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The best and worst lines from Recruiters

This is an extremely common one. It is a genuinely good thing to check someone’s experience on LinkedIn, but some recruiters don’t do it and still use the line. For example, you call up someone who’s extremely fresh on the job offering them a position with 2-3 years of experience minimum. It’s not going to end well for anyone involved.

The Best Mate

“My friend had been made redundant recently and I have a good relationship with him. I thought I would recommend him to you as his CV will not be available anywhere else.”

There’s a lot going on with this one. The emotions are laid on strong as they tell you the story of someone having a hard time, and you are the one who can help make someone’s life better. The personal relationship is referenced as a way of showing you a trust bond between them and this can sometimes lead to recruiters being a little bit too chummy.

Rating: 3 Stars

The Chatty One

“Hey, how’re things? I was just wondering if you could put a word in for a person I’m working with who’s after a job. They would be perfectly suited to your team and have a lot of experience. Let me know mate, cheers.”

The chatty tone is nice and can work after some messages have been passed, or you genuinely know the person on the phone. Starting this way, however, is not ideal and it comes off a bit too strong. It’s a bit like discussing the wedding on a first date, it’s a bit much but thank you for being nice.Rating: 2 Stars

The Heartbreaker

“I have a developer I am working with who has the perfect background for your team. He has unfortunRecruiters need to start strong when contacting potential new clients. It’s all about having the perfect opening line and how you follow that up. Every recruitment agency is different and will have varying practices and guidelines, some are certainly more creative than others. We’ve compiled a list of people across the working world (including us!) who have had some pretty terrible lines from recruiters – as well as some pretty inventive ones.

The Classic

“I’m just trying to call [name of someone in your office]”

We’re starting old school here. So the recruiter has possibly found the boss’s name on LinkedIn and is now trying to get straight to them. Usually, this will be met with a ‘Can I ask where you’re calling from’ which often leads to the next point.

Rating: 2 Stars

The Spiral

“Well I’m just trying to speak to them about an exciting opportunity. Am I a recruiter? Well If I could just discuss my excitement with [name]”

You’re going round in circles. If you’re a recruiter just be honest, if the company is interested they’ll let you know, don’t try and run around the person on the phone.

Rating: 1 Star

The Hustler

“I’m from Google, is [name] there?”

The sheer audacity of this tactic is both amazing and terrible. The hope is that the phone will get passed from whoever answered to the employee due to the excitement of a huge company calling. The company name will change depending upon the industry being targeted, but Google is a great one for marketing and web development.

Rating: 3 Stars

The Informer

The subject line of an email will read something along the lines of ‘Jeffrey, 92 of your connections changed jobs in 2016’ and you are now intrigued. This email subject is great at reeling in the curious potential candidate, as no one wants to feel left behind. It utilises LinkedIn data to create a personalised recruitment email that doesn’t feel like a mass send, encouraging you further to find out more.

Rating: 5 Stars

The Guess 

“I heard you’re recruiting for [Job Position]”

Another cheeky line in the basics handbook. This one can heavily backfire if the company you’re calling doesn’t use recruitment agencies, or you’ve unfortunately managed to speak to someone who is actually in that job position. This can then be met with “I hope not, because that’s my job.” Backfired. Next.

Rating: 2 Stars

The Background Check

“Having looked at your LinkedIn experience I can see you would be a perfect fit for a role I have”

Rating: 3 Stars

The Comedian

Another subject line manipulator. This one will read something along the lines of “Courtney, I’m building the sales Avengers, I need you.

Using a candidate’s name in the subject line can work, but most people know that this data can be done automatically very quickly now. By throwing a bit of quirkiness in thereby referencing the Avengers, you might encourage someone to find out more. This works even better if you know they’re a big fan of Iron Man as well!

Rating: 4 Stars

The Director

“Is it better to call their direct line? Are they usually working at their desk at this time?” and “before I go, I’m going to send you a LinkedIn request to keep you on my radar.”

The first one allows you to try and get the number of the person you are contacting if you are met with a receptionist for example. If you do get to speak to the person you are looking for, due to your repeated question tactics, asking to connect on LinkedIn allows you to keep an eye on their progress and target them when they are looking for future employment – it’s a slow-burning strategy. This combination of direct talk and future thinking makes a recruitment phone call efficient and effective.

Rating: 5 Stars

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