New LinkedIn Apps Aim to Connect the Whole World

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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Every company, college and worker in the world may soon be more connected than ever before. That is the hope of LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD), which has just released a set of new apps to do just that.

“We’d like to step out of the way and allow all of these nodes to connect such that they can maximize value,” said Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn’s CEO, at its Mobile Day event in San Francisco on Wednesday.

The professional network recently launched a mobile app for recruiters. While only about 8% of LinkedIn users connected through mobile devices in early 2011, that number is now near 38%, and expected to be half of all users next year. And mobile users are more than twice as active than those who access the service on PCs.

The revamped iPad app includes a fresh design, meant to be easier to navigate and that includes personalized content based on users’ jobs and interests.

A news reader app called Pulse will offer recommendations for news articles, as well as stories from LinkedIn’s so-called influencers; that is, those using the network as a content marketing platform. The company says this app will be available soon.

And an app called LinkedIn Intro adds pictures and snippets from contacts’ LinkedIn profiles to Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) built-in iPhone email app. It also offers a button that users can click on to connect with their LinkedIn contacts. The service works with Gmail, Yahoo Mail, AOL Mail and others as well.

As with the launch of the Obamacare sign-up website, there were a few glitches with LinkedIn’s new apps. Some frustrated users were unable to log in to the website. But so far, no one is calling this launch a train wreck.

Photo of Trey Thoelcke
About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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