LinkedIn has unveiled a new mobile app that provides a better email experience and enablers users to make more informed decisions on adding potential business connections on their smartphones. Called ‘Intro’, the app provides a summarized profile of the sender above the email client. The profile comprises the sender’s picture and small professional bio. When you click on the Intro bar, a more detailed profile of the sender is displayed. It includes the sender’s work history, education, mutual connections, and recommendations received by him/her from other LinkedIn users.
The app integrates features of an identity verification software developed by Rapportive, a subsidiary of LinkedIn. Rapportive said that the reason behind developing Intro was the staggering growth of mobile email and the hugely popular activity of emailing on mobile devices, which – according to the start-up – is more frequently performed compared to gaming, browsing and social networking.
Intro equips users to separate spam from genuine potential business connections by putting a face and business credentials to every name. Rapportive says that the mobile app also helps users write more effective emails and manage connections more intelligently. The app supports iCloud, Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Google Apps and AOL Mail.
Along with Intro, LinkedIn has unveiled a revamped app for the iPad and demoed the soon-to-arrive integration of the Pulse aggregator and reader (which it acquired in April) into its mobile platform. The iPad app offers refreshed visuals, greater customization options, a more personalized experience and enhanced functionality. Users can now view videos online and tap on images to expand them. The new iPad feed also allows users to connect with and follow people, share and comment on content, and ‘Like’ content. The search functionality in the app has also been improved, with the ability to now find jobs, companies and other LinkedIn users.