Info Interviews: Part II
As you continue in the career transition to your next position, informational interviews can play a key role in deepening your understanding of the options available in various industries and companies. Having applied some tools from last month’s blog and generated a list of contacts at organizations of interest, it’s time for you to reach out! This is your chance to make a great first impression.
Several roads could serve as a path to request an informational interview:
By Email
Tailor the subject line so your intent is clear eg. “Referred by Julie Smith: Emily Giacomini requests info interview”.
Mention your link to the contact, if you have one. If a mutual friend introduced you, you could say, “Jill was kind to connect us” to acknowledge her role. (Don’t copy Jill- she probably gets enough email! She may appreciate hearing how the call went, so circle back later.)
Give a brief intro to your background, like # years of work experience in x field. Express interest in the person’s company or department. What’s exciting to you about their career path or current role?
Request an info interview of max. 30 minutes (it could be 15 minutes for Director-level and above.) Indicate your availability so it’s easy for them to choose among options. Offer to be flexible- do what’s most convenient for them- usually during business hours, or slightly earlier or later.
Ensure your Signature block clearly shows your phone, email etc.
By LinkedIn
Go to the person’s profile and click on the Message button below their picture. If they’re a Premium Member you can send a short message for free. Keep it to the point – mention something that intrigues you about their profile and why and request 30 minutes at their convenience via a phone or Zoom chat. Some people prefer not to accept invites from strangers, so it may be best to message first and send an invitation to connect after you’ve navigated a successful call.
By Social Media
If you’re tracking with a Twitter feed on your topics of interest, notice who’s posting and contact them directly to engage re. their tweets to establish rapport before asking for time one-on-one.
Via a Mutual Contact
Reaching out via a mutual contact makes the connection “warm” and possibly easier to initiate. First email the intermediary and have a call with him to catch up. While this will take more time, it shows you’re truly interested in your friend/acquaintance, not simply going through him to meet someone else. Plus, it’s a way to keep your own network strong!
People are busy, so don’t take it personally if they don’t respond right away. Consider following up in a week or two. Set your expectations that not everyone will reply. Knowing that, you’ll need to generate more leads to achieve the number of calls or meetings that you want. You could even have two versions of your outreach requests and determine which one produces better results.
Track your list of contacts and indicate the dates you reached out and connected so you can easily refer to the history of your engagement and remind yourself of any key points that were covered in the call. Set yourself some goals for the week or month and adjust them as it makes sense.
Before you know it, you’ll have calls on your calendar. Next month we’ll look at preparing for the call or meeting.
Here’s to your outreach!