How to Find B2B Leads on LinkedIn Without Paying for Sales Navigator

Sales Navigator is a powerful tool. It is also expensive.

At nearly $1,000 per year, it is a steep investment for bootstrapped founders, freelancers, and early-stage agencies.

The pitch from LinkedIn is simple: "You need Sales Navigator to find leads."

That is a lie.

Sales Navigator is essentially a paid filter for a database you already have access to. If you know how to manipulate the free search (and where to look), you can build a pipeline just as robust as a Sales Nav user—without spending a dime.

In this guide, I will show you the 5 "Guerrilla" Search Tactics to find high-quality B2B leads using the free version of LinkedIn.

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The "Sales Nav Trap"

Before we dive into the tactics, you need to understand why most people buy Sales Navigator: Lazy Filtering.

They pay $99/month because they want a button that says "Show me CEOs in New York."

But here is the problem: Everyone else is pressing that same button.

The leads you find on Sales Navigator are the most "over-pitched" people on the planet. They get 50 InMails a week.

By using the free search methods below, you aren't just saving money. You are often finding better, more active leads that aren't being spammed by lazy automation tools.

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Strategy 1: Boolean Search (The "Poor Man's" Sales Nav)

You don't need Sales Nav to run complex queries. You just need to speak the language of the database: Boolean Logic.

Boolean search allows you to combine keywords with operators (AND, OR, NOT) to filter results with surgical precision.

The 5 Operators You Need to Know:

1. AND: Limits results. Founder AND SaaS finds profiles that have both words.
2. OR: Expands results. SaaS OR Software finds profiles with either word.
3. NOT: Excludes results. CEO NOT Assistant removes anyone who is an "Assistant to the CEO."
4. Parentheses (): Groups terms. (SaaS OR Software) AND (Founder OR CEO) is a complex query that finds Tech Founders.
5. Quotes "": Exact match. "Content Marketing" finds that exact phrase, not just "Content" and "Marketing" separately.

3 "Copy-Paste" Boolean Strings for B2B:

For Targeting SaaS Founders:

(Founder OR "Co-Founder" OR CEO) AND (SaaS OR Software OR Tech) AND "United States"

For Targeting Marketing Agencies:

("Agency Owner" OR "Principal" OR "Director") AND (Marketing OR Advertising OR "Digital Agency") NOT "Recruiter"

For Targeting E-commerce Brands:

("E-commerce Manager" OR "Head of E-commerce" OR "DTC") AND (Shopify OR Magento OR WooCommerce)

Pro Tip: Paste these strings directly into the main search bar on LinkedIn. Then click "People."

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Strategy 2: Google X-Ray Search (Bypassing the Search Limit)

The biggest annoyance of the free plan is the Commercial Use Limit. If you search too much, LinkedIn blurs the results and asks you to upgrade.

The Workaround: Don't search on LinkedIn. Search on Google.

Google indexes public LinkedIn profiles. You can use Google to search LinkedIn's database without ever logging in or hitting a limit.

The Formula: site:linkedin.com/in/ [Your Keywords]

Example:

site:linkedin.com/in/ "SaaS Founder" "San Francisco" -intitle:jobs

• site:linkedin.com/in/ -> Tells Google to only search user profiles (not company pages or posts).
• "SaaS Founder" -> Your target persona.
• "San Francisco" -> Location.
• -intitle:jobs -> Excludes job postings.

This gives you an infinite list of leads. Click the result, and you land directly on their profile. No search limit triggered.

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Strategy 3: The "Alumni" Hack (Hidden Database)

This is the most underrated "hidden" database on LinkedIn.

Every University page has an "Alumni" tab. This tab allows you to filter thousands of graduates by:

• Where they live.
• Where they work.
• What they do.
• What they studied.

Why this works: The "Shared Experience" bias.

If you reach out to a fellow alumnus, your connection acceptance rate jumps from 20% to 60-80%.

The Workflow:

1. Go to the LinkedIn page of your University (or a large University in your target city).
2. Click the "Alumni" tab.
3. Filter by "Where they live" (e.g., New York).
4. Filter by "What they do" (e.g., Business Development).
5. Scroll down to see the list.

The Outreach Script:

"Hey [Name], saw we both went to [University]. I'm building a tool for [Industry] and would love to get your feedback as a fellow alum. Open to connecting?"

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Strategy 4: The "Competitor's Audience" (The Trojan Horse)

Your ideal clients are already hanging out on LinkedIn. Specifically, they are commenting on your competitors' posts.

These are the warmest leads on the platform. Why?

1. They are active (they just commented).
2. They are problem-aware (they are reading content about your niche).
3. They are engaging (they are willing to talk).

The Workflow:

1. Identify 5-10 top creators or competitors in your niche.
2. Click the "bell" icon on their profile to get notified of their posts.
3. When they post, wait 60 minutes.
4. Open the comments section.
5. Look for "High-Intent" comments (people asking questions, disagreeing, or sharing their own pain points).

The "Contextual" Connection Request:

"Hey [Name], saw your comment on [Influencer]'s post about [Topic]. I loved your point about [Specific Detail]. Totally agree. Would love to connect."

This is not a cold DM. This is a warm conversation starter.

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Strategy 5: LinkedIn Events (The Messaging Loophole)

This is a glitch in the matrix.

Normally, you cannot message someone unless you are connected (or you pay for InMail).

However, if you attend the same LinkedIn Event, you can message them for FREE.

The Workflow:

1. Search for "Events" in the main search bar.
2. Filter by your industry (e.g., "SaaS Marketing").
3. Find an upcoming event with 500+ attendees.
4. Click "Attend" (you don't actually have to go).
5. Click the "Networking" tab inside the event page.
6. You will see a list of all attendees.
7. Click "Message" next to their name.

The Script:

"Hey [Name], saw we're both attending the [Event Name] next week. I'm looking forward to the session on [Topic]. Are you primarily focused on [Topic A] or [Topic B] right now?"

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Strategy 6: Inbound Attraction (Let Them Find You)

The best way to find leads is to stop looking for them.

If you comment on 20-50 relevant posts per day (using the "Competitor's Audience" strategy above), your profile views will skyrocket.

People will click your profile. They will see your headline. They will visit your website.

This is "Inbound" lead generation.

But doing this manually takes 2-3 hours a day.

Enter Comment Rocket (Your Automated SDR)

We built Comment Rocket to automate the "Competitor Strategy" without risking your account.

Instead of manually refreshing feeds and typing comments, you can:

1. Load your "Target List" (the 10 influencers/competitors).
2. Set the AI parameters (Tone: Professional, Goal: Start a conversation).
3. Let the tool run in the background.

Comment Rocket will detect new posts, draft a high-quality, contextual comment, and post it for you.

This keeps you "Top of Mind" with your target audience 24/7, without you lifting a finger.

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Comparison: Free Search vs. Sales Navigator

Feature	Free LinkedIn (with Hacks)	Sales Navigator ($99/mo)
Search Filters	Basic + Boolean Logic	Advanced (Headcount, Revenue)
Search Limit	Yes (Commercial Limit)	Unlimited
InMails	0 (Must Connect first)	50/month
Lead Lists	No (Use Spreadsheets)	Yes (Save Leads)
Event Messaging	Unlimited (Free)	Unlimited
Cost	$0	$1,200/year

Verdict: Unless you need to filter by specific Revenue Revenue or Company Headcount growth, you can replicate 90% of Sales Navigator's value for free.

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Conclusion: Don't Buy Tools, Build Systems

Sales Navigator is a luxury. A system is a necessity.

You can get to your first $10k, $20k, or even $50k/month without Sales Navigator. Use these "guerrilla" tactics to find leads who are active and relevant, rather than just cold searching a database.

Your Action Plan:

1. Master Boolean Search to filter leads.
2. Use Google X-Ray to bypass search limits.
3. Join Events to message people for free.
4. Use Comment Rocket to automate your visibility.

Save the $1,000. Invest it in content or ads instead.