LinkedIn introduces new tool for event organisers
LinkedIn has launched a new feature called Events to extend its networking features to physical, in-person events. This feature will allow professionals to attend and create events.
The new tool will help users to plan, announce, and invite people to meet-ups and events. Event organizers will have the ability to create and manage a public event page, invite their connections, and update attendees with information.
Events will also provide for attendees to meet, talk to one another and see updates in the event feed, see that else is attending, and connect with other attendees they meet.
It essentially follows the model of Facebook Events but for professional meetups, training sessions, offsites, etc. Events will help LinkedIn to engage passive members who otherwise do not post anything and only log in occasionally but would follow and engage work-related events specific to their industry or neighbourhood.
Events is incidentally the first major, global feature to be built out of the company’s R&D office in Bangalore, India. The Indian outpost, as yet, was working on regional tools and features for emerging markets, like LinkedIn Lite.
At this moment, Events is free to use but fairly limited. You can create an announcement and invite first-person contacts, but you have no way to promote the event or create any ticketing option.
According to Ajay Dutta, the head of product for LinkedIn India, the company is not focusing on targeting right now but organic adoption.
While a seemingly obvious functionality to have, LinkedIn has surprisingly brought Events too late to the mix. Still, the synergy between online networking and physical networking is so close that it’s a surprise that the company hadn’t launched an Events feature before now.
