Triple your networking response rates

You find the perfect contact at your dream company.

You type up the perfect message, the one that will finally land you that interview.

You hit send and lean back in your chair with nervous anticipation, hoping for a reply.

Crickets.

Has this ever happened to you?

Here’s how you can skyrocket your response rates and finally land those referrals you need to get more interviews.

1. Identify the right contact

Don’t reach out to the hiring manager or recruiter.

What? Why?

Because everyone else is doing that.

Instead, you want to find someone who works in the same role that you want (or similar) in the same company, preferably with something to use as an ice breaker.

Here’s how to do that:

Use LinkedIn and search for the company you are interested in.

Then click on that company’s page and click the “People” tab.

From here, you can add search filters.

Let’s say I’m a Product Manager and an alum from the University of Oregon who wants to work for Nike.

As you can see from this screenshot, I can narrow down my results to find other Oregon alumni working at Nike as Product Managers.

2. Send emails, not LinkedIn messages!

Everyone checks their email. Not everyone checks their LinkedIn messages.

If you find someone on LinkedIn you want to reach out to but don’t have their email address, you can use email lookup tools such as these:

RocketReach - 5 free lookups per month or more with a paid subscription.

Hunter.io - 75 free credits per month (25 search credits and 50 verification credits) or more with a paid subscription.

3. Use a unique subject line and ice-breaker.

If I were a University of Oregon alum (the Ducks) reaching out to another alum, my subject line might look something like this:

• Go Ducks!

• Ducks fly together!

• Nike + Ducks = Perfect match

I’m using our common ground as alumni to catch their attention in the inbox.

If you can’t find fellow alumni working at your dream company, this is where your research of their profile will have to come into play.

Before emailing someone, do your homework on them to find something interesting you can use to spark a reply:

• What does their career journey look like?

• Any similar interests?

• Have they posted anything interesting on LinkedIn or other platforms?

• Have they given any presentations or attended any conferences?

Whichever nugget of information you choose, incorporate that into your email.

“I saw your LinkedIn post about product innovation last week and I thought it was fascinating. I hope you don’t mind that I’m reaching out to hear more of your thoughts.”

Note: The goal of your email should be to incorporate flattery without going overboard. Take a genuine interest in the person you are emailing and watch your response rates explode.

4. Don’t ask for a referral.

The referral will come naturally as you build a relationship with the person you’ve connected with.

Remember, they’ve only just met you.

Would you refer a complete stranger for a role at your company?

Probably not. So why would they?

Instead, use the opportunity to ask questions about the company and the Product Manager role that they’re in.

Seek to understand the challenges they’re facing or the projects they’re working on.

Once you’ve boosted your response rates and built the relationships, then it’s time to convert those relationships into referrals and interviews!

If you’d like to learn how to turn connections into referrals, click the button below to learn more!