Email templates for recruiters - Scale your candidate outreach

3 mins, 47 secs read time

Writing thoughtful outreach emails to passive candidates can sometimes be time-consuming and challenging – but it doesn’t have to be.

An effective way to scale your candidate outreach is by creating email templates. Creating templates for your candidate outreach emails provides you with a toolkit that can be adapted to various outreach campaigns when sourcing candidates for multiple roles.

To help you get started, we've put together this guide on how to create an email template library to save you time while scaling your candidate outreach.

Benefits of email templates for candidate outreach

Here are some key reasons that creating a template library is a valuable strategy for candidate outreach.

1. Create building block templates
   Templates should include “building blocks”, which are key components of an outreach email that can be customized and refreshed for different campaigns. They can be phrases or sentences such as a comment or post on LinkedIn that the prospect shared. Using building blocks ensures that each email appears slightly different so it doesn’t negatively impact your email deliverability.
   
2. Nurture prospects through storytelling
   Templates can be used to tell compelling stories and engage passive candidates. Including storytelling elements in your candidate outreach adds a personal touch that helps you nurture relationships with prospects.
   
3. Save time
   A template library can save you hours of time in the long run, especially when you need to refresh old templates for different outreach campaigns. If you invest the time upfront to build your template library, you’ll have an email toolkit at the ready whenever you create new campaigns.
   

Elements of a solid email template

A good email template should include these key elements that you can customize as needed.

1. A strong subject line
   The subject line is your chance to capture the prospect's attention and convince them to read your email. It's critical to craft compelling and engaging subject lines, especially since this can increase your email open rate.
   
2. Personalized message
   When it comes to creating an engaging email template, personalizing your candidate outreach message is essential. You can customize your emails by including relevant information about the prospect to show that you crafted it with them in mind.
   
3. Succinct messaging
   A lengthy email can deter prospects from reading your email so keeping your messaging succinct is key. To keep your message short and sweet, focus on sharing relevant information that the prospect should know and that adds value to their experience.
   
4. A clear call-to-action (CTA)
   Every email template should end with a clear call-to-action that tells the prospect the next steps to take. Your email should entice the prospect to connect with you in order to learn more about the job opportunity and the company.
   

Types of candidate outreach email templates

Now that you've learned more about the benefits and elements of email templates, here are a few examples of the kinds of emails you’ll be sending in an outreach campaign to get you started:

1. Introductory email
   The introductory email is the first email step you'll send to the prospect. It also sets the tone for the rest of your candidate outreach so it’s crucial to make a great first impression with this email.
   
2. Follow-up email
   Follow-up emails are great for adding value for prospects by providing more context, such as a detailed overview of the role or company updates so they can learn more about the company culture.
   
3. Nurture email
   Similar to follow-up emails, nurture emails are used to share timely information to spark conversations and keep prospects interested. These emails should entice them to join your company by providing updates on open roles, company awards or company culture.
   
4. Break-up email
   The break-up email is the last step in your candidate outreach, when you let the prospect know you’ll stop reaching out to them. It’s possible that the timing is off for them so it’s important to let them know they can reach back out to you if anything changes in the future.
   

It's best to update your templates every quarter or whenever you've contacted 500 prospects, whichever comes first. By doing this, your email copy is always fresh and your email deliverability is unaffected.

If you’re not already using email templates in your candidate outreach messages, creating a template library is a great place to start so you have a variety of outreach messages to choose from. Once you start to build out your email template library, you’ll be able to quickly scale your candidate outreach and connect with great talent.


Learn more about Greenhouse Recruiting and Sourcing Automation by connecting with a member of our team today.