Start with a precise ICP
Free LinkedIn search rewards precision. Before searching, write down the job titles you sell to (and their variations), the industries, the company size, and the locations. A vague ICP burns your free searches on people who'll never buy.
Use the free people search filters
- Locations to stay in markets you can serve.
- Current company to work through specific target accounts.
- Industry to narrow to your sector.
- Connections to start with second-degree people, who accept more readily and show mutual contacts.
- Keywords in title or company fields under "All filters" for role-specific searches.
Search with Boolean operators
LinkedIn search supports Boolean operators in the keyword field. A few patterns cover most needs:
| Goal | Search |
|---|---|
| Several titles for one role | "head of operations" OR "operations director" OR "COO" |
| Role plus context | ("agency owner" OR founder) AND "client onboarding" |
| Exclude the wrong people | "marketing manager" NOT intern NOT student |
Use quotes for exact phrases and capitals for AND, OR and NOT.
Search strings by role
| Selling to | Keyword search |
|---|---|
| Agency owners | (founder OR owner OR "managing director") AND agency |
| Sales leaders | "head of sales" OR "VP sales" OR "sales director" |
| Operations | "head of operations" OR "operations manager" OR COO |
| Marketing at startups | ("head of marketing" OR "marketing lead") AND startup |
| HR in small companies | ("HR manager" OR "people lead") NOT recruiter |
Combine these with the location and industry filters to keep results tight.
Find people through what they post
Search posts instead of people. Searching for a problem your product solves, such as "chasing invoices", with the Posts filter shows people talking about it right now. These are often warmer leads than any title search, because they've told you about the problem in public. Comment on the post first, then connect with a note that mentions it.
Other free places to look
Company pages
The People tab on a target company's page lists employees you can filter by keyword, such as a team or role.
Events
Attendees of LinkedIn events in your niche share an interest, and attending gives you a natural reason to connect.
Groups
Active groups in your industry surface people asking questions you can answer.
Your own post engagers and profile viewers
People who engage with your content are your warmest free leads.
"People also viewed"
The sidebar on a good lead's profile often shows similar people.
Work within the limits
Free accounts hit a monthly commercial-use limit on people searches if LinkedIn sees heavy prospecting activity. Search precisely, save the people you find in your CRM straight away, and spread searching across the month. Avoid scraping tools that pull large numbers of profiles; they're against LinkedIn's rules and a common reason for restrictions.
When Sales Navigator is worth it
- You're running searches daily and hitting the commercial-use limit.
- You need saved searches and alerts when people change jobs or companies hire.
- You want more filters, such as company headcount and growth.
- You'll use the InMail credits; see InMail vs connection requests.
If none of these apply yet, the free account plus a clear ICP is enough to fill a month of outreach. The 30-day LinkedIn plan shows what to do with the list.
Turning a search into a list
- Save each good fit straight away to your CRM or sheet, so you don't search for them twice.
- Write the reason to contact them now: a post, a hire, a mutual contact, an event.
- Prioritise people with a recent reason and second-degree connections.
- Engage before connecting: a useful comment on something they posted.
- Connect with a short note that mentions the reason. Our connection request templates help.
Frequently asked questions
Can I find leads on LinkedIn without Sales Navigator?
Yes. Free people search filters, Boolean keywords, post search, company pages, events and your own post engagers are enough to build a good list for a small team.
Does LinkedIn limit free searches?
Yes. Free accounts can reach a monthly commercial-use limit on people searches when LinkedIn sees heavy prospecting. Search precisely and spread searches across the month.
Does LinkedIn support Boolean search?
Yes. You can use quotes, AND, OR, NOT and brackets in the keyword field to combine titles and exclude the wrong people.
Is Sales Navigator worth it for a small team?
Once you search daily, need saved searches and alerts, or want headcount and growth filters. Before that, free search is usually enough.