I’m going to to share three very valuable Google search strings that can help you get more out your LinkedIn searches. These tips will help you expand your network and even reveal private profiles.But first I’m going to give you the biggest tip of all: Google Site search.

What is a Google Site Search?

A Google Site search is a search string which allows you to search inside one website at a time.

How do you conduct a “SITE” search?

Simply go to http://www.google.com/ and type in the syntax site: followed by the name of the site you want to search. For example, site:linkedin.com. Once you have written this syntax you can add other specific keywords and criteria you are looking for such as site:linkedin.com “quality analyst” “greater Toronto”.

How to Search LinkedIN with Google Site Search

What are the benefits of a “SITE” search?

You can reveal candidates that may not be accessible directly through the site’s built in search features. If you are to conduct a search on LinkedIn through the advanced search option, you are limited to profiles in your expanded network. By conducting “SITE” searches on LinkedIn through the Google search engine, you have access to all public LinkedIn profiles. Most people have public profiles therefore SITE searches on Google can substantially increase the amount of candidates you have access to, especially as a free member.

3 Tips to Get Even More Out of Your Site Searches

Tip One: Use – (minus sign) to Eliminate Unwanted Results

The – (minus sign) character acts as the command “not” which helps to focus your search results. For example, you can use the – symbol to identify specific keywords you do not want to see in the results. Perhaps you’re looking for a mid level manager but you don’t want to see senior level individuals. You could add the syntax -director to help eliminate individuals at the Director level. Also, when searching LinkedIn with Google be sure to add the syntax -inurl:dir and -inurl:directory to your searches. This eliminates directory pages from your search results. Directory pages are essentially lists of links and provide no valuable information.

Tip Two: Search Outside of Your Expanded LinkedIn Network

If you conduct an advanced search on LinkedIn and discover a candidate with a private profile, note the revealed information. Generally, they will reveal the company the individual works for and their title. Use this information to conduct a LinkedIn SITE search on Google. For example, if you come across a profile that shows the individual worked at “Company ABC” and they were a “Business Analyst”, go to Google and type in the syntax site:linkedin.com “Company ABC” “Business Analyst”. The search results will reveal people with public profiles on LinkedIn who have worked at “Company ABC” and were a “Business Analyst”. With a little luck, you just might discover the name of the individual you are hoping to contact.

Tip Three: Join groups!

Joining groups on LinkedIn will help expand your network and give you access to valuable candidates. However, as most recruiters are aware, some groups are closed or have criteria based membership. Conducting a group search on Google can help you gain access to candidates in these exclusive groups. To reveal candidates with public profiles who are members of a group use the syntax site:linkedin.com (inurl:in OR inurl:pub) followed by the group you would like to find. For example: site:linkedin.com (inurl:in OR inurl:pub) “HRPA”.