How To Get Your Dreams Job With Cold Email

It’s not easy to get your dream job, especially when you’re in the early stages of your career. 

You know what it is that you want to do with your life, but when it comes to applying for a new position or trying to land that first big break, there are so many things that can go wrong and so many ways for you to sabotage yourself.

But dont worry! We’ve got some tips and tricks on how to make sure that your emails get read, considered and responded to by hiring managers at companies of all sizes.

Takeaways
1. Cold emails can be a powerful job search tool.
2. Craft compelling subject lines to grab attention.
3. Personalize the content for each recipient.
4. Highlight your unique skills and value.
5. Include a clear call to action in your email.
6. Follow up to demonstrate continued interest.
7. Research target companies and contacts.
8. Tailor your email to the company’s needs.
9. Be concise and respectful in your communication.
10. Use cold emails as a proactive job search strategy.

Pick A Job You’d Be Proud To Work At

If your dream job is working at Google and you’re applying for a position as an assistant, it might be time to re-evaluate your life choices. 

On the other hand, if you’re applying for a job at Google because you want to work with their engineers and are willing to start at an entry-level position – then by all means tell them! It’s important that the hiring manager knows what they’re getting into when they hire you.

A lot of people are afraid of being honest in their cover letters – but when it comes down to it, there is no secret formula or magic trick that will guarantee success with cold emailing unless we’re talking about some sort of illegal activity (and even then I don’t know). 

The best way for anyone looking for a new job is just be honest about who they are and what they want out of life – because that’s what matters most in this world anyway!

Cold emailing can be a powerful tool for job seekers. Learn how to increase your response rate with our simple guide to cold emailing, where we share strategies that led to a 5x increase in responses.

Spend Time Perusing Job Descriptions And Websites

Now that you have a list of targets and have found the correct job description, it’s time to get familiar with the company and its work environment.

First, find out as much as you can about your target company by looking at its website and reading their About pages. What are their core values? What are they known for? How does the company describe itself?

Next, spend time perusing job descriptions from other companies in your industry that share similar values with your target employer. 

This will help you understand what skills are most valued by employers who share similar values as well as give insight into what type of candidates they tend to hire (e.g., do they primarily hire recent graduates or experienced workers?).

Now that we’ve taken some time to understand our target employer and consider how we might stand out among other applicants, let’s dive into writing our cover letter!

Write A Great Cover Letter/Email

But a cover letter isn’t just a list of achievements. The best way to stand out is by writing a personalized, tailored message for the specific position and company. Include details that make sense for the job in question.

You’ll want to highlight your experience with those specific technologies if they are listed on the job description, for example, but don’t go overboard on flattery or hyperbole. And never lie: if you don’t have 10 years of experience building eCommerce platforms in PHP, say so!

Include links to portfolio sites where applicable; also include links to LinkedIn profiles. A full LinkedIn profile can be an excellent addition if it’s professional and well-maintained (and this goes double if you’re applying somewhere with strict hiring practices).

Crafting effective cold email templates is essential for successful outreach. Explore our collection of cold email templates that convert to engage potential employers and stand out in your job search.

Take A Look At The Person I’m Emailing

The first step is to figure out who you’re actually emailing. First, make sure your contact information is correct (you should always double-check). Next, take a look at the person’s social media accounts and see if they do anything that would be of interest to you. 

For example, if they are a tech entrepreneur or business owner they might appreciate knowing what software development tools are being used by startups in their industry. 

If they have an educational background in psychology or sociology then maybe you could share some articles about cognitive biases and self-awareness.

If there isn’t any information about them online then it’s not going to matter that much anyway because cold emailing relies on personal relationships rather than just “good content”. You can also check out their LinkedIn profile for more details on their work history and interests. 

Highlight anything relevant from these sources when writing your introduction email so that the contact will have something specific from which they can relate back too later on down the road if needed (e.g., “I noticed how much experience with X software tool/processes”).

Personalize The Email

• Include the name of the person you are emailing in the subject line.
• Use their name in your salutation.
• Raise their game by using them again in the first sentence of your email, and then again and again as needed for clarity and good flow.

This technique is called “personalizing” your email and it makes a world of difference when communicating with busy people who get hundreds or thousands of emails every day (or week). 

It’s common sense that people like to hear from other people, not machines or algorithms.

But it’s also true that adding some thoughtful personalization will help keep them engaged even if they don’t start out interested enough to read through all 4 paragraphs of rambling prose before getting distracted by something shiny on Facebook/Twitter/Snapchat/Instagram/Reddit/etc..

Show Them What You Can Do For Them

Now that you’ve got the attention of a hiring manager, it’s time to show them what you can do for them.

You should be able to sum up your career and professional experience in a way that makes it clear why you are the perfect person for this job (and how lucky they will be to hire you.)

For example: “I am currently working as an account manager at XYZ Marketing firm where I manage campaigns across different industries and platforms. 

For example, last month I was tasked with finding new clients within the automotive industry by creating an effective campaign using Facebook ads that drove traffic from their website directly back into our sales funnel. 

This ultimately led us into closing two deals which put us above our quarterly goals by 40%.”

Next step is showing how your skill set matches up with every aspect of the position requirements – even if there are some things missing (a major plus). Do this by telling stories about past experiences that highlight these skillsets – but make sure they’re relevant tales!

Sometimes, a single “aha” moment can transform your cold email strategy. Discover 10 such moments in our article on 10 Cold Email Aha Moments, where we share insights to help you refine your outreach.

Find An In

The first step to getting your dream job through cold email is finding the perfect connection. 

This can be a friend or family member who knows someone at the company you’re interested in, and alumni from one of the companies you’re interested in (or even just someone with a similar background), or even just another person who shares some commonality with you: 

For example, people who went to Harvard or Stanford could find common ground and use that as an icebreaker.

Cold Email Template

After finding your “in” and creating a list of potential contacts within your target company (available on LinkedIn), it’s time to write up an introductory email! 

The best way to do this is by using a template like ours below with specific information about both yourself and what kind of role would be right for you:

Make Them Laugh, Or At Least Smile

Remember, you’re going to be sending the email in the morning and your goal is to make them smile. So let’s get into it!

Make them laugh, or at least smile: Humor is a great way to break the ice and help your resume stand out from the hundreds of others they receive every week but if you go too far over the top with it.

It could come across as insincere or even arrogant. In other words: be careful not to be too funny (if that makes sense). 

This can happen when people try too hard and forget why they’re writing an email in the first place which is because they want something from someone else…not just making jokes!

Be serious enough: Don’t take yourself too seriously either. You want this person reading your cold email all day long? 

Then lighten up! Just remember though: don’t get carried away here either; otherwise they might think that you’re uninterested or lazy…and no one wants that on their resume anyway (except maybe Donald Trump).

Don’t Use A Boring Subject Line

Your subject line is your first chance to grab the reader’s attention and make them want to read what you have written.

Here are some things to keep in mind when crafting your cold email subject line:

Use a subject line relevant to the job description. If you’re applying for a job as an accountant, don’t use “Looking For Jobs” as your subject line.

Because it doesn’t tell us anything about what kind of accounting position you’re going after. Instead, consider something like “Accountant Seeking Entry-Level Position.” 

By including keywords from the job description (entry-level), we can get an idea of what kind of work experience they’re looking for without having them explicitly tell us so with their email title or cover letter later on down the road.

Use specific details about yourself and why this position would interest you personally so that recruiters can see how germanely matched up these two parties really are! 

The best way to do this is by highlighting how much overlap there is between both parties’ goals and aspirations, in other words, don’t just say things like “I’m interested in [company name] because…” but rather explain how working here would help achieve those personal ambitions!

For a comprehensive understanding of cold email outreach, delve into our ultimate guide to cold e-mail outreach. From creating compelling subject lines to building lasting connections, this guide covers it all.

Get Past The Gatekeeperbe Super, Super Persistent

When you’re sending cold emails to people you don’t know, it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of reaching out. 

You’ve got a great idea and you want everyone else on this planet to know about it, right? But then there are all these gatekeepers in the form of receptionists or assistants and they’re stopping your dreams from coming true!

You’ll need persistence to get past these obstacles. And while we don’t want to dissuade anyone from being persistent in their job search (or anything else).

We do want them to understand that being persistent doesn’t mean being annoying or disrespectful of other people’s time. Here are some tips for making sure your job search tactics don’t cross over into creepy territory:

Wait For Them To Respond, But Not Too Long

The main thing to remember is that if you don’t hear back from your prospective employer, it’s okay to follow up. But there are some guidelines. The best time frame for following up is three weeks after first sending your email or letter. 

If they still haven’t responded by then, it’s safe to assume they aren’t interested in hiring you and you can move on with your job search.

If you decide to follow up more than once (and this is not recommended), wait at least two weeks between each new contact attempt so as not to appear desperate or annoying. 

It’s always better if someone else takes the initiative and comes looking for you rather than vice versa!

Offer To Help Before Asking For Anything

When you’re reaching out to someone and asking for a job, it can feel like the other person is going to blow you off. To make sure they don’t, offer to help with something that they need done before making your request. 

This shows that you’re interested in doing work for them and not just getting hired at their company. It also shows your initiative and initiative breeds loyalty in the workplace.

Here are some examples of things that I’ve seen people do:

• Offer to help with their social media accounts, newsletters, or email marketing efforts
• Offer to assist with writing testimonials or case studies about their product/service/business
• Offer free coaching advice for one hour per week (this works best if you’re already coaching people)

Make Sure Your Linkedin Is Up-To-Date And Updated Often

The first thing you should do is make sure your LinkedIn profile is up-to-date. When a recruiter or hiring manager views your LinkedIn, they will be looking for a few things:

Is it complete? The most important thing to remember when creating your LinkedIn profile is that it needs everything they ask for. 

If they request three years of experience in an industry and you only have two years listed, this will immediately make them think twice about bringing you in for an interview. 

It’s best to include every job experience that matches what they are looking for so there are no questions about whether or not your resume contains all the relevant information necessary for the role.

Is it well written? The next thing recruiters look at when reading through candidates’ profiles is content quality and presentation style used on their page. 

Recruiters want professionals with great writing skills who can clearly convey ideas through email communications so make sure your profile contains clear explanations as to why potential employers should hire them instead of someone else (even if there isn’t anyone else). 

If possible add some personality into interviews by writing short stories about yourself! 

This will show how well spoken/articulate/creative etcetera someone might be even though we don’t have time during interviews unless those skills were required beforehand via email correspondence; which brings me directly into my next point…

Getting tangible results from your cold email efforts is possible with the right approach. Learn how one marketer leverages cold email to get real fruit in the basket by employing effective strategies and creative tactics.

Conclusion

The key to this is to write an email that really shows what you can do for them. Show them how you’d be a valuable addition to their team, and they’ll respond. 

If they don’t respond right away (which is likely), don’t take it personally! Keep sending more emails until one sticks. And remember: if you can get past the gatekeeper, the rest will be easy-peasy lemon squeezy

Further Reading

Here are some additional resources for further reading on effectively using cold emails to land your dream job:

How to Land Your Dream Job by Sending Cold Emails Learn step-by-step techniques to leverage cold emails for securing your dream job and standing out in the competitive job market.

Cold Email Tips to Land Your Dream Job with Examples Explore practical tips and real-world examples to craft persuasive cold emails that can help you secure your desired job role.

Cold Email Tips: How to Land Your Dream Job Discover actionable advice and strategies to effectively use cold emails as a powerful tool in your job search process.

FAQs

How can cold emails enhance my job search strategy?

Cold emails provide a proactive approach to job hunting by directly reaching out to potential employers or contacts in your industry.

What are some key elements of an effective cold email for job applications?

An effective cold email should have a compelling subject line, personalized content, clear value proposition, and a strong call to action.

How can I find the right contacts to send cold emails to?

Research industry events, company websites, and professional networks to identify relevant contacts for your cold email outreach.

Should I include my resume in a cold email?

While it’s not necessary to include your full resume, you can provide a brief overview of your qualifications and accomplishments to pique interest.

How do I follow up after sending a cold email?

After sending a cold email, follow up with a polite and concise message expressing your continued interest and highlighting your value proposition.