About Our Resume Distribution Service
1) What can I expect from an email distribution?
You should view the distribution as a way to make contacts in the recruiting world. Being in touch with recruiters who work in your space is a good job-hunting strategy. Sometimes it can result in immediate interviews for specific assignments, but often it is a start in the networking process which can result in interviews and jobs — but this process takes place over time, not instantly.
The objective of this email distribution is to start a dialog with recruiters and to expand your recruiter network. Resume writers tell us that they advise their job hunters to reach out to those recruiters who have looked at their LinkedIn profile but may not have sent a note asking for more information. Another way to network with recruiters who have interest in your background.
2) Do you guarantee a specific number of distributed resumes?
The specific number of resumes sent out depends on the industries, positions, and desired salary you choose. You will get a count after you put in the criteria and that is the number of recruiters we send the resume to. Since you are choosing from a database of more than 42,000 recruiters, the counts can be substantial. Typically a distribution is sent to between 1,000 and 2,000 recruiters.
3) How do I know who gets my letter and resume?
If you choose the distribution plus data download, we will send you the data file we use for the distribution.
4) What email subject line should I use?
Use an email subject which describes you or the position you are seeking. For example, Senior R&D Professional or New Graduate Seeking Sales Position. Non-specific subjects like Looking for a New Job or My Resume may not be enticing enough to encourage recruiters to open your email. In many cases, the title line (or a descriptive phrase) from your resume works well as the subject line for your emails.
5) What should I include in my letter?
Your cover letter should be written to recruiters and their client companies. It should not be written as an answer to an advertisement. Do not contain fill-in-the blanks which our system cannot use. We put recruiter merge codes into your letter to personalize each email for your distribution. Please note: we use the contact information from the letter. So your letter should include the name and the email address you want replies to go to.
6) Do the recruiters know that you are sending the resume on my behalf?
The email is sent from your email address and replies go back to your email address. The email distribution looks like you sent out each email and attached resume yourself.
7) Will these recruiters help me find a job?
Recruiters work for companies not for job-hunters. These targeted mailings are only one piece of a job hunt. We make it easy to send them out. But like any targeted marketing campaign they depend in part on serendipity. The mailings are done with the intent (and the hope) that your credentials cross a recruiter’s desk at the same time he/she has an assignment that matches these credentials.
8) Why are there many recruiters at the same office in the distribution?
If you decide to download the data file, you will notice we may send your resume and cover letter to several recruiters at the same firm. The reason is that the database system finds all recruiters at a firm who specialize in the categories you choose. It is most effective to send to all recruiters in your specialty areas, since you are playing a numbers game and the larger the number, the better the potential response.
9) Will this resume distribution find me a job?
Sadly, you need to do all those other (and very time consuming things) like calling all your friends and relatives (and all their friends and relatives!) check job boards, executive changes and answer ads. No job-hunter can rely on resume distribution alone in a job hunt.
10) I do not want to move from Chicago, why are you sending my resume to recruiters in Los Angeles?
A recruiter in Los Angeles or New York or Dallas or Atlanta could be working on an assignment in Chicago. The recruiter will contact you if you are a match for the assignment, regardless of location. If you are location-restricted, state that in your cover letter. But even if you cannot relocate, becoming known to recruiters who work in your field is a good job-hunting strategy.
11) How is the email distribution personalized?
The emails we send out on your behalf are individually addressed to the recruiters in your subset. The distribution is intended to maintain that polite fiction that you have sent out only one email to that one recruiter.
Each email is sent to specific email address and the email looks like a formal business email, addressed to specific recruiters with a “Dear Mr./Ms. Last Name” salutation.
12) How long before I start hearing from recruiters? And how do I respond to those who do contact me?
You will start getting replies almost immediately after we send out your emails. Some auto-responses, some out of office responses, and hopefully some replies asking for more information.
Emailing to recruiters is a process. It could be that recruiters have nothing that matches your background now, but could have future assignments that do.
It is important that you keep in touch with those recruiters who send you personal notes. First you should reply to these notes with a “thank you and please keep me in mind” email. Then every month or so, you should send email notes to these recruiters saying you are still in the market and seeing if there are any new assignments that would work for you. Like any marketing campaign, follow up is very important.
The distribution should be viewed as a way to make contacts in the recruiting world. Being in touch with recruiters who work in your specialty is a good job hunting strategy. Sometimes it can result in immediate interviews for specific assignments, but often it is a start in the networking process which can result in interviews and jobs — but this process takes place over time, not instantly.
13) Choosing subsets — Should I use “Geography – Regions, States, Cities”?
The geography variable indicates where a recruiter is located, not necessarily where his jobs are located. Executive and professional job seekers should search nationally since a recruiter in Los Angeles or New York or Dallas or Atlanta could be working on an assignment in Chicago. The recruiter will contact you if you are a match for the assignment, regardless of location. If you are location-restricted, state that in your cover letter. But even if you cannot relocate, becoming known to recruiters who work in your field is a good job-hunting strategy.
14) Choosing subsets — What variables should I use to choose subsets for my email distribution?
The purpose of the email distribution for you to make contact with recruiters who work in your field. But some criteria make more sense for job hunters to use than others. The most important criteria are industry and position specialties. Some variables like recruiter type – retained vs contingent (how a company pays the recruiter) and placement type (interim vs permanent) are not that important when sending your resume to recruiters.
15) Can I use your database to look for Board of Director opportunities?
Both our databases can be used for explore Board of Director opportunities:
1) Recruiter database: Board of Directors is a position category. You should choose Board of Directors and senior management for position categories and the three industries you have experience with. Choose 100k plus for salary to make sure you get the senior level recruiters.
Most senior level recruiters recruit board members even if they do not mention it as a specialty. If they have a good client, that client will turn to them for all sorts of positions, even those not in their specialties — and especially board members.
2) Venture Cap/PE database can be useful for senior level executives looking to run portfolio companies. In addition you can use the VC/PE database to seek positions as a board member of these same portfolio companies.
This type of wording could work in your cover letter:
I am a senior manager and Board Director with substantial experience working for private equity owned companies.
I look forward to hearing from you if one of your PE portfolio companies needs a Board member with my background.
16) Should I put my LinkedIn profile in my letter?
Having your LI profile in your letter (as well as in your resume) makes it easy for recruiter to just click (without opening the resume.) You should follow up with those recruiters who may have checked out your LI profile, but not contacted you. This gives you more control over your job hunt and is another way to network with recruiters who have interest in your background.