The Difference Between a LinkedIn Endorsement and Recommendation

What is the difference between LinkedIn endorsements and LinkedIn recommendations?

Recommendations take time and effort to compose and are far more valuable than endorsements.

Endorsements are like Facebook's old poke feature. They are a quick and easy wait to nudge someone to say hello, like the poke button was. LinkedIn endorsements are a smile and a nod, while a recommendation is a hug or a high-five.

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If you want to make someone's day write them a recommendation. Do it when you have worked with the person and can vouch for how talented they are. Recommendations are far more appreciated by your LinkedIn connections than endorsements.

If you just want to say hello, you can endorse a person for something with the click of your mouse (or tap of your screen). Try to make it a habit of sending them a message after you have endorsed them. A message takes a little time and is much more human than a click of button.

Here's how LinkedIn explains endorsements:

Endorsing others is a great way to recognize your colleagues for the skills you’ve seen them demonstrate. It helps contribute to the strength of their profile, and increases the likelihood they’ll be discovered for opportunities related to the skills their connections know they possess.

Endorsing your colleagues also helps keep strong connections with the people in your network. You may find that after endorsing a colleague from the past, it’s easier to reach out to them because you’ve recently been in touch.

What do you think about LinkedIn endorsements?