Write Recruiting Emails That Work
Writing recruiting emails that work is not as intuitive as it may seem. After you’ve selected the healthcare candidates you want to contact, you may not have time to send a targeted recruiting email to each individual. An effective strategy used by some recruiters is to use email blasts to reach all of their candidates with a single submission. The average individual receives over 100 emails daily, while physician candidates may receive dozens of recruiting emails regarding hiring opportunities: thus, it’s important to make your email stand out. This can be done a number of ways, including creating relevant subject lines, including some personalization, use of attention-grabbing words, along with keywords, and providing a clear call to action.
SUBJECT LINES
Most candidates will briefly scan the subject lines in their inbox when deciding which emails are worth their time and consideration. The subject line is your first opportunity to get a candidate’s attention. You want them to notice your recruiting email and take action. You want them to open it, read it and contact you! One way to get the reader’s attention is to use their name in the subject line. MailChimp, best known for their marketing automation platform and email marketing services, has found that personalization of the subject line does indeed increase open rates. While including both the first and last names in the subject is less common, it actually has the largest positive impact on open rates.
ATTENTION-GRABBING
Another way to grab the reader’s attention is to use attention-grabbing words that imply time sensitivity or a sense of importance. MailChimp found that words like “urgent” and “important” resulted in much higher open rates than average. For example, a recruiter might use the words “now hiring” or “recent opening” to suggest that their message requires immediate attention. Other keywords that may grab the reader’s attention include “invited” and “announcement”. “Inviting” a candidate to apply for a position or “announcing” the opening may make the recipient much more intrigued and pique their curiosity. In some ways, these words imply that the candidate has been personally selected or specifically chosen for the job.
KEYWORDS
One other way of getting the candidates attention is to use a combination of keywords that give them a glimpse of what’s inside the recruiting email. For example, if you’ve done your research and selected candidates interested in a certain geography or targeted physicians in a particular specialty, including the name of the city or specialty may increase your chance of them opening and reading your email. Putting it all together, you may come up with subject lines that sound something like this:
- Sarah Johnson’s dream Surgeon job in Seattle is now available.
- John Smith – You are invited to apply for our recent Cardiologist opening in Chicago.
- Jennifer Turner – Last chance to make your dreams come true! Radiologist needed in Raleigh.
OPPORTUNITY OVERVIEW
In the body of the recruiting email, you will want to introduce yourself to the candidate, but it’s more important to orient the overall message towards the reader. In other words, the message isn’t about you or your company. Instead, it’s all about them and how you can help them. Start by stroking their ego a little and letting them know that you are impressed by some of their accomplishments. You can do this by referring to them as a “leader” or “expert” in their specialty or by mentioning them in association with a respected university or medical facility.
Next, you want to give them a little insight into the opportunity. The key to a successful recruiting email is telling the candidate just enough to grab their attention and pique their interest without giving them too much information. Rather than specifically naming the location, link to your posting on a job board that has mapping functionality, like HealthcareJobFinder, so the candidate can familiarize themselves with the area. If you give them too many details, then you run the risk of saying something that they don’t like, and the candidate will delete your email and never contact you. Instead of listing hundreds of bullet points about the job, consider putting yourself in their shoes. Try to figure out what they may be looking for in their careers so that you can tailor a message to their needs and desires, not yours. Here are a few examples:
- Supportive management team
- Career growth opportunities
- Financial incentives
- Work-life balance
CALL TO ACTION
Now that you’ve gotten their attention with a relevant, personalized subject line, complimented a few aspects of their background or experience, and piqued their interest with a little information about the position, it’s time to show a little appreciation and provide a clear call to action. First, take a moment to thank them for their time. People love being appreciated. Second, encourage the physician candidate to learn more about your opportunity by clearly telling them what to do next. Tell them to respond to your email and ask them when they would be available to talk about the position. On the phone, you’ll have a better chance of getting to know each other, developing a successful connection, selling the candidate on the opportunity, and eventually securing the new-hire you are seeking.
LEARN MORE
If your interested in learning more about crafting effective recruiting emails check out HealthLink Dimension’s three-part series on the subject. Part-One reviews useful subject line strategy. In Part Two you will learn to craft a compelling story. Finally, Part Three outlines email marketing trends to look out for.
We hope this article taught you some email tactics you can employ right away. If you still have questions or would like to expand your healthcare candidate reach, HCP Navigator offers email deployment services. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Sources:
https://mailchimp.com/resources/catchy-email-subject-lines/
https://recruitloop.com/blog/sending-cold-recruiting-emails-candidates/
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/blog/the-right-way-to-send-cold-call-recruiting-emails/
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