How to Effectively Reach Out to Candidates

Finding a high caliber candidate in a pool of 1000s of resumes can be incredibly hard. Even when you find that one candidate you think is “perfect” from a big pool, you never know if their aptitude, skills and work ethic matches the attributes you see on their resume. To counter this problem, the brain trust behind Smartly built an education platform and hiring engine that work hand-in-hand to attract students from top schools and with great experience. Moreover, the candidates in Smartly are learning while working full time; they’re motivated individuals with the work ethic and drive to be constantly improving. It took years of content development and fine-tuning to ensure that Smartly’s learning programs and hiring engine are optimized to allow you to source, connect, and hire only the best candidates.

At Smartly Talent, we know that sourcing candidates is only the first move in the chess game that is a recruiting process. After matching with potential candidates, it’s important to swiftly reach out to move from match to qualified connection by piquing their interest in the role that you’re trying to fill. The initial contact you make with them often sets the tone for the rest of the recruiting process. To make things a little easier for you, we came up with a few tips on how to craft the best message(s) to reach out to our candidates. Here’s how to get the most out of your initial interaction:

1. Share briefly what makes you interested in the candidate’s skillset and identify any commonalities you may have with them or they might have with the company. Begin by asking for a conversation rather than giving a long spiel about the company and the role you’re trying to fill.

• If their hobbies or interests align with something that you’re into, this would be a great way to open and build a connection.
• Also, express what about their experience interested you.

2. State what position(s) you are recruiting for (i.e. title, team, and location).

• You may also choose to go into some detail about the role, company structure, and perks to get the candidate excited about speaking with you further.

3. End with a time-specific call to action. Suggest a time and date (or two) to speak more about the role you’re trying to fill.

• This could be a link to your calendar so they can pick a time and slot to speak.
• You could ask for a phone call or a video meeting if there is mutual interest as well.

Here’s an example:

Hi Sally,

We are hiring for data scientist in our San Francisco office. Your experience at Company A suggests you might be a good fit. I also noticed you studied at University B; many folks in our office went there and I am happy to connect you with an alum.

Would you be interested in connecting about the data scientist role? I am free on Wednesday from 9-11am.

Best,
Jason

It’s important to remember that the candidates are often busy in their day-to-day. It’s best to give them a couple of days to respond to your message.

We hope these tips help you better connect with our candidates! So sign-up or head back to Smartly to browse our candidates today!

And, while we are in beta, your first hire is free!