I recruit engineers using cold email and it works better than LinkedIn InMail
recruitingrachel · 2026-03-08 · 870 views
Hot take: cold email outreach to engineers is more effective than LinkedIn InMail for recruiting.
Engineers hate recruiter LinkedIn messages. The response rate on InMails to engineers is below 5%. But a well-written cold email referencing their GitHub contributions, open source work, or specific tech stack gets 15-20% response rates.
My setup: Apollo for sourcing engineering contacts. PuzzleInbox Google Workspace inboxes for sending. Instantly for sequencing. I send 3-email sequences that reference specific technical work. Reply rates consistently 15%+.
Cold email is not just for sales. It is the best channel for recruiting technical talent when done with genuine personalization.
Comments (3)
jasoneng · 2026-03-09
as an engineer who gets cold emails from recruiters — yes, a well-written email referencing my actual work gets a reply from me. generic LinkedIn InMails get ignored every single time. the personalization is what makes it work
copycarl · 2026-03-09
15%+ reply rates for recruiting is insane. what does your sequence look like? 3 emails over how many days? I imagine engineers don't want aggressive follow-ups
recruitingrachel · 2026-03-10
@copycarl 3 emails over 10 days. email 1 references specific GitHub/open source work. email 2 is about the role and team. email 3 is a soft breakup. engineers appreciate direct and technical communication, not fluffy recruiter speak