What is LinkedIn app used for?

LinkedIn is a social media app designed specifically for professional networking and career development. With over 800 million members worldwide, LinkedIn allows users to connect with colleagues, find jobs, follow companies, and gain industry insights. The LinkedIn app makes it easy to access these networking features on the go from your mobile device.

Connecting with Other Professionals

One of the core functions of LinkedIn is connecting users with other professionals in their industry or location. The LinkedIn app facilitates this in the following ways:

• Profile creation – Users can create a detailed professional profile highlighting their work experience, education, skills, accomplishments, interests, and more.
• Expanding network – Users can connect with colleagues, classmates, clients, and other professionals by sending connection requests.
• Searching profiles – The app enables users to search LinkedIn profiles using name, company, job title, school, and other keywords.
• Contact management – Connections are stored in an easily accessible contacts list within the app.
• Messaging – Users can message connections directly through the LinkedIn app.
• Notifications – The app sends notifications when you receive connection requests, messages, and other updates about your network.

Having a network of professional connections on LinkedIn can lead to job and business opportunities, valuable insights, and expanded perspectives.

Finding Job Opportunities

LinkedIn has become one of the most popular platforms for job seekers and recruiters. Key job search features accessible through the app include:

• Job listings – Users can browse millions of job postings matched to their profile and preferences.
• Applying – Applying to jobs is simple through the LinkedIn app, often requiring just a few clicks.
• Alerts – Job seekers can set up alerts to get notifications about newly posted jobs matching their criteria.
• Saved jobs – Users can save job listings they’re interested in to revisit later.
• Recommendations – LinkedIn recommends jobs based on your profile, network, and activity on the platform.
• Recruiter outreach – Recruiters can contact you directly about job opportunities through LinkedIn.
• Insights – Users gain data-driven insights about how they match up to job requirements.

This makes LinkedIn app extremely useful for finding new career opportunities, especially when on the go.

Following Companies

In addition to connecting with professionals, users can also follow companies on LinkedIn to keep up with their news, job postings, products, and more. Key features for following companies in the app include:

• Company pages – Each company has a LinkedIn page with their industry, description, career opportunities, products, culture, recent news, and more.
• Updates – Users can opt into receiving notifications so they never miss company status updates, new job postings, videos, and articles.
• Research – The app makes it easy to research organizations you may want to work for or do business with.
• Specific listings – Users can find and apply to listings from companies they follow in one click.
• Trending companies – Discover trending, innovative companies drawing a lot of interest on LinkedIn.
• Competitors – View info on key competitors in your industry.
• News – Follow coverage of company product launches, acquisitions, leadership changes, and more.

Staying up-to-date on companies of interest is vital for professionals, and LinkedIn makes this simple through its mobile app.

Gaining Industry Insights

Beyond its networking functions, LinkedIn also provides valuable industry news, articles, and research through its mobile app. Key features related to industry insights include:

• LinkedIn newsfeed – Scroll through a customized feed of industry news, articles, and content posted by connections.
• Hashtag follow – Follow hashtags to see the most relevant content for your interests and profession.
• Influencer content – Read posts from LinkedIn’s network of 500+ global influencers providing insights.
• LinkedIn news – Access curated business and industry-related news stories.
• LinkedIn Learning – Watch sniplets of courses and videos from LinkedIn Learning instructors.
• Recommended articles – Articles recommended based on your profile are easy to discover.
• Company / industry updates – Follow companies and industries to get their latest updates in your feed.
• Posts and comments – Engage in discussions and post your own content to share insights.

Consuming these types of content helps professionals stay in the know and progress in their careers.

Messaging Contacts

LinkedIn incorporates messaging capabilities so users can easily communicate directly with their connections. Messaging features in the app include:

• Chat – Send instant messages to your connections individually or in groups.
• InMail – Send emails to those you’re not connected with through InMail.
• Notifications – Get notified when you receive new messages so you can respond in a timely manner.
• Search messages – Easily search through your message history to find conversations.
• Quick replies – Use pre-set quick replies for simple responses when on-the-go.
• Attachments – Attach files, images, audio, and more to messages.
• Read receipts – See when your messages have been read.

LinkedIn messaging makes it simple to have productive professional conversations from anywhere.

Sharing Multimedia

Users can share multimedia content through the LinkedIn app to showcase their work, interests, company, and more. Multimedia posting capabilities include:

• Photos – Post images and photo albums to your profile or share with your network.
• Videos – Upload and share videos up to 10 minutes long.
• Articles – Publish long-form articles, share links, and discover trending content.
• Presentations – Share slideshow presentations.
• Q&A posts – Crowdsource advice by asking questions to your network.
• Polls – Create polls to survey your connections.
• Live video – Broadcast real-time video content.
• Hashtags – Increase discovery by using relevant hashtags.
• Mentions – Reference connections by linking their profile.

Posting multimedia gives users creative ways to engage their network and share ideas.

Building Your Brand

LinkedIn provides users a platform to establish their personal brand by highlighting their expertise, achievements, and thought leadership. Brand building features include:

• Speaker profiles – Create a speaker profile to showcase your experience as a speaker, moderator, host, or panelist.
• Content publishing – Share your expertise through long-form posts, articles, and slideshows.
• Profile branding – Craft a compelling, keyword-rich professional headline and summary.
• Showcase Pages – Create pages to highlight a brand, company, initiative, or passion project.
• Recommendations – Request and share recommendations from connections.
• Creator mode – Publish content natively from your phone using creator mode.
• Analytics – Gain insights into your profile visitors, content engagement, and more.
• LinkedIn services ads – Promote services to your target demographic.

Maintaining an impactful personal brand on LinkedIn can accelerate professional advancement.

Reviewing Jobs and Companies

LinkedIn incorporates crowd-sourced reviews so users can make more informed career decisions and evaluate potential employers. Review features include:

• Company reviews – Read ratings and reviews on company culture, management, work/life balance, career opportunities, and more.
• Salary insights – View salary data for specific job titles at companies.
• Interview insights – Learn about the interview process from those who interviewed.
• Glassdoor integration – See ratings and reviews from Glassdoor directly on LinkedIn.
• Job reviews – Read reviews on the pros/cons of specific jobs from current and past employees.
• Company responder – Companies can respond to reviews and share their side.
• Helpful / Not Helpful votes – Users can upvote helpful reviews.

This transparency helps job seekers evaluate potential fits and optimize their career moves.

Upgrading with Premium

LinkedIn offers several premium subscription options that give users enhanced features and analytics. Premium tiers on LinkedIn include:

• LinkedIn Career – Gain insights on salary and in-demand skills for your profile.
• LinkedIn Premium – See who’s viewed your profile, message recruiters, and take unlimited Learning courses.
• Sales Navigator – Unlock sales-focused tools to find prospects and build relationships.
• Recruiter Lite – Source candidates with limited search filters and InMail.
• LinkedIn Recruiter – Our most advanced recruiting solution with unlimited InMails and dashboard.
• Business plus – Grow your brand’s followers and showcase Pages with this plan.
• Automatic renewals – Subscriptions are auto-renewed unless canceled.
• Discounts – Annual subscriptions come with discounts vs. monthly billing.

Premium unlocks LinkedIn’s full value, with subscription tiers suitable for job seekers, salespeople, recruiters, marketers, and more.

Career and Personal Development

For those focused on career progression and self-improvement, LinkedIn provides relevant tools and learning resources. Key features include:

• LinkedIn Learning – Watch 10,000+ expert-led video courses covering business, tech, and creative skills.
• Skills assessments – Measure your proficiency across dozens of key skills.
• Skill recommendations – LinkedIn suggests skills to add to boost your profile.
• Courses – Take courses to gain certifications and new skills.
• Coach matching – Get matched with an expert LinkedIn coach.
• Articles and posts – Absorb insights from thought leaders to stay motivated.
• Podcasts – Listen to career and personal development podcasts on the go.
• Audiobook summaries – Get the key takeaways from popular business audiobooks.

The breadth of professional development resources makes LinkedIn valuable for lifelong learning.

Joining Groups

LinkedIn Groups provide users forums to connect with professionals in specific industries, interests, affiliations, and more. Groups unlock the following membership benefits:

• Group discussions – Have focused discussions by posting questions and comments.
• Thought leadership – Share your expertise by publishing posts, articles, and presentations.
• Job listings – Access relevant job postings from companies targeting group members.
• Event promotion – Promote and register for online and in-person events.
• Research – Groups allow you to research and analyze target companies, topics, and trends.
• Chat – Message other group members directly.
• Announcements – Group managers often share news updates.
• Q&A – Get advice by posing questions to the group.

Joining carefully selected Groups helps users gain visibility and tap into niche networks.

Events and Conferences

LinkedIn provides exposure to professional events, workshops, and conferences. Event features include:

• Browse events – Discover upcoming events recommended for you based on your network and interests.
• Create events – Organizers can create event listings on LinkedIn and invite attendees.
• Promote events – Leverage your network and Groups to promote your own events.
• Virtual events – Attend online webinars, conferences, and workshops.
• In-person events – Discover in-person networking meetups, trade shows, seminars, and conferences.
• ticketing – Organizers can process ticket sales for paid events directly through LinkedIn.
• Session schedules – Events showcase their speaker sessions, times, and room assignments.
• Sponsor showcases – See which vendors are sponsoring major events.

Attending events is a powerful way to build connections, learn, and raise your professional profile.

Local Jobs and Insights

For those looking to tap into location-based professional networks, the LinkedIn app provides options to go local. Local features include:

• Nearby – View LinkedIn profiles and opportunities located closest to you.
• Cities – Follow and get updates from specific metro areas.
• Local events – Discover professional events happening in your city.
• Local Jobs – Find and apply to jobs near your location.
• Local companies – Research employers in your backyard.
• Local schools – Connect with alumni from local universities and colleges.
• Local hashtags – Track hashtags unique to your metro area.
• Neighborhood insights – View neighborhood demographics, key employers, and commercial real estate.

The hyperlocal capabilities make LinkedIn indispensable for networking in your city.

User Trends and Statistics

Here is some data showcasing LinkedIn app usage trends and user statistics:

LinkedIn has established itself as one of the most influential social networks, especially for career advancement and recruitment. The mobile app provides the convenience and flexibility to tap into your professional network from anywhere.

Conclusion

In summary, the LinkedIn mobile app empowers professionals with features to connect, learn, advance careers, and gain industry insights on-the-go. Core capabilities include building an influential network, finding jobs, following companies, sharing multimedia, personal branding, online learning, local networking, and accessing premium features. For professionals and job seekers alike, having LinkedIn in your pocket provides an invaluable tool for networking, recruitment, career growth, and business opportunities.