Every recruiter who wants is to find top talent in 2019 should know how to perform the advanced Boolean search.

What is a Boolean search and why is it important for recruiters?

In 2019, we’re dealing mostly with passive candidates. With low unemployment rates, only 12% of people are actively looking for a job.

This is why recruiters must use different methods to source great candidates.

Lately, there has been a lot of buzz around employee referrals and recruitment marketing. But there is another, very effective method you can use to proactively source candidates - Boolean search.

Boolean search is one of those recruitment tactics that everybody has heard of - but nobody really knows who to apply it. It seems complicated and hard to grasp.

Advanced Boolean search can seem a bit intimidating. Those loooong search queries look like math equations. Yuck!

But bear with me for a moment and let me show that learning at least some basic Boolean search tips and tricks is definitely worth a bit of your time and effort.

What are the advantages of using a Boolean search in sourcing candidates?

By using a Boolean search, you can find better candidates faster. You can effectively search through any online repository of potential candidates, such as:

• Search engines like Google, Yahoo or Bing
• Social networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
• Search resume databases
• Applicant Tracking System.

Thus, using a Boolean search will make your life easier and save your time and money!

How to do a Boolean search?

It’s quite simple actually. You go to Google, type in your keywords and add a few additional words (called operators) and symbols (called modifiers) to get more relevant results.

There are 3 key operators: AND, OR and NOT.

There are also 3 key modifiers: asterisk (*), quotation marks (“”) and parentheses (()).

This 6 words and symbols are at the core of Boolean search.

How to use Boolean search operators and modifiers?

If I got you interested and you would like to know how to use these operators and modifiers, check out our comprehensive, but easy to understand Boolean Search Guide for Recruiters.

Don’t want to bother with learning Boolean search?

Luckily, you don't have to. ;)
As I said, it’s 2019. These days, you can simply type your keywords into advanced sourcing tools and let them do their magic.

Ever heard about TalentLyft?

Our recruitment software TalentLyft has a powerful, machine learning powered sourcing solution as well as sourcing extension.

Check it out! :)