Input
What it works from
The job spec and the candidate persona. Nothing to type.
Studio · Playbook · Source
Boolean search strings that paste clean into 6 platforms.
Written to each platform's own syntax, including the 5-operator limit on LinkedIn.
Search Strings takes the persona's seed Boolean and rebuilds it 6 times, once for each place a UK recruiter actually searches: LinkedIn free search, LinkedIn Recruiter, Indeed, Reed, CV-Library and Totaljobs. Each string follows that platform's documented rules, so the LinkedIn string never exceeds the 5 operators that LinkedIn.com silently allows, the Reed string uses wildcards, and the Totaljobs string uses AND NOT and proximity. Notes under each string tell you which filters to set in the interface and which synonyms to run as a second pass.
01 · How it works
What goes in, what comes out.
Output
What you receive
6 platform-specific Boolean strings with notes on filters, second-pass synonyms and what to set in the interface rather than in the string.
02 · Why it matters
Why this exists.
Every CV database speaks a slightly different dialect. LinkedIn.com returns "No results found" at 6 operators and drops stop words even inside quotes. Indeed wants a minus sign for exclusions, Totaljobs wants AND NOT, Reed and Totaljobs take wildcards, CV-Library does not. One string pasted everywhere fails somewhere, and it fails silently.
Writing each string to its platform's own documentation removes that. The title synonyms and skills come from the persona, so the strings look for the people who hold the job, not the title on the job description. The notes carry what the string cannot: location and radius set in the interface, the synonyms to run as a second pass, and the filters Recruiter handles better than Boolean does.
03 · What it does
5 things this delivers.
- 01 LinkedIn free search string held to the 5-operator limit
- 02 LinkedIn Recruiter string with filter mapping in the notes
- 03 Indeed, Reed, CV-Library and Totaljobs strings that differ wherever the syntax does
- 04 Title synonyms and skills seeded from the persona, not the job description
- 05 Notes on second-pass synonyms and interface filters under every string
04 · In practice
3 ways it shows up.
Scenario 01
A consultant who has been pasting one string into everything discovers why LinkedIn kept returning nothing: 7 operators. The rebuilt string returns a page of profiles.
Scenario 02
An in-house recruiter searching Reed for an administrator uses the wildcard string and stops missing the candidates whose title reads Administration Officer.
Scenario 03
A desk running Totaljobs and CV-Library side by side gets 2 different strings and 2 different shortlists, instead of the same 30 profiles twice.
05 · Who it's for
Who this is built for.
Recruiters who source across several databases and are tired of a string that works on one and returns nothing on the next.
06 · Common questions
Things people ask.
Why is the LinkedIn string so short?
LinkedIn.com allows 5 operators before it silently returns no results. The string is built to exactly that limit and the synonyms it left out are listed in the notes to run as a second pass.
Do I still need to set location?
Yes. Location, radius and similar filters live in each platform's interface and the notes tell you what to set. Putting them in the string is what breaks it.
Are the 4 database strings really different?
Yes, wherever the syntax differs. Indeed uses minus signs, Totaljobs uses AND NOT and proximity, Reed and Totaljobs take wildcards, CV-Library takes none.
Can I regenerate with a different angle?
Yes. Edit the persona's titles or skills, or regenerate the asset with feedback such as "widen the titles" or "exclude agency-side".
Is it included on Solo?
Yes. All 11 playbook assets and the 3 Desk Radar tools are included on Solo at £149 a month, with a 7-day trial. Card required, cancel any time inside the window.
07 · Next in the playbook
Works well alongside.
Source
Outreach Kit
LinkedIn message, InMail and email, each tuned to the persona and written in your voice.
Source
Nurture Sequence
4 touches across email and LinkedIn for the candidates who were nearly right or not ready.
Screen
Screening Pack
Knockout questions, qualifiers, a phone-screen script and ideal answers, all from the spec.
Get started
Add a job. Search Strings is in the playbook.
7 days free, card required, cancel any time inside the window. Full access from day one: all 11 playbook assets, the 3 Desk Radar tools and your Brand Profile, on one Solo seat at £149 a month.