The quintessential professional networking platform, LinkedIn, has just expanded its capabilities with the release of its newest mobile app, LinkedIn Job Search. The standalone app is “dedicated to helping members find, research, and apply for jobs on-the-go without the distractions of news, content, and other updates” a LinkedIn spokesperson shared with Mashable. The app was released on June 19th.
The Job Search App
Targeting the 41% of LinkedIn’s traffic that accesses the site’s features on the go, job hunting is now both simplified and diversified. The app offers advanced search options, personalized job listings, detailed company information and notifications highlighting changes. These keep you up to date on the positions you are interested in. Up-to-date research allows you to apply to job listings on the day they are posted, which gives you a 10% greater chance of landing the job.* The stand alone content allows you to quickly and easily job search without having to navigate through your profile, extra content, or notifications from connections.
While most of LinkedIn’s features are designed to show connection and comparison between employees, employers, and connections, this app is dedicated to keeping your information and activity private and secure. This allows you to use the strength of LinkedIn’s connectivity without highlighting to your current employer or your network what jobs you are searching for–or whether you are searching at all. You can receive notifications during the day at work and keep up your edge on potential applications without worrying about someone looking over your shoulder.
The Job Search program is the latest in a slew of efforts by LinkedIn to become a more well-rounded social platform for professionals. It has allowed members to post original content directly to their wall and has created multiple standalone apps that enhance the platform capabilities and experience. This particular move, however, plays to their strengths of talent acquisition and recruitment, both for the employer and the job seeker. They are also following the lead of other platforms that run mostly off of advertising revenue, like Facebook. They are using standalone apps as a way of creating more traffic data and thus revenue in advertising.* Currently the app exists in the U.S. only for iPhone users, but an Android version is promised for later in the year.