Cold Emails to Recruiters

When it comes to cold emailing a recruiter, taking about 5 minutes to search correctly is enough to help you succeed.

The "Wrong" Way

Hi Bob,

Here is my resume. Let me know if you have any roles for me.

Thanks!

Jane

This is a bad email because it's clear you took no effort to review the company's job openings. Most recruiters are too busy to reply to these types of emails.

A recruiter's job is to fill their open positions. Their job is not to provide 1:1 job matching services to strangers.

While this may work every now and then, the time saved by blindly emailing recruiters vs a tailored search will often provide poor results.

The "Right" Way

Before you begin reaching out to recruiters, I highly recommend making a list of target companies / positions you're interested in. Having a clear idea of what you want will provide focus on your search. (PS - if you already know how to find recruiters, skip this section and head down to my template below!)

Once you have identified a company, take a look at their job openings. Do you see an opening that's a fit? Once you do, it's time to find recruiters who work there.

But how do I find recruiters who work at my target company?!

Easy.

The first step is to type "Recruiter" into LinkedIn.

Next, filter by "People."

This will immediately pull up a list of recruiters. At the time I searched this, there were 2,140,000 results! But we can do better than that.

Let's imagine your ideal role is at Lyft. Simply add the company to your filter. Use "Current Company" to ensure they are currently working there. Most recruiters keep their LinkedIn up to date.

Just like that, the search has now slimmed down to 305 results!

This is where the specificity of a LinkedIn search comes into play.

Most recruiters will specify what they are hiring for on their LinkedIn. This may take a bit of effort, but it will help ensure you're reaching the correct folks.

Now, let's say that you're looking for a Design role.

Simply add "Design" into your search.

Look at that: A Design recruiter! Not everyone adds this to their headline; it may be in their summary instead.

Easy. And this only took about 5 minutes of your time.

You've identified a recruiter in your field.

Now comes the email!

Hi Nick,

I noticed an open Product Design role on Lyft's website.

I have 7+ years' experience as a Product Designer, and have focused exclusively on iOS/Android app design over the past 5 years of my career. [insert other reasons why you're a fit]

I have attached my resume, and have also applied to the job post on your website. My portfolio may be viewed at johnsmithdesign.com.

Please let me know if there's anything I can do to expedite a conversation with yourself, or another member on your team. I can be reached at 867-5309 or [email protected].

Thanks,

John

This email is a winner because it clearly lists the role John wants. It explains why he is a fit, includes his resume, and ends with his contact information. Nick now has everything he needs to move forward with this individual!

Even if the recruiter happens to be the wrong person for this role, they're more likely to reply to your email. Because you put in that extra effort, they'll be more willing to put effort in on their side and find out who the recruiter is.

Why is this important?

Companies have been hiring rapidly, and this usually means they have a large hiring team.

Recruiters are typically separated into different teams (or "pipelines") and focus solely on those. They don't monitor all of their company's current openings.

Use this to your advantage by zeroing in on the recruiters who work in your field, and you're likely to find much better results.

I hope this helps, and please leave a comment if you need any advice.