Unliking a post on LinkedIn is a common action that many users take to revoke their previous endorsement of a post’s content. However, this raises the natural question – can the original poster of that content tell if you unlike their post? The short answer is no, unlike Facebook, LinkedIn does not notify users if their post is unliked. However, there are some indirect ways a user may be able to tell if their post was unliked.
How Likes Work on LinkedIn
To understand how unliking works on LinkedIn, it’s first important to understand how likes work in general on the platform. When you like a post on LinkedIn, your name and profile picture will appear below the post under the “Likes” section, along with the names and profile pictures of all other users who have liked that post.
Liking a post boosts its visibility in the LinkedIn algorithm, meaning it is more likely to show up in the feeds of your connections. It also notifies the original poster that you have liked their content.
However, unliking a post simply removes your name and profile picture from the list of likes. It does not notify the original poster or decrease the overall like count on that post. The only way the original poster would know you unliked their post is if they frequently check the list of likes on their post and notice your name is no longer there.
Will LinkedIn Notify the Original Poster if You Unlike?
Unlike Facebook which proactively notifies users when their content is unliked, LinkedIn does not send any notification to the original poster if you unlike their post. There is no alert, email, or any other message sent to the original user indicating that you have revoked your like.
From LinkedIn’s perspective, unliking simply represents the removal of your personal endorsement. The action does not affect the original post itself or the poster’s account in any way, so there is no reason to notify them. LinkedIn’s design philosophy around likes and unlikes prioritizes minimizing social friction between connections.
So you can rest assured that if you unlike a post on LinkedIn, the original poster will not receive an alert informing them of your action. The only way they may find out is by manually checking who has liked their post.
How Often Do Posters Check Their List of Likes?
The frequency with which posters check the list of likes on their content varies greatly across users. Many users post content on LinkedIn without obsessing over the like count or constantly monitoring who has liked their posts. They may only check likes occasionally or not at all.
However, some power users and influencers care deeply about their engagement metrics and do monitor likes closely. These users may notice quite quickly if your name disappears from their list of likes.
Users who frequently post controversial or divisive content are also more likely to monitor their likes closely to see who supports or opposes their posts. If you actively engage with and like this type of divisive content, be aware the original poster may notice if you suddenly unlike.
Overall though, most regular LinkedIn users do not meticulously track likes on their posts. Unliking will likely go unnoticed in many cases.
Other Ways a Poster May Be Able to Tell You Unliked
While LinkedIn does not directly notify posters of unlikes, there are some indirect ways a poster may be able to tell if you unliked their content:
– They may remember the exact like count on their post before you unliked it. If they check again and the count has dropped by 1, they could deduce that you unliked.
– They may have taken a screenshot of all the likes on their post previously. By comparing the screenshot to the current list, they would be able to see the difference.
– There are some third-party social media analytics tools available that can track likes over time. These tools may be able to detect that you unliked a post, even without LinkedIn’s notification.
– If you’re connected to the poster on LinkedIn, they may notice a change in your engagement patterns with their content over time. For example, if you frequently like their posts, but suddenly stop liking a particular controversial post.
– If you discuss the post with the original poster after unliking, they may ask you why you unliked or notice you are no longer endorsing the content.
So in summary, while LinkedIn itself does not proactively notify posters of unlikes, there are ways savvy LinkedIn users could potentially figure out this information indirectly. But most average users would be unlikely to devote this level of effort into tracking who unlikes their content.
Should You Worry About Unliking Posts?
Given that LinkedIn does not directly notify original posters when their content is unliked, in most cases you do not need to feel worried about unliking posts. As long as you did not engage directly with the original poster on the content after unliking, it is unlikely they will even notice your revoked like.
However, if you anticipate the original poster may fall into the category of a power user who tracks likes closely or may take indirect steps to identify unlikes, you may want to exercise more caution. Unliking controversial, divisive, or political content from influential users who monitor engagments metrics may result in them discovering your action.
If you wish to avoid social friction, try to unlike posts from connections who are unlikely to notice or care deeply about a single revoked like. And if you do engage in direct conversation with the poster afterwards, consider being vague rather than mentioning you unliked their content.
In general though, there is minimal social risk to unliking most posts as LinkedIn will not flag or announce your action to the original poster in any way. It can be done discretely without significantly impacting your connections.
Pros of Unliking on LinkedIn
While there is some small risk the original poster may indirectly notice if you unlike their content, there are also benefits that may make it worth doing in some cases:
– You can revoke your public endorsement of content you no longer want associated with your profile.
– You can reduce the visibility of divisive, controversial, or misleading content by unliking it so it has lower engagement.
– Cleaning up your liked history can provide a more accurate picture of your interests and values to other LinkedIn users.
– Unliking is less confrontational than commenting your disagreement on a post. It allows you to remove support quietly.
– If you accidentally or hastily liked content, unliking lets you undo this mistake.
Overall the pros of unliking problematic content generally outweigh the low risks of the original poster discovering your action indirectly.
Cons of Unliking on LinkedIn
There are some potential downsides to consider before unliking LinkedIn posts as well:
– As mentioned, power users who monitor metrics may notice the change and call you out.
– Repeatedly unliking a single user’s posts may damage your relationship if they notice a pattern.
– If done indiscriminately without reason, it could appear flippant or petty.
– Frequently unliking posts you initially supported may hurt your credibility or appear indecisive.
– Unliking after engaging directly on a post is more likely to be noticed and questioned.
Essentially, prolific unliking behavior could frustrate or confuse some users. Ensure your unliking aligns with your stated values and interests. And use discretion when unliking from influential connections.
Best Practices for Unliking on LinkedIn
To unlike content on LinkedIn in a strategic and discrete way, keep these tips in mind:
– Unlike posts older than a few days. Posters are less likely to be checking these and notice.
– Only unlike one or two of a user’s posts rather than all. Mass unliking is more obvious.
– Avoid discussing the post with the original poster after unliking. Don’t draw attention.
– Be prepared to explain politely if asked directly why you unliked.
– Unlike posts from casual connections rather than close contacts who may notice.
– Don’t go on massive unlike sprees. Be judicious in the posts you unlike.
Following these best practices will allow you to clean up your liked history and remove support for content you disagree with, without significant social consequences on LinkedIn.
Should You Block a User if You Unlike Their Post?
Unlike Facebook, LinkedIn does not have a distinct blocking feature to prevent another user from viewing your profile or contacting you. The closest equivalent action is unfollowing another user.
In most cases, there is no need to unfollow someone just because you unliked their post. Unfollowing is a more extreme action that prevents you from viewing any of that user’s future posts. Simply unliking a single post you disagree with does not necessarily justify completely unfollowing the user.
However, if the post you unliked is particularly egregious, offensive, or harmful, you may want to consider unfollowing the original poster as well. Repeated posts of that nature may indicate you do not want any association with that LinkedIn member going forward.
Likewise, if you notice a pattern of that user frequently posting distasteful content, unfollowing them may be prudent even if you only unliked one post so far. The unliked post may have been your last straw, but unfollowing reflects a more comprehensive opposition to their overall posting behavior.
So in summary, unfollowing should not be an automatic reaction just because you unliked one post. But for prolific posters of truly inappropriate content, unfollowing sends a stronger signal of disapproval than simply unliking.
Can You See Who Has Unliked Your Post?
Just as LinkedIn does not notify you when someone unlikes your post, there is similarly no way for you to directly see who has unliked your own post.
When you share a post on LinkedIn, you can view the list of profile pictures of everyone who has liked your post. However, there is no comparable list showing profiles of those who previously liked and then unliked.
The only way to potentially identify who unliked your post is through indirect signals, like:
– Manually tracking the like count to see if it drops by one without an explanation.
– Taking screenshots over time of all your post likes to compare the change.
– Using a third-party analytics tool if available.
– Noticing certain profiles no longer appear in your recent likes feed for that post.
– Seeing a change in someone’s overall engagement pattern with your content.
But again, these signals require a lot of manual effort to track. For most regular users, it is not possible to definitively know who unliked your post unless that person proactively tells you or you notice their absent like later while scrolling through names.
So in summary, there is no feature that shows you exactly who unliked a given post of yours. The signals are indirect and challenging to corroborate.
Should LinkedIn Add Unlike Notifications?
One debate around LinkedIn’s unliking functionality is whether they should add some kind of notification when your post is unliked.
Some argue that it would improve transparency and accountability if LinkedIn notified post owners whenever someone unendorses their content. The poster would have the right to know exactly who has revoked support for their views.
However, others counter that unlike notifications could create unnecessary social friction between connections. It could lead to uncomfortable confrontations, pressures to explain oneself, and perceptions of betrayal over a simple unliked post.
LinkedIn’s general avoidance of social media style confrontation has served them well so far. Too many notifications around minor user actions often degrade the user experience in social platforms. Alerting on unlikes may be more trouble than it’s worth.
At the same time, some compromises like limiting unlike notifications to only mutual 1st degree connections could balance transparency with social cohesion. But overall, the current absent notifications approach favors reducing potential online tensions.
Conclusion
Unliking posts is a common occurrence on LinkedIn that allows users to update their interests and values expressed through their engagement. Unlike Facebook, unliking does not notify the original poster or reduce their post’s metrics.
Post owners may be able to detect unlikes through indirect signals like reduced like counts or changes in patterns. But these signals are difficult to confirm and most users are unlikely to take such efforts.
You can generally unlike posts with minimal social risks, as long as you use discretion and avoid prolific unliking behavior. Focus on unliking older or more casual connections’ posts.
While some argue LinkedIn should add unlike notifications, their avoidance of them fits their culture focused on reducing social media style confrontations. Overall the platform is designed to allow low-friction unendorsing of content.