Reach out to Recruiters on LinkedIn (the right way!) - YouTube

Channel: Jeff Su

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- People underestimate the amount of influence
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that recruiters have throughout the job application process.
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We also tend to underestimate the number
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of prospective applicants that reach out
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to recruiters on a daily basis.
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In this video,
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I'm gonna share the tips that help you stand out
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from the crowd,
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show you the three step process that's needed
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to make this work and finally provide message templates
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that have worked for both me and my community.
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Here's the tip your message to the recruiter should end
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with a request to put you in touch
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with someone who's currently working the role
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that you're applying for.
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The three good reasons for this.
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First of all, recruiters,
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like most people want to help those who help themselves.
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By sending this message you're clearly proactive
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and are doing all the right things when it comes
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to the job search process.
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Secondly, believe it or not,
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you're showing them that you're able
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to problem-solve effectively,
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a skill that is applicable to all industries.
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You convey the fact that as an outside candidate,
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you don't know nothing about the role
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to make a judgment call on whether you're a good fit
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or not yet.
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However, you do know that the quickest way
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to find out is to connect with someone working in
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that exact capacity and asking them about it.
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And that's completely fine. Even encouraged.
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Finally, you come off as polite and considerate.
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Yes, although you're still asking the recruiter for a favor,
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this request as a lot more meaningful than the generic,
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can I get 30 minutes to pick your brain message
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and therefore it will help you stand out
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in the recruiter's inbox.
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On a side note,
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and this is more related to general job search
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than the topic of this video,
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you should always make an effort to connect
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with someone working in the position
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that you're applying for.
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Not only would this give you an unfair advantage
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versus other the candidates come interview time,
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but really does give you a better sense of whether the day
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to day is a good fit for you or not.
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You definitely don't wanna go
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through the entire recruitment process,
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get the job and find out the work is not what you signed up
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for at all.
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By the way, if you like this tip,
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I have a Facebook group where I share exclusive weekly tips.
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Consider joining, if you haven't already.
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I'll link it down below.
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Now you know what the trick is,
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here's a three step process that will make it work.
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Step one, as obvious as it sounds connect
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with the recruiter first before bringing up this request.
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If you've watched my how to connect on LinkedIn video,
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you might remember that in order to get an engaged response
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from your connection request,
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you wanna write a message where number one,
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you try to relate with them in some way.
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Number two, you compliment them,
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or number three,
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you try and add some sort of value.
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For example, let's say I were interested
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in this product marketing position at Apple.
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I might try to connect with the recruiter
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by writing the following message.
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Hi Annie. I see that we're both working
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for MNC tech companies and based out of Shanghai.
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I also notice you pursued your bachelor's degree at UNNC,
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where our company recently ran a college outreach program.
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Would love to connect if possible,
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Notice I didn't bring up the position at all.
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This first step is all about getting the recruiter
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to accept my connection request and perhaps start
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to engage with him or her.
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Step two, and this is where the key takeaway
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of this entire video comes in,
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write the message asking to be connected
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with someone working in the role that you're applying for.
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Continue with the Apple example.
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Hi Annie, thanks for accepting my connection request.
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I saw a product marketing manager job posting
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from two weeks ago,
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and I'm currently doing a bit of research on the role
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to see whether I'd be a good fit.
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Would you happen to know anyone
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on the team I can have a casual chat with
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to better understand the position?
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As a fellow product marketer working
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in the tech space myself,
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I'd love to learn more about the day to day
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and team culture before bother you with specific questions
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on the application process, thank you.
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Several things I wanna point out here.
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Number one, now that we're connected
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and have established some sort of rapport,
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I can afford to say and a longer message
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without coming off as too direct or aggressive.
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I try to distinguish myself from other candidates
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by relating my experiences in product marketing,
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to the job posting.
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I also show consideration for her time
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by mentioning how I wanna learn more
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on my own before following up with her.
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And finally, of course, the million dollar question,
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asking her to connect me with someone on the team.
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The third and final step,
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following up with the recruiter after your conversation
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with a team member.
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The goal here is to stay top of mind with a recruiter
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by reinforcing the fact that your desire
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to join the company is now stronger than ever.
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For example, here's how I would follow up.
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Hi Annie, just wanted to close the loop
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and let you know my conversation with Jane went very well.
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Thank you again for putting us in touch.
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I had no idea
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that the iOS App Store was creating so many opportunities
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for Greater China app developers while adhering
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to Apple's strict privacy policies.
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Chatting with Jane has only solidified my interest
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in joining Apple's product marketing team in Shanghai
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and I will love to send over my resume
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for your review if convenient.
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I sincerely believe the stakeholder management skills
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I've developed during my time as a product marketer
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at Google would transfer over well to this role at Apple.
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Notice that I brought up something specific
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from my conversation with Jane to show the recruiter
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that my values are aligned with that of Apple's.
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I reinforced my interest in joining their team and asked
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to send over my resume as a next step,
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which keeps a two way conversation going.
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And finally, I bring up a specific skill
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that I think the recruiter might be looking
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for in a strong candidate.
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And this is something you can easily ask the team member
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as part of your conversation.
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So those are the three steps.
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Of course, I wanna address the possibility
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that the recruiter
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may not end up connecting you with anyone,
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and that's totally fine.
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Even if they reject your primary requests,
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most recruiters will provide you with alternatives.
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For example, they might say, oh, you know what?
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I can answer any questions you might have about the role.
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Perfect, you just got 30 minutes to chat with a recruiter
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for the role that you want,
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or they might say,
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why don't you send over your resume first,
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I'll forward it along to the hiring manager
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and they'll see if someone's able
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to reach out for a chat.
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Awesome, your resume just got forwarded along as opposed
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to being lost in the system.
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What I'm trying to get at is that all
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of these alternatives are better
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than reaching out through a recruiter
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in a generic fashion and hoping
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that the default connection request is able
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to help you stand out from the crowd.
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All right, that's it.
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Please give this video a like if you found this tip helpful
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and comment down below if you plan on using it
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for your next opportunity.
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It really does help me and the channel a lot.
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If in the off chance my manager comes across this video,
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please know that the Apple example
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was completely hypothetical and I used it
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for illustration purposes only.
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Subscribe if you haven't already,
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see you in the next video,
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in the meantime, have a great one.
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