Quick Sourcing Tip – The “info:” Command by @arron_daniels

One quick tip that is often overlooked is using the Google specific info: command. For a peek at some quick information about a company or website, the info: command is great.

You can see a list of “advanced” search operators/functions here. (Not all of them are shown)

When to use the “info:” command:

I typically use the info: command when I am in the pre-search phase prior the requisition intake session. I use this step to look up competitors and other tid-bits of information that can be found.

For Example:

Info:- By placing the info: command directly in front of the url you wish to learn more about, you will be see the above image.

Googles Cache- (cache:) displays Google’s last cached version of a page. It’s handy for showing you older indexed versions of the web page. This can come in handy for looking at deleted or edited profiles (i.e. LinkedIn or twitter) or perhaps an older version of a page that shows contact information (similar to Way Back Machine)

Link to- (link:) shows other pages that the url shows up on to link to the determined site.. Kind of like an old “Flip Search.”

Similar to- (related:) shows you pages that are simillar. This is handy for looking at competitors, similar sites that lead to good nuggets of information etc.

From this site- (site:) reveals all indexed pages of the site plus additional pieces of information that you may/may not see in the domain. For example using the site: command on google will show you other branches of the website (look at the urls below)

Contain the term- is self explanatory. Google just puts quotes around the query.

Bonus:

Remember those other sourcing operators/functions that aren’t listed that’s quite useful is the intext: command. This command is very handy for pulling back specific text.

My next piece will show how to use this command to vary your searches specifically looking for profiles from other websites.

Happy Sourcing!