Before You Send Out that LinkedIn Message: Read This!

Often someone will reach out to me on LinkedIn with an open role at their company and it is clear that the email they sent could have been intended for me or any one of the 10,000 other recruiters that could also be a fit. The problem with recruiting in an age when people can send out mass-emails is that somewhere along the way the personal touch gets lost and it comes across as a spam-like message:

Dear Candidate,

I am recruiting for XYZ Company and thought you would be a fit. XYZ Company is (insert the founding date of the company as well as the same pitch that is posted on the company website). Let me know if you’re interested.

Thanks,

Recruiter

I don’t know about you, but if I receive that message on LinkedIn or in an email, that bad boy is getting sent to the trash. The message says nothing. I don’t know that the sender even bothered to learn anything about my background. By blanket messaging a lot of prospective candidates you are being sloppy. There are no two ways around it. Recruiters complain about the candidate who submits his or her cover letter and resume to every job posting without making addendums for a specific position, so why is it okay for recruiters to reach out to candidates without an ounce of personalization? If a recruiter sends out mass emails to attract top talent it simply appears careless, and it reflects poorly on the company.

To remedy this situation takes effort on the recruiter’s part. For starters, I suggest actually reading the candidate’s LinkedIn profile. What stands out about her background? What makes you want to reach out to her? Mention that in the body of your message.

Dear Candidate,

I am recruiting for XYZ Company (Website inserted). I am currently searching for XYZ’s next Director of Sales and I came across your profile. Your experience at ABC as the Account Executive for New England struck me as relevant to my search. I understand you may not be looking to make a move from ABC at this time, but maybe you know someone who is? Please let me know if you have interest in connecting on this role.

Best,

Recruiter

Now, I don’t know about you, but that is a message I would responding to. It is clear the recruiter who wrote that message spent enough time learning about my background to know that I would be a good fit. I also know that this is a person I want to connect with to network. Maybe this is not the right job for me, but there could be one down the road that would be a better fit.

It is important that as the recruiter you do due diligence on the candidates you are recruiting for. In the long run this will save you from having conversations with unqualified candidates. Spend the extra time to personalize your message; it may be the difference between getting candidates and getting top candidates.