LinkedIn sends Sponsored InMail to Paid Members?

November 30, 2007 · Filed Under Recruiting in the 21st Century 

If there is one thing I love about internet/web 2.0, it is the lack of advertising.

I kid of course. Web 2.0 is full of advertisements. I am not the worst offender but I have certainly included advertisements and I will continue to do so until servers and bandwidth are free.

What is usually great about Web 2.0 companies is that once you give them your credit card number, they generally cut down the amount of advertising you receive (sometimes to nothing except to remind you to renew your subscription). Being a paid member of LinkedIn, I figured I was doing my part to support the growing social utopia.

Not so much. I received this InMail over last week’s holiday:

Sponsored InMail from Starbucks

Dear Lance,

It’s that time of year when we’re stumped over what to get clients and business contacts. And paperweights and pens have all been done before. So what to do?

Well, this year, why not pass the cheer with a Starbucks Card? That way, everyone on your list can pick out the perfect gift, from a cup of coffee to the latest CD.

So don’t let procrastination get the best of you. The Starbucks Card is quick and easy to order for everyone on your list. Order 15 or more cards and receive free shipping. Click here to get started.

Happy Holidays from Starbucks!

First of all, I don’t like giving gifts. I have a hard enough time finding the right gift for my wife much less other members of my family and co-workers. And yes, I just grouped co-workers in with family. Sorry mom, dad. It is tough to find you good gifts without resorting to the cowardly “what do you want?”

Second of all, I’ve never given a co-worker pens or paperweights. That is simply ridiculous. If I wanted to give my co-workers something they hated, I would certainly go to much more effort and make its disposal much more visible.

Third of all, 15 cards for free shipping? What is that? Two stamps?

I don’t think I can possibly give these gift cards to anyone. Unless it is one of those people that goes out of their way to avoid Starbucks. Then I think a $20 investment is well worth the weeks of observation of seeing them try to sneak in and grab a latte without feeing guilty about feeding a venomous organization like Starbucks.

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply




  • About

    Your HR Guy is a Human Resources Generalist practicing in the field. But don't let that fool you, this isn't a boring blog. I seek relevance and humor in a place we will spend much of our lives. Everything from workplace issues, job seeking and terrible bosses. Read more...

    View Lance Haun [lancehaun@gmail.com]'s profile on LinkedIn



    Featured on:




    Rate this Blog at Blogged

  • Meta

  • RSS HRM Today

    • 3 Keys to Reducing Defensive Reactions to Feedback
      When it comes to developing talent providing quality feedback is the most underutilized "tool" in any manager's toolkit. Most managers are able to intuitively assess and describe employee performance issues, but what is difficult is communicating this information to the employee. Nearly all managers dread initiating these conversations and often avoid them, particularly if they have a congenial relationship with the employee otherwise. Frequently, the area for development relates to difficult to quantify behaviors. Discussing these issues with an employee can seem out of the question—after all, what if the relationship between the manager and employee is somehow damaged? The underlying problem is the inability to translate what is “known” into effective words that are both comfortable to say and will have the right effect on the employee.
    • Boomer Brain Drain: Not Gonna Happen
      Maren Hogan sent me a link to a website called Boomer Advisor. Specifically, she wanted her Twitter network to read an article called Companies Must Work to Avoid Boomer Brain Drain. Ugh. The article is disturbing for a variety of reasons — the least of which is because it’s about Baby Boomers. I’m disturbed because the [...]
    • Call Center Recruiting
      My HR blogging friend HR Minion and I have been talking about call center recruiting lately. Back in the day, at my first HR job, we hired anywhere from 10 to 30 people per month to work as sales/customer service reps for a very popular infomercial product. The job was hard to fill as it was only [...]
    • Qualities of Good Presidents and Good Employees
      I love this post from Michael McKinney at Leading Blog. It’s based on a new book from Alvin Felzenberg, The Leaders We Deserved (and a Few We Didn’t): Rethinking the Presidential Rating Game. Felzenberg devised six criteria to best describe various U.S. presidents’ contribution to history. Based on this exercise, he presents a list of what [...]
    • If Sales Ran Your Company…
      If you’re like me, you have heard many references over the years to a “revenue driven organization” or “client facing firm”, all code words for those cultures where sales rules the roost.  So what would happen if they ran your entire company?  For one, if revenues were down in a given quarter, it would likely [...]
    • HR Controversy in the Blogosphere
      If you think HR is boring, you’re right; however, we do have a few of our own controversies circling around the blogosphere. No, there isn’t a conflict between those who want to use red personnel folders and those who prefer blue. (Although I’m not saying that the specific color of folders hasn’t been an issue in [...]
    • Personnel vs Human Resources: Is There a Difference?
      A senior human resources executive emailed me to ask whether I still see the term “personnel” floating about in today’s market.  She found the term to be a bit demeaning and old school, feeling it reflected an era of lesser value than today’s current HR function.  Which begs the question - is there really a [...]
    • Flip Flops at Work? Not in this House!
      That’s it. I’m done. I’m soooo done. The last nerve has been fried and the camels back is officially broken. If you want me I’ll be in a corner pounding my head against the wall. I know I’ve joked about it in the past, but, 1. Is it that hard to tell someone their outfit is [...]
    • Paranormal Infestation as Affirmative NLRB Defense?
      ABS Heating and Cooling was found to be in violation of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when they stopped paying their employees in accordance with the union contract...however, about that same time, they were being investigated for paranormal activity. Was there any connection?
    • Illegal Hiring Practices?
      Is it “legal” for a public agency to fill a position without advertising it (internally or externally)? My hubby works as an Engineering Technician for a special district in California. To fill a new position of Junior Engineer, the district’s Engineering department head and supervisor went to the college and specific academic department from which the [...]