In part one, I wrote a brief introduction to email search and discussed how reverse lookup works. In part two, I reviewed several email opt-in email directories, as well as a few free and premium email search and reverse lookup services. In this, the third and final article, we’ll delve into a few resources you can use as an alternative to the more standard email search methods.
Facebook (Search)
I’m reminded how excellent Facebook can be for finding people every time an ex-girlfriend or distant relative attempts to “friend” me out of the blue. The service has become so popular that many people you might not peg for tech-savvy have got a Facebook account that they visit on a regular basis. More than 300 million people use Facebook, which makes it one the best resources on the web for finding people. Searching on Facebook is easy, doesn’t require a membership, and, most of the time, lets you view a thumbnail to confirm it’s the right person before you attempt to contact them.
LinkedIn (Search)
While not quite as popular as Facebook for social networking, LinkedIn’s user base tends to be more business oriented. The purpose of LinkedIn is for professionals to maintain a list of trusted business contacts, which makes it an ideal place to check when trying to track down contact information.
FriendFeed (Search)
Many social network-savvy internet users link several accounts from other sites like Twitter and Facebook through FriendFeed, a service that helps its members keep in touch with friends wherever they pop up on the internet. The search function is accessible without registering and offers many advanced options.
MySpace (Search)
With well over 200 million users, MySpace can be a valuable resource when searching for someone. Using the MySpace Friend Finder does not require signing up and allows searches by name or email address. Once found, a user can be contacted by posting directly to their MySpace page.
Campus Directories
Many college and university websites include email directories that can be searched by the public. If you know the name of the school the person you’re searching for attends, this could be very useful. Simply perform a web search for the school name, plus the words “campus email directory”.
Web Search
People often overlook simple online searches. While an online search may not lead you directly to information on the person you’re searching for, it can sometimes point you in the right direction by providing useful information about the person. Businesses often list employees on their company website which can help lead to a company email directory. I recommend using Google for your searches because it not only searches websites but also blogs, news sites, and social networking sites like Twitter.
If no results are returned for your query, try including information you already possess, such as hobbies, schools, employers, or the person’s hometown. If, for example, the name “Ann Smith” doesn’t return the right results, try “Ann Smith San Francisco” or “Ann Smith Lincoln High School” or even “Ann Smith Computer Sciences”. Different combinations of words can yield new results or help narrow results enough to be useful.
Usenet Search (Search)
Usenet newsgroups have been around since 1980 and are the precursor to modern website forums. If the person you’re searching for posted to Usenet between July 1991 and February 1996, then their email address can be found among over four million in the MIT Usenet user database. Since the information is so old, the email address you find probably doesn’t work, but searching the web for that email address may link you to another address and perhaps a few more clues that may point you, eventually, in the right direction. It’s a shot in the dark, but might just pay off.
Keep In Mind
The most valuable asset that you have when searching for an email address or looking for the name behind an email address, is the ability to piece together information in a logical manner that will lead you to the information you seek. Unless you’re paying a premium fee (and sometimes even then) you’re going to have to fit the pieces of the puzzle together yourself and the best way to do that is to try many different approaches until you find one that works.
Email search can be a little confusing at first: being inundated with “free” offers of easy email searches and reverse lookups that end up costing a lot and delivering questionable results or wading through an endless series of email directories that provide outdated information can wear on even the most seasoned internet users. But with a little perseverance and the list of resources that I’ve provided in this series of articles, you can find the information you need in the most efficient and least expensive way possible.
