Are you having trouble locating the critical business emails you’ll need for a successful outreach campaign? They’re hard to come by, especially since professionals are less likely to make their emails public to avoid spam. There are, however, several free ways to look up verified email addresses.

“OK, but how much effort is this going to take?” you might wonder. “Is it even worth it?” you might wonder. It’ll be well worth it! Email remains the most popular method for establishing new business relationships. While response rates may not be stellar, if just one lead responds and initiates a conversation, your efforts will have been well worth it.

To Lookup Email Addresses, Shortcuts

It takes time to build an email list. You’ll have to search for people based on their industry, location, size, and other factors, which is why you might be tempted to buy an email list. The problem with those email lists, however, is that they frequently contain spam traps. Those are fictitious email addresses created with the intent of trapping people who buy AI-generated lists. 

It’s a risky game to send emails to spam traps and addresses that have been gathered without permission. Your IP address may be blacklisted, and your reputation may suffer as a result.

Put forth the effort to create a proper email list based on your target audience to avoid high bounce back rates. You’ll not only avoid being blacklisted, but you’ll also reach real people who are interested in what you have to offer, increasing your open and response rates.

Here are four free ways to look up a business email address.

#1. Ask Over LinkedIn

LinkedIn email finder is a fantastic tool for finding and contacting the people you’re looking for. You can send private messages to your prospects using LinkedIn’s messenger feature. This is an excellent opportunity to inquire about their work email address.

The only caveat is that LinkedIn users are bombarded with spam, so you’ll need to be able to distinguish your messages from the rest. Otherwise, your message will be lost in the shuffle before it is even opened.

Make sure your LinkedIn message is personalized, thoughtful, and doesn’t include a pitch to increase the chances of it being opened and read. It’s all about starting a conversation, not making a sale right away, just like the email you’ll send once you get their email address.

You are not required to receive their email in their first response. Here’s an excellent HubSpot example:

“Hi Mary,

I’m a big fan of the work you do with Company X. I saw your recent comments on an article about widget machine errors and they really resonated with me (I’ve seen my fair share of terrifying widget errors).
Just wanted to say hello and that I’d love to connect here. Thanks for the work you’re doing!

Best, Meg”

It’s all about getting a response in this case. You’re more likely to start a rapport with a quick compliment, commonality, and a simple “close” than by asking for their email address right away.

#2. Check Their Company Website

You could simply go to their company website and search their Contact Us page before messaging your prospect on LinkedIn. You’d be surprised at how many decision-makers make contacting them simple. If you’re not sure if they’re a decision-maker, send them an email asking them to direct you in the right direction.

Check to see if they’ve written anything for the company’s blog to find their email address. If that’s the case, you can usually click on their name to go to their bio page.

If they don’t have a bio page, you’ll at least know something about them from their writing, which you can use once you have their email address. Some email lookup tools can even extract contact information from a company’s website’s domain.

#3. Don’t Forget About Twitter

On Twitter, some professionals are far more active than on LinkedIn. If they have a Twitter account, simply type their name into Google with “Twitter” at the end, and their name should appear right away.

Once you’ve found them on Twitter, read their profile to learn more about their interests and platforms on which they may be active. You can interact with them through those channels, or you can tweet them directly after you’ve followed them on Twitter.

Keep your Tweet short and simple with a compliment and an ask. Here’s another example from HubSpot, “@MarySmith, I loved your recent post on widget error reduction. Do you have any other posts to share on the topic?”

Once again, you’re not requesting their email address right away. You’re only trying to get a response. You can take things to the next level after a few back-and-forths by asking to continue the conversation via email.

#4. Use an Email Lookup Tool

A free email lookup tool or finder gets you leads based on their personal data, which can include their company, links on social media, their name, and so on. If the email address was published somewhere on the internet, the email lookup tool will find it and verify that it’s real and current.

Whether it’s through LinkedIn, companies’ websites, or using in-app features, platforms like Skrapp.io help you build accurate email lead lists for your next outreach campaign. You can even download email lookup extensions that smartly integrate with your LinkedIn and Sales Navigator and provide verified email addresses of leads instantly.

In short, an email lookup tool gives you quick access to verified email addresses without having to search through so much information. Plus, there is no monthly fee to install and use the email finder. If you decide that you need more capabilities down the line, you can always subscribe for more features.