How do I filter phone numbers in LinkedIn Recruiter?

LinkedIn Recruiter is a powerful tool for sourcing, engaging, and managing candidates. With Recruiter, you can search LinkedIn’s network of over 660 million members to find qualified people for job openings. One of the many useful features in Recruiter is the ability to filter candidate search results by criteria like skills, experience, location, and more. This includes the ability to filter by phone number.

Why Filter by Phone Number?

Filtering your LinkedIn Recruiter searches by phone number can be extremely helpful for a few key reasons:

• Quickly identify candidates who have provided their phone number in their LinkedIn profile. This signifies they may be more open to being contacted about job opportunities.
• Focus on local candidates by filtering to only see profiles with phone numbers from your geographic area. This is useful for roles where an in-person interview is required.
• Eliminate profiles without a phone number listed. Candidates without readily available contact information may be less responsive.
• Sort results by phone number prefixes/area codes. For example, filter to only see candidates with a 650 area code if you are hiring for a role located in that region.

Overall, filtering by phone allows recruiters to pinpoint candidates who are easiest to contact and most relevant for a specific opening. It’s a quick way to narrow down your outreach list.

How to Filter LinkedIn Recruiter by Phone Number

Filtering your LinkedIn Recruiter searches by phone number is easy to do. Here are step-by-step instructions:

1. Access your LinkedIn Recruiter account and navigate to the search page. This can be done from the Jobs or Candidates tabs.
2. Enter your desired keywords into the main search bar, like job titles, skills, companies, etc. This will pull up an initial list of matching profiles.
3. Click on the “Filters” button next to the search bar. This will open up additional filter categories.
4. Under the “Contact Info” filters, check the box for “Has Phone Number.” This will narrow results to only profiles that have a phone number listed.
5. To get more specific, you can also filter by Location which shows options for postal code, country, state, and region. Select any criteria relevant to your search.
6. If needed, click “More Filters” to filter further by Location, Industry, Past Companies, Profiles in Recruiter, and more.
7. Once applied, your filters will show at the top. Preview the filtered results and adjust filters further if needed.
8. When ready, save the filtered search by clicking “Save Search” for easy access later. You can also export results into an Excel spreadsheet.

And that’s it! With those steps you can easily filter LinkedIn Recruiter candidate searches by phone number and other contact criteria. Here are a few more tips for filtering by phone number:

• Try combining phone number filters with other filters like Years of Experience and Industry to narrow your results.
• When filtering by region, start broad (e.g. country) then get more granular by state or postal code.
• Click the filter value itself (e.g. “United States”) to open up additional choices like metro area or city.
• Use phone filters in conjunction with Boolean search strings for more advanced searches.
• Saved searches with phone filters can be turned into email alerts so matching profiles are automatically sent to your inbox.

Example of Filtering by Phone Number

Here is an example of how to use phone number filters in a LinkedIn Recruiter candidate search:

1. Search: “project manager” (software)
2. Filters: Has Phone Number, Location = San Francisco Bay Area, Past Companies = Software companies

This would return candidate profiles that have:

• “project manager” AND “software” keywords
• A phone number listed
• Location in the San Francisco Bay Area
• Past experience at software companies

With those layered filters applied, the search becomes highly targeted to project managers with the desired contact info, location, and industry experience.

Key Things to Remember

When filtering LinkedIn Recruiter searches by phone number, keep these tips in mind:

• Not all candidates list their phone number publicly on their profile, so search results will be limited compared to an unfiltered search.
• Respect candidate privacy and only contact those interested in hearing about opportunities.
• Double check that phone number formats make sense for the specified country/region before outreach.
• Candidates can choose to be contacted through InMail only, so be prepared to use LinkedIn messaging if needed.
• Always combine phone number filters with other filters like skills and experience for best results.

Pros and Cons of Filtering by Phone Number

Filtering by phone number has some clear advantages but also some limitations to be aware of:

Pros:

• Surfaces candidates who are likely easiest to get in touch with
• Enables efficient outreach to local candidates for location-specific roles
• Quickly eliminates profiles with no contact info
• Can help comply with local calling regulations like TCPA requirements

Cons:

• Misses qualified candidates who chose not to share their number
• Area code filtering can incorrectly exclude candidates who relocated
• International numbers may have different formats that don’t filter correctly
• Candidates may prefer different contact methods like email or InMail

Other Ways to Surface Contact Information

In addition to filtering by phone number, here are some other ways to surface candidate contact info in LinkedIn Recruiter:

• Filter profiles with an email address listed
• Search for Twitter handles and other social media usernames
• Look for contact info listed in the profile summary or experience descriptions
• Use browser extensions like Clearbit to uncover work email addresses
• Install a phone number validation tool to identify numbers not set as private
• Check out the LinkedIn Recruiter Pointdrive extension which can uncover emails

Best Practices for Outreach

Once you’ve filtered your LinkedIn Recruiter search results by phone number, make sure to follow best practices when reaching out to candidates:

• Personalize each message – use their name, company, experience, etc.
• Introduce yourself and your company
• Explain why you’re reaching out and how their background fits
• Be transparent about the role details like compensation, responsibilities, etc.
• Make it easy to learn more via links to the role description, company website, etc.
• Stay organized with outreach tracking to avoid repetitive messaging
• Always get candidates’ consent before calling – don’t assume it’s okay
• Provide multiple contact options like email, phone, LinkedIn, etc.

Following best practices helps ensure your outreach is professional, effective, and reflects well on your employer brand.

Conclusion

Filtering candidate searches in LinkedIn Recruiter by phone number can be a quick way to identify and contact relevant, responsive prospects for your job openings. But it should be done carefully and as just one part of a more expansive search strategy.

To recap, follow these best practices when filtering your Recruiter searches by phone number:

• Combine with other filters like location, skills, experience, etc. for targeted results
• Respect candidate contact preferences and privacy
• Use professional and personalized outreach methods
• Don’t make assumptions – ask for consent to call candidates
• Include other contact options like email and LinkedIn messaging
• Monitor outreach effectiveness and optimize based on response rates

Used strategically, filtering by phone number can help focus your candidate search and outreach efforts. But it shouldn’t replace taking a broader approach across multiple channels to surface the best talent.