LinkedIn Xray Search: Why it’s Great and How to Use it Well?

Elodie
07/03/2024

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X-Ray search, also known as Boolean search, is a method we use to find highly relevant and accurate results on Google, and now on LinkedIn 🤯, by combining phrases, keywords, and symbols in the search bar. In the case of the LinkedIn X-ray search, these are ultra-precise filtering options to segment and find the perfect candidate. 🔍

The recruiting profession is constantly evolving, and we must, more and more, go fishing for the ideal profile (sourcing) by using automated tools to filter and contact potential candidates. Especially with niche careers like web development and digital experts, companies’ demand is higher than available profiles. 😱

This is a real improvement over the classic LinkedIn and job boards (Indeed, Monster, Keljob…) search filters. The filters considerably improve your job as a recruiter and allow you to generate lists of candidates that completely match the position to be filled in record time 🎯.

So, ready to supercharge your recruitment?

What is LinkedIn X-ray search?

Xray search is a technique to facilitate candidate sourcing on LinkedIn thanks to a little growth hack.

On LinkedIn search or on LinkedIn premium recruiter, you have access to an impressive number of profiles very quickly. But all recruiters have access to it. So, you don’t really stand out from the crowd, and you will certainly contact the same candidates as your direct competitors.

So, using xray search allows you to boost your chances of getting a smaller, but more qualified list of profiles.

The Boolean operator (xray search) allows you to combine, include or exclude search elements. These operators are used between keywords

A keyword = a field, like “Title”, “Name”, “Company”.
A Boolean operator = “quotation marks”, NOT, OR, AND, (parenthesis).

So how do we combine all this to find the perfect recipe?

There are 3 ways to use Boolean search for your LinkedIn recruitment.

LinkedIn xray search with a free online tool: Recruitin.
Use Boolean search directly in the LinkedIn search bar.
Boost your search filters on LinkedIn premium Recruiter.

LinkedIn xray search with Recruitin

Recruitin, or recruit’em, is a tool to facilitate xray search.

It allows you to easily set up more accurate searches and ease your workload.

Here’s step one:

Go to Recruitin.
Fill in the search information.
In include, add boolean operators “AND”. For example “Paris” AND “London”.
In exclude, add what you don’t want. NOT assistant “OR” secretary.
Then click on the green button “find the right people on LinkedIn”.

Here is what will happen in the second step:

In your search, you will find your detailed xray search.
On Google, all the profiles of potential candidates will appear in a row.
This is the time for your sourcing. Click on the link, visit their profile, then add them to your contacts to later send them a message.

What to remember about this tool:

🟢 It’s easy to use.
🟢It is completely free.
🔴 It’s not at all scalable (not on a large scale): LinkedIn profiles appear on Google, so you have to add them to your contacts manually.
🔴 It’s very slow. You have no choice but to add them one by one.

Even though this is an easy technique available to beginners, it is not in any way efficient. You will waste quite a bit of time practicing this way. 😅

And, I don’t want you to waste time, I want you to be happy and efficient. 🥰

So let’s move on to the second technique. You’re going to love it.

Get your first customers this week

Take advantage of the power of Waalaxy to generate leads every day. Start prospecting for free, today.

Use xray LinkedIn search in the classic search bar

The classic LinkedIn search bar, everyone has access to it. I’ll show it to you quickly. 👇

#1 Type what you want in the search bar. (Either the job title or the name of the company your candidates work for, for example “Waalaxy”.)
#2 Click on “people”.
#3 Select “all filters”, the page opens on the right and there you can filter according to your needs.

How to use the boolean operators? (LinkedIn xray search)

It’s in your search bar that everything happens. You’ll be able to easily type in keywords and symbols that will greatly improve the quality of your results. 🤓

Use quotation marks

If you’re looking for an exact title, this is very effective.

For example, you want to find a “developer fullstack”. If you don’t use quotation marks, you’ll get less specific results like “developer” or just “fullstack”. Quotation marks make the search more precise and avoid errors.

Use “NOT” to exclude

This Boolean operator allows you to eliminate results that do not interest you in your candidate search. For example, you are looking for marketing prospects. You type “Marketing” in the search bar.

When you analyze the search, you will come across “Marketing freelancers”. But they are probably not your target.

By specifying “Marketing NOT Freelance”, the search will automatically remove potential candidates with “Freelance” in their job title.

The great thing is that you can add as many NOTs as you want, for example “NOT Assistant NOT CEO NOT Freelance”, in the same search.

Use “OR” and “AND” to include parameters

This xray search allows you to combine search items together to refine the query and better segment your results.

Looking for people with graphic and web design skills? Whilst still in the search bar, type “graphic design AND design”.

Of course, you can refine your sourcing by mixing xray search types. For example: “graphic design AND design NOT freelance”.

And the brackets

Parentheses are used to make combinations. 😄

For example:

(graphic design NOT freelance) OR (graphic design AND design NOT freelance) – this way, you can both search only for graphic designers and both search for profiles with the dual skill set.

Use the xray search method on LinkedIn premium recruiter

Do you have a LinkedIn recruiter account and want to use the magic of LinkedIn xray search? ✨

It’s even easier than the previous two techniques. 🤓

All you have to do is go to your LinkedIn recruiter account.

In “custom filters”, LinkedIn directly offers you to add titles or boolean, here you can choose to put “NOT, AND, OR, quotation marks and parentheses” as you like.

Of course, you can do the same thing on other filters, like “education” or “company”.

How do I contact more qualified candidates, faster?

Now that you know how to segment your candidate searches quickly, you’ll be able to reach your target more easily, but not necessarily faster.

As you can see, in the example above, I have 12,000 potential candidates… that’s a lot. Some of them are already working, some of them may never respond to me… I absolutely have to find a way to contact them quickly, to send them a personalized and catchy message without wasting my entire day. 😱

For that, you need a CRM in which to include all your potential candidates and send them automated messages. Thanks to the one, you will be able to contact more than 100 potential candidates per day in a few minutes.

It’s even better, if you have the possibility to contact them via several channels by associating their email addresses, for example.

For that, Waalaxy is the best on the market. 👽 Besides the amazing design, it’s really powerful.

Here’s how it works:

#1 Type your search using the xray search method. Click on people, add your filters.
#2 Once you have segmented your search, you click on your Waalaxy Chrome extension.
#3 The nice page that opens is used to export candidates into your CRM. Create a list, and confirm.

Think about it 💡 : You can’t upload more than 1000 people to your CRM at once, hence the opportunity to use your Boolean operators well to segment better. This is a real chance to:

Refine your search.
Personalize your messages to candidates.
Have only high quality profiles in your search campaigns.

How does a Waalaxy campaign work?

Once your candidates are registered in the CRM, you can add them to a scenario. In this scenario, you automatically send them a personalized message. You can launch up to 100 messages per day in an automated way, without putting your account at risk.

Enough time to bask in the sun. 😎