Let’s be honest: most “advanced prospecting” guides are just surface-level fluff. If you’re here, you already know your way around LinkedIn, and you’re tired of wasting time chasing the wrong leads. This guide is for people who want to push Dux-soup to its limits—finding the right prospects, not just more of them.
If you’re a recruiter, salesperson, or founder who uses LinkedIn for outreach (and is sick of sifting through junk leads), keep reading. We’ll dig into real, practical filtering methods that actually move the needle.
Why Filtering Makes (or Breaks) Your Results
Let’s get this out of the way: Dux-soup is only as good as the data you feed it. Garbage in, garbage out. If you run generic searches or skip the details, you’ll burn through your connection limits and annoy people who were never a fit in the first place. The right filters save you time, protect your LinkedIn account, and boost your reply rates.
Step 1: Start With LinkedIn’s Native Filters—But Go Deeper
Dux-soup rides on top of LinkedIn search results. That means your filtering power starts with LinkedIn itself. Here’s how to get more out of it:
- Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator if you can. It’s pricey, but the extra filters are worth it if prospecting is your job.
- Boolean search is your friend. Combine keywords, use NOT/AND/OR, and get comfortable with parentheses. Example:
("marketing manager" OR "growth lead") AND NOT ("intern" OR "assistant")- Use Title and Current Company filters together. Don’t just search for “CEO”—combine with company size, industry, or geography for way better results.
- Seniority and company size: Skip the “everyone” approach. Go after the decision-makers who can actually say yes.
Pro tip: Save your most effective LinkedIn searches. You’ll re-use them over and over.
What to ignore
- Open-ended keyword searches: Too vague. You’ll get everyone and their cousin.
- Industry filters alone: These are often misused or outdated. Always combine with other attributes.
Step 2: Layer in Dux-soup Tagging and Skipping
Once you pull a solid LinkedIn search, Dux-soup can tag, skip, and revisit profiles so you’re not stuck tracking everything in a spreadsheet.
- Tags: Use these to mark hot prospects, competitors (to avoid), or people who need a custom message later.
- Skipping: Set up Dux-soup to skip profiles you’ve already messaged, viewed, or aren’t a fit (e.g., same company, wrong geography).
- Revisit mode: Useful if you want to come back after a cooling-off period, or when you have a new offer.
How to actually use tags:
- Create a tag scheme before you start blasting. For example:
hot,followup,not_interested,needs_manual - Use tags to build “mini-lists” for focused campaigns later.
What doesn’t work:
Don’t just tag everyone. If you tag too liberally, you’ll end up with the same mess, just color-coded.
Step 3: Use Dux-soup’s Filters and Blacklists
Dux-soup lets you automatically filter out—or “blacklist”—certain profiles before the tool even runs.
Here’s how to use these features well:
- Blacklist by URL: If you have a list of companies or people to avoid (competitors, past clients, previous jobs), import them into Dux-soup’s blacklist.
- Skip based on previous actions: Dux-soup can skip anyone you’ve already visited, messaged, or tagged.
- Custom filters: Use CSV imports to add or exclude people based on your CRM or manual research.
Common mistakes: - Forgetting to update your blacklist. Do this monthly. - Not using the “skip if already tagged/contacted” option—this is how you avoid embarrassing double-messages.
Step 4: Get Smart With Boolean Search (Advanced)
Most users stop at one or two keywords. That’s a mistake. Boolean search can get you surgical, if you know what you’re doing.
Advanced examples:
- Narrowing by skills:
("python developer" OR "software engineer") AND ("machine learning" OR "NLP") - Excluding job hoppers:
Add “NOT ("freelance" OR "consultant")” to weed out short-term players. - Targeting by certifications:
"PMP" AND "project manager"
Tips:
- Test your search on LinkedIn before running Dux-soup. Don’t trust it until you’ve eyeballed the results.
- Too many results? Add another “AND” filter. Too few? Loosen up an “OR”.
Step 5: Use Profile Keywords and Summary Filtering
Dux-soup can’t filter by profile summary or about section out of the box, but you can use workarounds:
- Export LinkedIn search results to CSV (using Dux-soup or another tool).
- Search for keywords in the summary/about/experience fields in Excel or Google Sheets.
- Re-import only the best prospects into Dux-soup for further actions.
It’s manual, but it gives you more control than LinkedIn’s default filters—especially if you care about niche experience or subtle signals.
What to ignore:
Automated “AI” keyword analyzers for LinkedIn profiles. They’re usually not worth the hype—false positives galore.
Step 6: Filter by Activity and Engagement
This is a sneaky one:
People who are active on LinkedIn are way more likely to reply. Dux-soup can’t directly filter by activity, but here’s a workaround:
- Add “Posted on LinkedIn in past 30 days” filter (only in Sales Navigator).
- Manually check activity on sample profiles before you launch a big campaign.
- Prioritize people with recent posts or shares. These folks aren’t ghosts.
Pro tip:
If you want to get fancy, use a VA to “score” activity levels as part of your manual filtering. But for most, just spot-check and move on.
Step 7: Segment by Geography and Language—But Be Realistic
Don’t just select “United States” or “Europe” and call it a day.
- Use city or metro area filters when possible, especially if you’re selling regionally.
- Language matters: If you’re messaging in English, filter for profiles that indicate English proficiency. It’s not perfect, but looking at profile language settings or summary text helps.
- Time zone sanity: Don’t message people in the middle of their night. Batch your outreach accordingly.
Step 8: Use Exclusion Lists to Avoid Embarrassment
Nothing kills credibility like messaging your own colleagues, clients, or worse—your boss.
- Upload lists of “do not contact” emails, domains, or profile URLs into Dux-soup before you start any campaign.
- Regularly update these lists. Every quarter is a good rule of thumb.
Things to ignore:
Don’t trust that you’ll “just remember” who not to message. You won’t.
Bonus: Combine Dux-soup With Other Tools (But Don’t Overcomplicate)
Dux-soup is not the only game in town, and it’s not magic. Sometimes, pairing it with a good CRM, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, or even a spreadsheet is the way to go.
- Use your CRM data to filter out existing contacts.
- Export and clean lists before running big campaigns.
- Keep it simple: Too many integrations and you’ll spend more time troubleshooting than prospecting.
Honest Takes: What Works, What Doesn’t
What Actually Works
- Getting hyper-specific with LinkedIn search BEFORE you run Dux-soup.
- Using tags and blacklists to avoid repeats and embarrassment.
- Manual review of lists—yes, it’s tedious, but it pays off.
- Layering in activity/engagement as a filter, even if it’s manual.
What Doesn’t
- Blindly scraping everyone with a certain job title.
- Trusting LinkedIn’s industry filters as gospel.
- Relying on automated AI “prospect scoring.” Most are all sizzle, no steak.
Final Thoughts: Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Overthink
You don’t need 20 layers of filters or fancy tools to find good prospects. The best results come from starting simple, testing your approach, and tightening your filters as you go. Don’t get seduced by shiny software features—focus on getting your list right, and the rest gets a lot easier.
If you mess up, tweak your filters, learn, and try again. No tool replaces good judgment.
Now, go build a list that doesn’t suck.