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Do your professional networking followers viewing you as a thought leader? Do numerous commenters praising your advice on expanding your business? Do recruiters making contact to discuss collaborations?

Should that not be the case, the reason could be that you're not male.

The Experiment: Changing Gender Identity for Increased Reach

Dozens of women joined an organized LinkedIn experiment recently after viral posts suggested that switching their profile gender to "man" enhanced their network presence.

Some participants modified their profiles to include what they called "bro-coded" terminology - inserting results-driven professional jargon like "propel", "transform" and "expedite". Based on reports, their exposure similarly increased.

Systemic Preference Concerns Raised

The improved metrics has led some to speculate whether a built-in gender bias in LinkedIn's algorithm favors men who employ online business jargon.

Similar to many large social media platforms, LinkedIn utilizes a computerized system to determine which posts are shown to which members - promoting some while reducing others.

Company Statement

In a recent blog post, LinkedIn recognized the phenomenon but stated it does not consider "personal characteristics" when deciding post visibility. Rather, the company mentioned that "hundreds of signals" influence how content are received.

Changing gender on your profile does not influence how your posts appears in results or timelines.

Individual Results

Simone Bonnett, who modified her pronouns to "he/him" and her profile name to "a masculine version", described extraordinary outcomes.

"The numbers I'm observing show a sixteen-fold rise in profile views and a 1,300% increase in content views," she commented.

Megan Cornish, a communications strategist, started testing after noticing her reach decrease substantially.

The Method

• First, she changed her gender to "male"
• Then, she used artificial intelligence to rewrite her profile using "male-coded" wording
• Finally, she repurposed old posts with comparable "agentic" style

The result was immediate: a more than fourfold rise in reach within seven days.

The Negative Aspect

Although the success, Cornish voiced dissatisfaction with the approach.

"Previously, my content were more personal - brief and clever, but also friendly and relatable," she stated. "Currently, the bro-coded version was assertive and confident - similar to a Caucasian man swaggering around."

She abandoned the experiment after seven days, stating "Every day I persisted, and outcomes got better, I became angrier."

Varying Outcomes

Some participants experienced positive outcomes. One writer who changed both her gender to "man" and her ethnicity to "white" described a decrease in visibility and interaction.

"We know there's systemic preference, but it's very challenging to comprehend how it operates in specific cases or why," she remarked.

Wider Consequences

These experiments occur alongside continuing conversations about LinkedIn's unique role as both a professional network and community site.

Platform modifications in the past few months have apparently caused women professionals experiencing markedly lower exposure, leading to unofficial tests where the same posts by men and women received dramatically unequal audience engagement.

Technical Explanation

Per LinkedIn, the network uses artificial intelligence to categorize and spread content based on multiple factors, including post content and the user's professional identity.

The company states it regularly evaluates its algorithms, including "checks for inequalities based on gender."

A spokesperson proposed that recent declines in some users' reach might originate from higher volume due to additional posts on the platform.

Evolving Environment

As one participant observed, "bro-coding" appears to be increasing on the platform.

"Users typically consider LinkedIn as more businesslike and refined," she commented. "That's changing. It's becoming increasingly competitive and less controlled."