How to Find Email Addresses List for Cold Emailing

Cold emailing is the cornerstone of many successful sales processes, yet it’s often one of the most difficult things for salespeople to do. It can be hard to know where to start, let alone find your prospects’ email addresses.

In this guide, we’re going to show you how to find anyone’s email address (even if they’re not listed online) using a variety of tactics and tools. By the end, you’ll be armed with everything you need to start building your cold email address list.

LinkedIn is one of the internet’s fastest and most effective means of connecting with businesses and professionals. It’s home to over 850 Million users, with 176 Million of them being from the United States. This makes the platform a bountiful hunting ground for prospective leads, their associates, and of course, contact information for cold emails.

But how do you get that information? Most of the time, people on LinkedIn opt to limit the visibility of their personal details (like email addresses and phone numbers) to direct connections. This means that only accounts they know and have validated are able to see the information on their profile, while everyone else gets a redacted version.

Get Connected

If you aren’t already, simply getting connected with your lead’s profile on LinkedIn is the most straightforward way to access their email address. You don’t necessarily have to know them personally to do this, either – following the steps below with due effort is often enough to get their approval.

Follow and/or connect with your lead’s direct associates if possible
Send your lead a connection request
Add a note to your request detailing the reason for your interest in connecting with them

While it can take some time, most people are fairly active on LinkedIn and will take action on your request within days. Once they approve it, your prospect’s email address and phone number should be visible under the ‘Contact and Personal Info’ tab on the right-hand side of their profile. Then, once you have your prospect’s email address, you can use cold email outreach software to help you with your cold outreach.

Export Your Existing Connections’ Data

If you’ve already done the work of connecting with sales prospects on LinkedIn and want a fast and straightforward way of extracting all of their contact information, this option is for you.

LinkedIn gives users the ability to export their account data, including connections and email addresses. All you need to do to take advantage of this feature is:

Navigate to ‘Me’ from LinkedIn’s Homepage
Go to ‘Settings’ and then ‘Privacy’
Scroll down and select ‘Getting an archive of your date’
. Select the default option of ‘Fast file only and click ‘Request archive’
Enter your account password when prompted
Wait for the data to compile and hit ‘Download’

Good Old Google

If you’ve been prospecting for any length of time, you’re probably already familiar with the power of good old Google when it comes to finding email addresses. It’s a simple process – just type in your lead’s name followed by their company domain and you’re usually good to go.

That’s not to say it’s always this straightforward, however. In some cases, advanced search options and strategies may need to be used in order to find your target.

Advanced Google Search Strategies

If a simple Google search isn’t giving you the results you’re after, try using some of the following advanced search strategies:

Add relevant keywords to your search – e.g. job title, location, etc.
Use quotation marks to search for an exact phrase – e.g. “John Smith”
Search a specific website – e.g. site:linkedin.com
Use the ‘OR’ operator to broaden your search – e.g. John OR Smith
Use the ‘-‘ operator to exclude certain terms from your results – e.g. John Smith -LinkedIn

Alternative Search Engines

If you’re still having no luck finding your lead’s email address using Google, there are a number of alternative search engines that might be able to help you out.

These include:

Hunter.io
AnyWho
Spokeo
That’sThem

Use a Chrome Extension

If you’re using Google Chrome as your browser, there are a number of email-finding extensions that can make the process of finding email addresses much easier. These include:

Email Hunter
. FindThatLead
VoilaNorbert
Clearbit Connect
Contact Out

WHOIS Search

If you’re after a business owner or professional with their own website, conducting a WHOIS search is another great way to find their email address.

WHOIS (pronounced “who is”) is an online public database that houses records relating to domain names and the information that was collected upon their registration. It’s completely free to use and access, and provides users with data such as the domain’s registered owner, their contact information, and when the domain was first registered.

Conducting a WHOIS search can be as simple as going to Whois.net and typing in the domain name you’re interested in. However, depending on the domain’s privacy settings, the information you’re looking for may be hidden behind a private registration.

Email Permutator

An email permutator is a digital tool that uses online public data to generate a list of potential email addresses for a given lead. All you need to do is input your lead’s first name, last name, and company domain, and the permutator will do the rest.

Email permutators are a great way to quickly generate a list of potential email addresses for your target, and can be a helpful starting point when trying to track down the right one. Of course, as with any other method of email address hunting, there’s no guarantee that the addresses you generate will be 100% accurate. The best way to verify the legitimacy of the domains you find is to use an Email Verification Tool.

If and When All Else Fails

If all of the above tactics fail to provide you with your prospect’s email address, your last and final option is to get creative.

Alternative Methods of Communication

Sometimes, people really want to keep their contact details hidden, and you’ll need to take up alternative methods of communication such as:

LinkedIn InMail
Twitter DM
Facebook Message
Instagram DM
Snapchat
Physical Mail

While these methods may not seem as efficient or effective as simply emailing someone, they could be your best chance of getting in touch with your target. And, who knows, they might even appreciate the fact that you went the extra mile to get in touch with them.

Hire a Professional Team

If you absolutely need your prospect’s email address and can’t get in touch with them any other way, hiring a professional team may be your best option. There are countless businesses out there that offer email list building as a service, and while it will come at a cost, it could be worth it in the long run.

Email list-building services can vary greatly in terms of price and quality, so it’s important to do your research before hiring anyone.

What’s Next?

Now that you know how to find anyone’s email address, it’s time to put your new skills to the test. Start by trying out some of the tactics we’ve covered in this guide, and see how you do. With the right strategy and dedication, you’ll find that there are few people you can’t track down and connect with online.In search of a turnkey solution to building cold email lists? Try Growbots. It’s full of resources and tools that can help you make the most of your marketing endeavors.

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