Hi Rafik, thanks for the feedback. I still haven't heard back from LinkedIn's customer service but I upgraded anyway.

Hi Kristoff. Thinking about something like LinkedIn as a networking site for “big people” ignores the fact that many of those “big people” started off on the same plane as people like us. Their networks helped lift them to the higher realms they now occupy. Leaving that aside, I see my LinkedIn profile as being both another point of contact for people wanting to get in touch with me and as a further source of information about the work I do and the activities I am involved in. People can also get a good sense of the people I associate with and that may make a difference. I am less focussed on how many people I can contact (I can email a great many more people than I can message for free on LinkedIn) and more on the various ways people can contact me and find out more about me.