Bernard Ginns: History a good guide in global war for advertising spend

Me neither. But I bet you, like me, get annoyed by its increasingly irritating advertising placements.

Have you ever made a meaningful connection on LinkedIn?

The best business relations begin in person. For all the benefits that digital networks bring, face-to-face meetings trump all others.

You can get the measure of someone more quickly in person than you do online, where a gift for language and presentation can obscure any number of warning signs.

The wider struggles facing social media sites like Twitter and LinkedIn were laid bare last week when the two companies shocked tech investors in Wall Street when they reported a surprising slowdown in advertising growth.

Shares of LinkedIn Corp, owner of the leading social network for professionals, fell 20 per cent on Friday after the company slashed its full-year forecast, wiping a staggering $6bn from its market value.

The poor results followed Twitter Inc’s weak showing, which led to stock falls by as much as 24 per cent, slicing about $6bn off its market value.

Both companies lost up to a quarter of their market capitalisation, suggesting that the hot air might finally be starting to escape from the tech bubble.