How to Connect with Decision Makers and Top Recruiters on LinkedIn

There is no social network more relevant than LinkedIn when it comes to connecting with recruiters for employment. LinkedIn is the recruiter’s go-to platform for finding and vetting candidates. According to SocialTalent’s 2017 Global Recruiting Survey, 98% of recruiters use it as a sourcing tool. As a professional looking to network with decision-makers and top recruiters, there is no better platform to get started in than LinkedIn. As we already mentioned, recruiters use LinkedIn to find candidates, so it’s only wise for you to learn how to connect with these recruiters and decision-makers to get a new job or land your dream job.

Nonetheless, there are various ways in which you can find CEOs or decision-makers, and recruiters on LinkedIn. However, one good way to attract recruiters is by having an optimized LinkedIn profile. If you complete your LinkedIn profile with keywords relevant to your industry, you will have a higher chance of getting discovered by recruiters and decision-makers. 

The following tips will help you find or attract decision-makers and recruiters on LinkedIn.

1. Ensure that the people you want to connect with are relevant to your interests and goal

There are so many recruiters on LinkedIn, and not all are relevant to your interests and goals. Therefore, you must carefully select the recruiters you want to reach out to for a job opportunity. The best way to find these recruiters is to enter the search query “your industry + recruiter.” For example, if you want to find recruiters in the marketing industry, you can join the search “marketing recruiter.” If you’re going to find local recruiters in your area, you can narrow your search results by region. However, before searching by region, check to see whether the recruiter is still active and hasn’t moved to a different job or field.

2. Don’t start with LinkedIn

Although this may seem contrary to our focus discussion, it is still worth considering. When trying to connect with recruiters, your initial point of contact should be on a platform other than LinkedIn. You can start by following the recruiter on Twitter. When you follow a recruiter on Twitter, he/she will receive a notification stating that you have followed them. By the time you connect with the recruiter on LinkedIn, he or she will already be familiar with your name and face. This is one reason you must use a unique name on all your social media handles. Using a unique name also helps you avoid confusion that may abound when two or more people with similar names are in the same industry or profession.  

After reaching out to a recruiter on a platform other than LinkedIn, view his or her LinkedIn profile. Make sure you set your profile viewing options to allow others to see your name and headline when you view their profile. This way, the recruiter will be able to see your full profile. If your profile looks great, the recruiter may ask to connect with you even before you request to connect with him/her.

3. Send a personalized connection request

After connecting with a recruiter outside the LinkedIn platform and viewing his/her LinkedIn profile, you are now ready to connect. Don’t send in a connection request without adding a message. You must add a note to your request for connection as it gives you a better chance of getting accepted. After all, if you were the recruiter, you would not accept a connection request from a person you’ve never met before.

When it comes to sending a connection request on LinkedIn, you need to start with something personal that can catch the recruiter’s attention. For example, if you both went to the same college, let he/her know.

A sample LinkedIn connection request to a recruiter is shown below:

“Hello, David! I noticed you live in Georgia, I grew up there, and I miss it a lot. I am now a financial advisor residing in Chicago. I am looking for new opportunities in the financial industry. I would appreciate it if you can provide me with any guidance. Would you like to connect and talk further?”  

4. Send the recruiter your resume

Once the recruiter has accepted your connection request, it’s now time for a more direct approach via LinkedIn message or email. You can find a recruiter’s email address in the “Contact info” section of his/her profile. If the recruiter does not have it there, send a message through LinkedIn. Your message to the recruiter should include your qualifications, experience, and what you are currently looking for. Also, attach your resume. You can again ask in the message if the recruiter would love to connect with you on the phone for further discussions.

When messaging a recruiter on LinkedIn, consider applying the following tips: 

• Don’t send a lengthy note discussing yourself. 
• Don’t send a short message with only words like “Hello” or “Hi.”
• Keep the message concise.
• Do not engage in sending copy-and-paste messages. Personalize it instead.
• Please don’t send a message without proofreading it. You can proofread your message using Grammarly.
• Don’t be too demanding in your message. Recruiters work with you and not for you.

A sample LinkedIn message to a recruiter is shown below:

“Hello (name of the recruiter), my name is (your name here), and I am a (your profession title here). I am currently working for (name of company) but looking at taking on a new challenge and transitioning to a new company in (name of industry). If you have a minute, I would love the opportunity of discussing how my (mention your skills) and experiences in (industry) may match up with positions you are recruiting for. I would love to discuss this with you on the phone. Please feel free to reach out to me on (your number). Looking forward to chatting with you!” 

5. Stay in touch