Tuesday, October 04, 2011
Majority of Journalists Use Linkedin, though Many Ask, “What’s the Value?”
If you want to interact with journalists, it helps to find their watering hole, and the best place, according to a recent study is Linkedin.
Seven out of 10 journalists investigated in a recent Newswise study had user profiles on Linkedin, and 42% of them responded to requests to connect via the social networking site. Among the journalists who replied to the survey, 75% confirmed that they use Linkedin and gave detailed responses about their attitudes and perceptions of the value of social networking. In spite of this widespread participation, a majority of respondents indicated that the value of Linkedin was unclear.
In analyzing journalists’ ambivalent attitudes about Linkedin, a significant number of respondents had difficulty with the fundamental process of connecting with others on the site. Only 30% of respondents were able to accurately identify and share the address to their own personal profile.
Newswise surveyed 1000 journalist subscribers and then searched for each on Linkedin. Newswise found 701 of the 1000 journalists’ profiles on Linkedin, and 170 journalists responded to the email survey. The full text of the study can be found at http://newswise.com/ee/journalists_on_linkedin.
Among journalists with Linkedin profiles, only 1 in 4 respondents expressed an opinion about the value of social networking in general, with 13% finding value, and 12% finding none. The remaining 75% were undecided, neutral, or did not respond about their experience. In other words, 88% of Linkedin users had found value or were neutral about the value of social networking.
Comparing Linkedin users with non-users, the negative attitudes among journalists on Linkedin were lower than those who did not have a profile. Among non-users, 61% responded with negative attitudes about social networking. These findings help to identify three areas for improvement in how Newswise uses social networking to interact with journalists:
1. Easier connections
2. Demonstrating value to those already participating
3. Enticing non-users to give social networking a try
Newswise President and founder Roger Johnson said, “as the evolution of social media continues, Linkedin appears to be the best virtual location for interacting with journalists. The study demonstrates that journalists are participating on Linkedin, have not yet experienced value, but are receptive to new tools there. Journalists’ availability to interaction is still unsettled. Due to this uncertainty, strategies need to be developed for building community with journalists on Linkedin. Connecting helps, but is not sufficient, and many journalists tend to be guarded in their acceptance of requests to connect on Linkedin.”
Newswise is based on state-of-the-art technology for delivering news to journalists who subscribe (free) to the service. Newswise seeks to foster the best relationship with journalists by providing highly credible content and allowing journalists choice in the method and timing of delivery and the selection of content. News contributors are innovative, influential organizations world-wide, including top medical schools, universities, research institutions, public relations firms, government agencies, non-profit organizations, associations and advocacy groups. Anyone interested in knowledge-based news can register for Newswise and subscribe to the email wires.
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