Ask the Industry

Often when doing scholarly research, our findings can be spun to the perspective of academia. With the popularity of online communities, which today are even more industry-specific, reason would deduct that they would be a perfect place for generating new ideas and finding answers that actually pertain to individuals in the industry we are in.

When reading Adam Dewitz’s Printmode the other day, he cast a light on a great use for LinkedIn’s new “Answers” section. (LinkedIn is a social network for professionals in all stages of their career). Adam posed several questions to his network and received some great answers from people in the industry. Questions included, “Are you still using print advertising?” and “Have you used personalization in direct mail campaigns?” These questions received some answers from email marketers, marketing specialists, and owners of marketing firms.

For those not already involved with LinkedIn, I highly recommend joining—and no, contrary to the belief of many, the site’s purpose is not to find a job (although for those looking, it might be a good place to, based on YOUR networks).