LinkedIn completely revamps its profile page

Social network debuts wew layout, additional information and tools to connect with network

Since it lost its API connection with Twitter earlier this year, LinkedIn has been on a rampage, launching new features, including updated to its developer platform, launching a “Follow” feature, and updating its homepage. Now it has gone and revamped its profiles pages as well.

“Build insanely brilliant and simple products that change people’s lives. That give them that ah-ha moment,” Deep Nishar, LinkedIn SVP Product and User Experience, said at a press event in the company’s Silicon Valley headquarter, reports Wired. “That is the underpinning of the new LinkedIn.”

Here is a sample of what the new LinkedIn homepage looks like:

• The new LinkedIn homepage has a larger picture at the top, and it displays work and education info alongside. 

• Right below that is an activity box, where users can write posts and display articles, which can be linked directly from their profile page.

• Below that is the  familar background and experience tab, where users will give a more in depth history of their work and their education.

• A new feature to the LinkedIn profile page runs down the right side, where it will now display people that the user might know, as well as who has recently viewed their profile. It also provides both the strength of that profile, and ways that users can relate to other people in their network in terms of interests and skills.

• At the bottom, LinkedIn has installed features that make it easier to connect with people in your network.

“Many of the features have now been repackaged and made very simple and streamlined,” Nishar said. “LinkedIn has three core tenants: Simplify. Grow. Everyday.”

LinkedIn's other updates

The company cleaned up its homepage in July, redesigning it to promote all of the features and investments it has made. The goal was to make the professional network even more social and share business-related news.

Then the company announced in August that it was releasing updates to its Developer Platform.

In order to make network integration easier, the site made updates to its Sign in with LinkedIn Experience, overhauled its API, has simplified its developer website and updated its terms of service.

LinkedIn’s offline Sign was given a new design, reminiscent of Facebook, which allowed developers to request the e-mail addresses, as well as specify certain permissions, from people who want to sign into LinkedIn through its website. The goal was to make the professional network even more social and share business-related news.  

The new API offered attribution to developers on LinkedIn’s update stream, in the event that their users do choose to share their content with the LinkedIn network. This content will then link back to the developer’s website.

In September, LinkedIn debuted a follow feature, that would allow users to get updates from 150 of the most influential thought leaders on LinkedIn, including Barack Obama, Arianna Huffington, Richard Branson, Mitt Romney, Reid Hoffman, T. Boone Pickens, Cory Booker, Ben Smith, and Deepak Chopra.

Users who follow these people will get their status updates, as well as original posts that they have written, with videos, photographs and Slideshare presentations. Users are able to like and comment directly on posts, and share them with their network.

This is not the first time LinkedIn has added a follow feature to its site. In April 2010, LinkedIn began allowing users to follow company profiles. This is the first time, though, they that were able to follow other users.

LinkedIn has its userbase growth in the past year grow 50% in the past year. It now has 175 million members.

LinkedIn has also seen 89% growth year to year.

(Image source: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/about)