The Best Way to Cold Contact an Employer About Job Opportunities

If you’re tired of waiting for a vacancy to open up at your dream employer, you might decide to cold contact that company instead. Taking the initiative can set you apart from other candidates but it’s worth spending some time planning your cold contact approach.

Should you cold contact an employer by email, letter, or something else? What should you say? Does the law even allow you to cold contact a company? Considering questions like this will make sure that you get it right the first time.

Can You Legally Cold Contact An Employer In The UK?

Generally, UK law allows you to cold contact an employer about work opportunities. The tightest legal constraints about cold contacting relate to emails. You can only cold email a company or an individual if you have a legitimate reason for contacting them. As a jobseeker, you do have a legitimate reason. Where you may run into problems is if you continue to email or contact a company about work when they have asked you to stop.

In the UK, cold contacting is regulated by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). However, this legislation generally applies to companies.

5 Ways To Get In Touch

Everyone has their preferred way to communicate, including the company you’re interested in. Before you approach an employer, find out how they like to be contacted. The easiest way to do that is to visit their website and head to their contact page.
Here are the five most common methods of communication you can use to cold contact an employer:

• Email has become the standard way to contact businesses but do make sure you have the email address of the right person or department.
• Telephone may be the better option if you’re a confident speaker, and the correct person in the company is happy to take phone calls.
• Writing a letter is still a viable option, despite the popularity of emails.
• A social media direct message may work for employers who promote their brands on platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook, especially if they advertise job vacancies on social media.
• An in-person visit to the company premises might work but the right person may be unavailable unless you’ve made an appointment.

If the employer is open to a range of contact methods, choose the one that plays to your strengths.

What To Prepare Before You Cold Contact An Employer

It’s always recommended to do your research before you contact an employer about job opportunities. Here’s what you should look into:

• the company
• the type of job you’re interested in
• how your skills, work experience, and qualifications are a fit for the company
• why you want to work for the company
• who the right person is to contact about job opportunities

With this information in hand, you should be able to express your suitability for the company, answer any questions that you face, and write a clear, well thought-out message.

What Should You Include In Your Cold Contact Message?

This will depend on the way you contact the employer, but your cold contact message should generally include:

• a brief introduction, including your name, relevant details about yourself, and possibly your current job
• the purpose of your contact, in this case, looking for job opportunities and perhaps the job role you’re interested in
• personalisation, for instance, addressing the email to the right person or asking for them when you visit, and demonstrating your knowledge of the company
• your relevant skills, experience, and qualifications to show that you’re a good fit for the company
• a call to action, or in other words, politely asking for a response to your enquiry
• your contact information to make it easy for them to get in touch
• your thanks for their time and consideration

This structure makes it clear why you’re getting in touch, demonstrates your value to the employer and appeal as a candidate, and makes it easy for them to respond.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

Once you have your message prepared, whether written or to be spoken, it’s worthwhile checking that you haven’t made any of these common mistakes:

1. Creating a generic message: Whether in-person, in writing, or over the phone, your message should always be tailored to the company you want to cold contact.
2. Not researching the company and the job you’re interested in: Show your enthusiasm for the company and job opportunities by demonstrating that you’ve carried out your research. Make it clear that you’re knowledgeable about the employer and understand the value you can bring as an employee.
3. Making your message long and repetitive: Your message should be clear and concise. Don’t give the employer any reason to stop reading or listening.
4. Forgetting to proofread your message: If your message is written, for instance in an email, letter, or direct message, check it through for mistakes.
5. Not following up: If you don’t receive a response, send a polite follow-up message. If you do receive a response, whether positive or not, following up with a thank you will leave a good impression.

Wrapping it up

Cold contacting a company about employment opportunities is a great way to stand out from the crowd as a proactive individual. It can also give you access to job vacancies that haven’t been advertised. However, it does take some time, research, and preparation.

Check that you can legally contact the employer, find out how the company likes to be contacted, do your research, and craft a clear and concise message that demonstrates your value. Check that you’ve avoided the common mistakes, like forgetting to proofread, and don’t forget to follow up.