@careercolin

The Secrets
of Search on
LinkedIn
HOW TO LEVEL-UP YOUR NETWORKING
Introduction

I broke into an extremely competitive

industry through LinkedIn networking.

In my opinion, LinkedIn is one of the

most slept-on and misunderstood
platforms for growing your network.

Once you know how to effectively index

the users on the site, you can find
almost anyone, and start connecting
with people in your desired industry!

As of September 2023, I
have nearly 4,000
connections on LinkedIn.
The average user has 500!

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Step Zero
LinkedIn is a network-based system.
Meaning that you will get more out of the
site the more connections you have on
the platform.

So you need to start making more friends!

If you’re in college, connect with your classmates

and other people in your major or extracurriculars

If you’re a professional, connect with your manager,

your peers, and those on your team

If you’re in high school or earlier, you are already

ahead of the game by reading this guide!

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Step One
Before you start searching, you need
a strategy. Who are you looking for,
and what do you hope to gain from
the connection?

Do you want to connect with executives to possibly

gain a mentor?

Do you want to connect with peers in your industry

to potentially get a reference for a new job?

Do you want to connect with upperclassmen at your

college to learn about a major of study?

Having a sound strategy will guide

you, as the search feature on
LinkedIn is quite robust.

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Step Two
Understand that LinkedIn search has 2 parts:

Terms + Modifiers

Your search terms are what you actually put into

the search bar:

Your search modifiers are these conditional filters

you can use to further refine your search

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Step Three
LinkedIn also has these advanced
filters available in this side panel -
very important for drilling down even
further for more specific searches

This is a great
way of finding
“connections of
connections” and
take advantage
of the network
effects of
LinkedIn!

OKAY - now let’s do an example!

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Example
Say you want to move to NYC and start
your career in consulting, and want to
connect with current consultants.

The first thing you should do is think

about all the different ways you could
possibly filter for these people.

This Includes:
Their job title
Where they live
Where they work
Who they’re connected to
Where they went to college

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Example

In this example, just by using a few filters, I found 17 people who

attended the University of Georgia (where I went to college), and
who are currently working at a consulting firm in NYC that are
connected to people I am currently connected to!

Now you just need to know what message to send them. But
that’s a tip for another time!
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How to Search on LinkedIn

Tips & Tricks

You can also go to a company-specific page and use the
“People” tab to start filtering for specific type of professionals

For example, you could find everyone at Deloitte with

“Consulting” in their job title, that lives in your city and
went to your college!

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How to Search on LinkedIn

Tips & Tricks

For people you’ve already connected with, you can click on their
connections (see screenshot):

Now, you can search their connections directly for others you
may want to connect with as well
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 How to Search on LinkedIn

Tips & Tricks

If you’re in college, you can use LinkedIn to find campus
recruiters who are actively hiring in your area that you share a
mutual connection with!

Pay attention
to the terms
and modifiers
I’m using
here!

This search has the term “campus recruiter”, and I’m using
modifiers to specify people who are 2nd-degree connections
(friends of friends), actively hiring, and live in the NYC area.

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@careercolin

Want to learn more?

This Fall, I’ll be releasing my networking

guide, an advanced resource on how to
build strong professional relationships.

Be sure to check your email over the next

few weeks for more information!

Thank you for reading this, and I hope this

takes your LinkedIn game to the next level!

Wishing you all the best,

Colin Rocker

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