Recruiting agencies have two components to their core business – finding and building relationships with great candidates, and connecting them with clients looking to hire exceptional talent. It’s important to match these candidates and clients with the right opportunities so that everyone has a successful outcome.

An effective way for recruiting agencies to expand their clientele is through email outreach since it can facilitate conversations and open up opportunities for collaboration. When reaching out to prospective clients, it’s crucial to approach it strategically and ensure that your emails are engaging and providing value. We’ve compiled a list of essential tips to help you craft an effective business development email for your email outreach strategy.

Tips for crafting engaging business development emails

  • Introduce yourself and your agency by sharing which industries, company sizes and company stages your agency specializes in. This can position you as a reputable and knowledgeable resource during the recruiting process, and help prospective clients understand how your agency can help with their specific hiring needs.

  • Show you’ve done your research on the prospective client to strengthen your initial outreach. A great way is by finding a potential candidate that has the key skills and experience that the company is looking for in an open role. This demonstrates your understanding of their hiring needs and your expertise when it comes to finding the right candidate.

  • End the email with a clear call to action to encourage the prospective client to take the next step. Consider suggesting a meeting or phone call to share more about your recruiting agency’s services and how you can help them with their hiring needs.

This template is a great starting point if you’re searching for ways to engage prospective clients in your email outreach:

Subject: [Your Agency Business] + [Company]

Hey [first_name],

I focus on agency business development at [business name]. We are a boutique agency specializing in marketing and PR search in the New York metro area across small-mid sized companies in SaaS and fintech, from seed to public stages.

I’m currently working with a candidate with X years of experience in IPO tech and marketing agency environments where they built and managed [name of team (e.g. digital marketing, growth marketing)] teams and [highlight another key skill/experience that’s relevant to the role]. Most recently, they were behind the lifecycle marketing strategy that increased their company’s conversion rate by over X% in a year. In addition to being a high performer, they have a keen interest in data analytics!

I noticed you’re looking for a Senior Specialist in B2B Lifecycle Marketing and while some companies aren’t working with agencies right now, those with high-impact roles like this one have a need for speed and efficiency.

In addition to great candidates like this one, we also specialize in hiring for these kinds of roles. I would love to see if we could work together now or in the future. How does a quick sync sound to you?

Best, [your name]

Here are some key takeaways to help you craft your own email outreach:

  • Use open-ended questions to avoid responses that can be answered with a simple “yes” or “no” (Source: HubSpot)

  • Emails with personalized subject lines boost open rates by 50% (Source: Yes Lifecycle Marketing)

  • Messages with personalized content have a 32.7% higher response rate (Source: Backlinko)

Incorporating these tips into your business development email outreach can significantly improve your chances of landing new clients for your recruiting agency. It’s important to remember that cultivating relationships with clients is essential to creating a loyal and long-term clientele. Clients are more inclined to do business with you if they know they can trust your firm and rely on your expertise. By positioning your agency as a reliable and valuable partner in the hiring process, you can create a steady stream of new opportunities.