Sourcing sales candidates email

Salespeople drive a company’s success by providing excellent customer service, identifying profit opportunities and closing large deals. But finding good sales candidates and convincing them to consider your company is a challenging task.

Pique potential candidates’ interest with a personalized sourcing email. Explain how you found them and what specifically made you reach out. For example:

• Remind them that you met at a conference/event and highlight that their communication skills stood out to you.
• If you have previously interviewed them (even for a different role), explain what you liked about them and why you think they’d be a great match for a sales position.
• Companies and employees advertise their successes online. If you’re looking for an Account Manager, mention one to two deals they were involved in that impressed you.
• Social networks are good places to discover people who interact often and effectively with customers. Describe what you liked about their approach in your email.

For European candidates, please refer to guidance on using social media for recruiting and collecting candidate information as per the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR.

To attract a salesperson, you need to do some selling yourself. Offer potential candidates one compelling reason why it’s worth giving your company a shot. Are you opening an exciting new store? Do you offer special benefits to your sales team? Mention something that would be interesting to the specific person you’re contacting to make them look your way.

As with all sourcing emails to passive candidates, make sure you provide relevant information (your name, your company and contact details) and a clear call to action. And if this is an EU candidate, make sure to include a link to your privacy notice as the GDPR requires.

Sourcing candidates? People Search from Workable is the fastest, most effective way to find email addresses, resumes, social and professional profiles.

Here are some examples of cold recruiting emails to sales candidates:

Subject line: [Company_name] is looking for a [job_title] / Interested in joining our team at [Company_name]?

Hi [Candidate_Name],

I am [your name], [your job_title] at [Company_name].

• I saw your profile on [e.g. LinkedIn] and I was really impressed by your experience with [add specific software, e.g. SalesForce or specific field, e.g. B2B sales experience.] I was particularly excited to see [add specific achievement or cooperation that caught your eye]. We are currently looking for a [job_title – add link to the job description] to join our team/ to manage [add sales specific project.] I’d love to tell you more about this position and discuss how we could achieve great things together.
• I saw on your [e.g. on Meetup.com or Twitter] profile that you regularly participate in [e.g. Public Speaking and Sales] [meetings/events/seminars.] We are always looking for people who can present themselves and our company confidently. Currently, we’d like to expand our sales team with a [job_title – add link to the job description.] I’d love to tell you a little more about this position and learn a few things about you, as well.
• We met [e.g. recently / around 2 months ago], when you applied for the [Job_title] position. Even though we decided to move on with a different candidate at that time, your profile really stood out and we’ve kept you in mind for future openings. Particularly, your communication and presentation skills during our interview were impressive. We feel you’d be a good fit for our [job_title – add link to the job description.] I’d love to learn about what you’ve been up to since we last met and tell you a little bit more about this position.
• I saw your profile [e.g. on Twitter or Quora] and I was really impressed by the way you reply to [e.g. customers or people.] Here, at [Company_name], we are always looking to build strong relationships with our customers. Currently, we’d like to grow our team with a [job_title – add link to the job description] who will contact customers [e.g. via email and/or social media.] I’d love to tell you a little more about this position and learn a few things about you, as well.

Are you available [include date and time or a period of time, e.g. ‘sometime this week’]? If so, I’d be happy to set up a call. I’m also happy to coordinate via email or LinkedIn, if you prefer.

I hope you have a great day,

[Your name]
[Signature]

• Want to learn more about effective sourcing techniques? Download our complete sourcing guide for free.