Good candidates get many recruiter messages, and most of them look identical: a job title, a list of requirements and 'please share your CV'. The recruiters who fill roles faster write differently. They lead with what is in it for the candidate, they make the role concrete in three lines, and they treat every candidate with respect, including the ones who are not selected. This playbook gives you 40 messages for every stage of hiring, a three line role pitch formula, Boolean search basics for LinkedIn and Naukri, and a weekly sourcing routine. It is written for in house HR teams, agency recruiters and founders who hire for themselves.
Candidate first outreach
A candidate who is not looking has no reason to read your message unless it is about them. Mention one thing from their profile that made you write, then describe the role in terms of what they would do, learn and earn. Ask a small question rather than demanding a CV.
Share the salary range where you can. Many candidates will not reply to roles with no range, and a range filters out mismatches early, which saves both sides time.
The three line role pitch
Before you write any outreach, write the role in three lines. If you cannot, the role is not clear enough yet.
- Line 1, the work: 'You would own outbound for our US market, from list building to first meeting.'
- Line 2, the growth: 'You would learn our sales stack and move to a closing role within a year if you hit targets.'
- Line 3, the terms: 'Hybrid in Gurugram, [salary range], plus incentive.'
Boolean search basics
Both LinkedIn search and Naukri's resume search support Boolean style queries. Learning five operators will save you hours every week.
- AND narrows: sales AND SaaS
- OR widens: SDR OR BDR OR "business development"
- NOT excludes: sales NOT intern
- Quotes for exact phrases: "inside sales"
- Brackets group logic: (SDR OR BDR) AND (SaaS OR software) NOT intern
- Save searches for roles you hire often and review new matches each week.
A weekly sourcing routine
- Monday: finalise the three line pitch and the search strings for each open role.
- Tuesday and Wednesday: source and send personalised first messages.
- Thursday: follow ups, referrals and screening calls.
- Friday: update hiring managers, close loops with every candidate you will not progress, and review what worked.
- Every day: reply to candidates within one working day, even if only to say you need more time.
Employer brand on LinkedIn
Hiring posts are some of the most widely shared posts on LinkedIn because people forward them to friends. Make yours specific: what the team does, what a normal week looks like, who the person reports to, the salary range and how to apply. A short post from the hiring manager often gets more reach than a company page post, because people follow people.
Handle candidate data with care
Under India's DPDP Act, a CV is personal data. Collect only what you need for hiring, tell candidates how you will use it, keep it secure and delete it when you no longer need it. Do not forward CVs to clients or other companies without the candidate's agreement.
The 40 templates
Replace everything in [brackets] with real details. Read each one aloud before sending, and change the words until it sounds like you.