“free” in its basic functionality, but the cost of participation is very high. This cost is measured in time and also in financial resources.
In order to finance and provide access to much of its information, LinkedIn has products like:
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LinkedIn boasts 400 million members
And now … start networking with those 400 million people!
The whole world is at your fingertips, especially for selling your data that you don’t have access to.
With its Sales Navigator, LinkedIn is a simple CRM where everyone updates their own data (how accurate it is is another story).
The economic benefit of such a data platform is exceptional:
The great danger of LinkedIn on your professional identity
In my opinion, the biggest danger is that the legislative power (terms of use) and the executive power (enforcement) belong entirely to the owners of these platforms.
Imagine a country where the state decides unilaterally on a law, changes its essence, enforces it without any means of defence, changes the rules as it sees fit, and you have no means of appealing against the decisions made. This country would be labelled as dictatorial because the separation of powers does not exist.
Legislative and executive power in one place and with one entity: parliament, judge, and police force.
This is the main reason why LinkedIn should not be the seat of your professional identity.
Ceding the management of your online professional identity to LinkedIn or any other similar social network is a major error in strategic and operational judgment.
You can use these platforms as a content vector to drive people to your platform. You can also, as long as it is possible, outsource the publication of your content. Specific tools or social media presence management services allow for a very sufficient presence on various social networks, including LinkedIn.
These tools and services come at a price, but you will save valuable time.
At the same time, you have to understand that
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Its data, content, and use by LinkedIn
Creating an identity on various social networks is free and very quick.
These social networks are usually very well-referenced by all search engines. Thus, you can quickly occupy the first page of results when someone searches for your name. This kind of visibility on search engines like Google is very quick to obtain with LinkedIn: your professional data and content in exchange for your visibility.
LinkedIn content belongs to you
In theory, and according to LinkedIn’s terms of use, your content belongs to you.
“You own all content, feedback and personal data you provide to us but you also grant us a non-exclusive license.“
This licence to use by LinkedIn ends when you decide to edit or delete your own content (art. 3.1 )
“You may terminate this license for specific content by deleting that content from the Services, or generally by closing your account.“
When you read this, you think in good faith you have access to its data and content.
The practice with LinkedIn is something else
Recently, I was unable to view, edit, or delete any of my own content on LinkedIn. I am still unable to do this almost 12 months later. If this situation ever improves, I will update this blog post.
Other people have been unable to
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Nothing professional about this, you might say.
And yet, wait until you read the final.
Move on, there’s nothing to see on LinkedIn
So, let’s get back to business.
- As a user (paying or free), you
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The advantage of a website of your own
With a website of your own, you retain ownership of your professional identity. Moreover, you can access and modify your content as you wish and at any time. Only with a personal website can you control who you are, how you present yourself, and what you want to put forward.
This is in contrast to LinkedIn, which may decide to prioritise other aspects of your professional life.
For example, LinkedIn could impose the obligation to have
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Elena Debbaut is a strategic execution expert to boards and executive teams. She leads and advises on complex transformations when governance barriers, internal politics, or structural fragmentation prevent organizations from executing critical decisions.
Specialities:
• governance-constrained transformation
• operational restructuring
• strategic recovery & execution
