How to Find Someone's Email Address
When you want to get in touch with someone, finding their email address is one of the easiest ways to accomplish that. Depending on whether you know the person, such as a long-lost friend, or whether you are trying to make a new business contact, for example, there are several ways to go about finding someone's email address.
The easiest situation in which you can find an email address is if you've corresponded with the person before. Enter your email account and search for their name. Don't forget to check the trash folder too. Or, you might have their physical business card or calling card with their contact information. If you are organized and store business cards in one place it is quick to check, but if you are disorganized this might be a waste of time.
If you are looking for the email address of a person you used to know but have lost touch with, first try contacting mutual friends whose email addresses you already have. They may have this person's address or know someone else who does. Former classmates' email addresses can be located through alumni sites, and another good option is to search the person's name on a social networking site like Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn. Not everyone posts their email addresses directly, but you can sometimes contact them with a private message to obtain this information.
Search engines like Google can prove helpful in locating someone's email address, but only if the person has a unique name. Otherwise, you will waste your time sifting through page after page with no results.
For locating business contacts' email addresses, try looking at their company website. Some companies will list employees' contact information. Even if the particular person's address that you are trying to find isn't listed, you might be able to determine the standard email format, for example: firstname.lastname (at) companyname (dot) com. Test out different formats; you will know if it was incorrect because the email will bounce back.
There are also several free online searches that can help you find someone's email address. These may not always be successful, however, as they often require that the person has registered their email address with a public directory. Some directories charge a fee, but with all of the free search options out there, this is unnecessary.
Often it is easier to find someone's phone number than it is there email address, since people often have multiple email address accounts and change jobs. Use a people search directory or a phone book and call the person or their company and ask for their email address directly, which can save you a lot of time searching around on the internet.
