Master Cold Calling in Recruitment With These Strategies and Scripts

Many modern solutions, such as job boards, talent sourcing tools, and AI-powered recruitment software, are available to simplify how organizations recruit workers in today’s competitive hiring market. However, simply picking up the phone and calling individuals can still be an effective way to build relationships with potential candidates. Cold calling in recruitment can help you identify qualified active and passive candidates who may be the right fit for a current or upcoming open role.

Learn what cold calling in recruitment is, tips for successful cold calling, what to include in a script, and common mistakes to avoid. Also gain inspiration from sample cold calling scripts. 

What is cold calling in recruitment?

Cold calling in recruitment is the practice of calling potential candidates who haven’t directly applied to open roles or reached out to express interest in your organization. During cold calls, recruiters aim to quickly engage and excite individuals about what a specific open role or organization has to offer. 

Given the wide range of innovative solutions for attracting talent hiring teams use today, some may think cold calling is outdated. However, when conducted effectively, cold calling in recruitment can offer many benefits, including: 

• Reaching passive candidates who may not have otherwise applied to open roles
• Expanding your candidate pool
• Engaging top talent before your competitors
• Breaking through the noise of crowded email inboxes and social media feeds 
• Building rapport and relationships with potential candidates
• Qualifying possible applicants and learning more about their experience and skills
• Decreasing total time to hire
• Receiving referrals for your open roles

The difference between cold calling potential candidates and potential clients

In addition to reaching out to prospective job seekers, if you work as an independent recruiter or for a recruitment agency, you may also make cold calls to attract new clients for your business. Your approach to cold calling in recruitment will vary depending on which audience you’re calling.

Calling candidates requires building rapport, highlighting how a role aligns with an individual’s skills and experience, and gauging their interest. On the other hand, while building rapport with potential clients is also important, other areas to focus on include pitching your recruiting skills and services, along with sharing how you can help organizations address hiring challenges. 

For the purposes of this guide, we’ll primarily cover tips, scripts, and common mistakes to avoid when cold calling candidates. 

9 tips for cold calling in recruitment

Cold calling candidates can seem daunting, especially if you haven’t previously used cold calling as a recruitment strategy. By taking a thoughtful, professional approach, you can increase the success rate of your cold calls and build positive relationships with potential candidates. 

Here are some tips to consider for cold calling in recruitment:

1. Research potential candidates 
2. Develop a script
3. Personalize your approach
4. Approach the conversation like a sales call
5. Be prepared to answer questions, and for possible rejection
6. Actively listen 
7. Be respectful of time
8. Follow up via email 
9. Improve your calls over time

1. Research potential candidates 

Once you know which role you’re looking to fill, conducting thorough research can help you identify relevant candidates to cold call, rather than spending time reaching out to individuals who aren’t the right fit.

Consider including the following information in your candidate research to help increase the success rate of your recruitment cold calls:

• Current role and company
• Skills and experience
• Industry expertise
• Career history
• Educational background
• Professional portfolio and online presence
• Professional recommendations, reviews, ratings, and testimonials 

2. Develop a script

Developing a concise, effective script is important to ensure you cover all key points in your cold call without taking up too much of each candidate’s time. Include important information about the role and company in your script while leaving space for natural dialogue with each candidate during your calls.

Keep in mind that reading the script word-for-word can come across as impersonal and disengaging. The script should simply be used as a guide to help direct the conversation. 

3. Personalize your approach

Tailoring your script and the conversation as a whole based on an individual’s specific background and experience can demonstrate your genuine interest in helping the candidate achieve their career goals.

Rather than sharing a generic overview of the open role, highlight a recent project the candidate shared on their portfolio or a featured skill on their professional profile and share how the role aligns with their experience. Also ask each candidate what they’re looking for in their next career opportunity to further personalize your pitch about the open role and your organization.

4. Approach the conversation like a sales call

A recruitment cold call is similar to a sales cold call. Rather than selling a product or service, you’re selling a specific role or your organization to a candidate. Many sales representatives follow principles known as the three C’s of cold calling: confidence, clarity, and conviction.

Here’s how you can apply these principles to your recruitment cold calling:

• Confidence. Be knowledgeable about the role, your organization, and the industry so you can build trust and credibility and accurately answer candidate questions. 
• Clarity. During the call, clearly introduce yourself and share a concise overview of the role, including its relevance to the candidate you’re looking to engage. Try to avoid sharing too much information up front so candidates don’t get overwhelmed. Also provide clarity when it comes to next steps in the recruitment process. 
• Conviction. Speak passionately about the company, its mission, and how the role can be beneficial to the candidate. Display genuine excitement about the role without coming across as overly salesy or aggressive. 

5. Be prepared to answer questions, and for possible rejection

After you share your introduction and high-level pitch for the role, candidates will likely ask follow-up questions related to the role and how it aligns with their experience and career goals. Make sure to connect with the hiring manager for the specific role ahead of time so you have a full understanding of the position and can answer any questions. If you happen to run into a question you can’t answer, let the candidate know you’ll reach out internally and follow up after the call. 

While some potential candidates will have questions, others may not be at all open to your call; preparing for rejection is essential. If a candidate turns down a role, respond in a professional manner and ask why they’re not interested. When you have the answer, end the call cordially by letting the candidate know how to reach you should they change their mind. This can help you build a positive relationship with the candidate for possible future opportunities and improve your targeting for other cold calls. 

6. Actively listen 

In addition to answering questions, you can show candidates you care about their specific career goals and needs by displaying workplace communication skills such as active listening. Typical active listening practices include giving your undivided attention, not interrupting, repeating information another person shares, and asking follow-up questions. 

Examples of follow-up questions you can ask to display active listening include:

• You mentioned your favorite project at your current organization. Can you go into more detail about why you’re proud of the project?
• You said you’re interested in growth opportunities. How are you looking to grow in your next role? 
• I appreciate that you mentioned your commitment to ongoing learning and development. What types of training resources are most helpful to you? 
• I understand why you’re hesitant to leave your current company. What would entice you to consider a new job opportunity? 

7. Be respectful of time

Because cold calling requires reaching out to candidates unexpectedly, being respectful of their time is essential to driving engagement. The following best practices can help you show candidates you respect their time:

• Asking if now is a good time to talk
• Acknowledging their schedule and that you understand they may be busy
• Offering to schedule a later follow-up, if the timing isn’t right
• Keeping your pitch brief
• Allowing time for follow-up questions and for candidates to share a bit about themselves
• Outlining potential next steps
• Thanking candidates for their time

8. Follow up via email 

After recruitment cold calls, follow up with each potential candidate via email with additional information. Your follow up email will vary depending on how each call concludes. For example, the individual may be interested and qualified to move forward with next steps for the role, they may be interested but not the right fit for the role, or they may have shared that they’re not interested in pursuing the opportunity at this time. 

No matter the outcome of the call, your follow up email should be brief, professional, and sent in a timely manner—ideally within 24 hours. If the candidate is interested in moving forward, outline the timeline and next steps in your hiring process. If they’re not the right fit, confirm that you’ll keep their information on file for future open roles. And, if the individual isn’t interested, thank them for their time and encourage them to share a referral or consider future opportunities with your organization. 

9. Improve your calls over time

Each time you conduct a recruitment cold call, keep a record of what worked well and areas in which the call can be more effective in the future. Some ways you can improve your cold calls over time include:

• Asking candidates for direct feedback 
• Refining your script based on candidate questions during the call
• Conducting additional research about candidates to personalize conversations even more 
• Tracking interactions in a candidate relation management (CRM) system or similar solution
• Practicing cold-calling with team members to test and evolve scrips and approaches
• Testing out calls at different times of the day or week 

What to include in a recruitment cold calling script

A recruitment cold calling script can help you call potential candidates with confidence. While each call should be personalized based on a candidate’s background and experience, creating a script template for each role can be an effective starting point as you prepare for cold calls.

Elements to include in a recruitment cold calling script include:

• Introduction highlighting who you are and where you’re calling from 
• Purpose and relevance of the call, such as why you’re calling and why you think the candidate would be a fit for the open role
• Selling points and value proposition, including elements of the company culture and how the role can help the candidate grow in their career 
• Open-ended questions about the candidate’s career goals and aspirations
• Closing and clarification of next steps, such as when to expect a follow-up email

Recruitment cold calling script examples

Now that you know what to include in an effective recruitment cold calling script, use the following cold script examples for inspiration when you’re drafting your own.

Script #1: Highlighting a mutual professional connection

Hi Sam, this is Alex Smith calling from ABC Corp. I’m hiring for a customer service manager role and Sarah Lopez, our mutual connection, mentioned you would be an excellent fit. Do you have a few minutes to chat? 

[Assuming the candidate agrees to take the call]

Your background and experience as a senior customer service representative at Tech Board look like a great fit for this open role. This position would be a step up from your current role, enabling you to grow in your career. You would have the opportunity to manage a customer service team and access ongoing learning and development resources to continue building new customer service skills. 

Are you interested in pursuing a new opportunity at this time? What are your short- and long-term career goals? 

[After the candidate shares a bit about their background and goals, be prepared with a conclusion]

Thank you for taking the time to discuss the open customer service manager role. I’ll follow up via email with the full job description after this call. I look forward to scheduling a formal interview with a member of our team in the next week or so. I’m so glad Sarah recommended you for the role! 

Script #2: Commenting on a candidate’s recent work achievement

Hi Blair, my name is Jordan Lee from the Creator Agency. I saw your recent Webby Award win for your work on an advertising campaign and I’d love to talk to you about our open creative director position. Do you have time to discuss the role now? 

[Assuming the candidate is available] 

I was really impressed by how your recent campaign blended engaging storytelling and visuals to capture the attention of your target audience. We’re looking for a creative director at Creator Agency and your experience leading award-winning campaigns makes you an ideal fit. This role would give you the chance to lead a talented team and work on exciting projects for global, well-known brands.

Are you interested in learning more about this role? What do you enjoy most about your current position and what are you looking for in your next opportunity? 

[Prepare a conclusion to share after discussing the role in more detail with the candidate] 

I appreciate you taking the time to talk about the creative director position at our agency. I’ll follow up shortly with additional details about the position and if you can reply with some additional portfolio samples, that would be much appreciated. Don’t hesitate to reach out with additional questions. 

Script #3: Responding to rejection

Hello Jamie, I’m Cameron Jones calling from Acme Company. We’re hiring a new software engineer for our growing team. Your experience as a software engineer at Initech for the past three years looks like an ideal fit for the role. Do you have time to talk about the role in more detail? 

[Assuming the candidate says they’re satisfied in their current role and not interested in moving forward]

Thank you for your honesty about your career aspirations and I’m glad to hear you’re doing well in your current role. I’d love to keep in touch about future opportunities for when the timing is right. I’ll follow up with an email after this call so you have my contact information on hand. 

If you know any other software engineers who may be the right fit, please feel free to pass along their names. Thanks again for your time. 

Common mistakes to avoid

While the tips and script examples outlined above can help prepare you for successful cold calls, avoiding common mistakes is also important. Missteps during recruitment cold calls can waste your time, drive candidate disengagement, and slow the hiring process, among other drawbacks. 

Common mistakes include: 

• Inadequate research. Failing to complete research before calling potential candidates can lead to calling and conducting irrelevant conversations with individuals who aren’t the right fit for your open roles. Adequate research can help you reach out to professionals with the skills and experience you’re looking for. 
• Sharing a generic pitch on all calls. Using a standardized, generic pitch during every recruitment cold call can come across as impersonal and make building rapport with target candidates challenging. By conducting research ahead of time, you can personalize your pitch during the call.
• Focusing too much on selling the role. An important part of any cold call is answering the “What’s in it for me?” question for your target audience. Only focusing on why you’d like an individual to join your team won’t entice candidates as much as highlighting how the role can be beneficial to their careers. 
• Being unprepared to answer questions or respond to rejection. Some recruiters or hiring managers may have a concise cold call script written but forget to take follow up questions or potential rejection into account. When preparing for your cold call, ensure you have a full understanding of the role to answer candidate questions and identify ways to respectfully respond to rejection.
• Not listening to goals and needs. In addition to asking questions, candidates may share additional details about their career goals or needs during the interview. Failing to actively listen and share how the role aligns with their goals can make candidates feel disengaged or undervalued. 
• Forgetting to follow up. Recruiters who forget to follow up after a cold call risk losing candidates’ interest. Even if you need to regroup internally following the call, sending a follow-up email sooner rather than later thanking candidates for their time and letting them know you’ll be in touch about next steps can help individuals stay excited about the role. 

Alternatives to cold calling in recruitment 

According to a survey of 2,366 HR professionals conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, 77% of respondents reported difficulty recruiting for full-time positions. Given the challenging hiring landscape, organizations need to take a multi-channel approach to recruitment to attract qualified candidates. 

Cold calling is only one of many ways you can reach out to and engage potential candidates for your open roles. Identifying creative ways to source candidates and implementing different sourcing strategies can help you expand your talent pool and reach a diverse set of job seekers. 

Alternative staffing and recruitment options include: 

• Sending emails or direct messages
• Leveraging talent sourcing tools 
• Using AI recruiting tools
• Building a talent pipeline
• Promoting open roles or services on social media
• Reaching out to your network for referrals
• Implementing an employee referral program
• Attending networking events 
• Partnering with a recruitment agency
• Searching for candidates and clients on a talent marketplace like Upwork 

Upwork can help with your recruiting needs 

When conducted effectively, cold calling in recruitment can be a successful strategy to reach and engage qualified candidates. By following the tips and drawing inspirations from the scripts outlined in this article, you can build rapport with potential candidates and complete successful calls. 

If you’re looking for additional support with your recruitment efforts, consider engaging a recruiting assistant or talent acquisition specialist on Upwok. Skilled recruiting and talent acquisition professionals are available to help you identify and implement hiring strategies to capture the attention of talented job seekers in today’s competitive market. Get started today—create an account and post a job on Talent Marketplace.

If you’re a recruiting or talent acquisition specialist looking for new clients, search for jobs on Upwork. Clients from around the world are looking for talented professionals like you to help improve their recruitment efforts. 

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Upwork is not affiliated with and does not sponsor or endorse any of the tools or services discussed in this article. These tools and services are provided only as potential options, and each reader and company should take the time needed to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation.