I was sick of sending traditional applications. This is the email that finally got me hired.

Sep 07, 2026 04:46 PM - 1 hour ago 1

Judy Zeng headshot

Judy Zeng sent a acold outreach email to a CEO and ended up getting a occupation arsenic a result. Judy Zeng

This as-told-to effort is based connected a speech pinch Judy Zeng, a 22-year-old business improvement intern astatine world media startup EO Studios, based successful San Francisco. Her personality and employment person been verified by Business Insider. This communicative has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

I'm a caller postgraduate from Northwestern University, wherever I studied journalism. I now activity astatine a institution called EO Studios.

As a media major, location was ever a batch of accent astir uncovering internships and jobs. With each the AI applications and AI-powered reviewers, I had a batch of disillusionment pinch the accepted hiring process arsenic a senior. I sent astir 30 applications but ne'er knew if they were being seen. I felt for illustration I could support applying to jobs each time and not get anything.

In bid to beryllium more effective pinch my outreach, I figured I would effort to beryllium much strategic. Volume wasn't my strength.

I tried an alternate method

I produced a video communicative for a people duty that was astir really journalists turned their acold emails into cold outreach for jobs. One Northwestern alum who had the aforesaid double awesome arsenic maine said he cold emailed a YouTube personality, and now he's moving arsenic their caput of content.

A batch of the group I said to made maine consciousness location was an replacement to the traditional hiring process, and I was inspired by that. I felt for illustration location was thing really audacious and daring astir reaching retired to personification straight for a job. I ne'er felt for illustration I was 1 of those people, but I knew I had initiative, truthful I was like, why not effort this out?

There was besides an facet of this strategy that felt for illustration portion of the job. As a publicity major, I took pridefulness successful being capable to sleuth retired emails and talk to the group I was willing in.

I decided to effort it out. This is the message I sent the CEO of the institution I presently activity for:

Hi [recipient],I'm Judy Zeng, a elder astatine Northwestern University studying publicity and economics. I'm ace passionate astir tech and media, and successful the past year, I founded a video accumulation workplace pinch 40K+ views and 50+ group featured connected video. Here's my LinkedIn floor plan for reference.I've been pursuing EO Studio's contented and marque for a while now, and I deliberation what you're doing is genuinely exceptional. I'd emotion to subordinate the squad and thief turn your company. Here are a fewer circumstantial ways I spot myself adding value:
  1. Grow retired EO's advertizing and business infrastructure to summation gross extracurricular of YouTube monetization.
  2. Support the contented accumulation squad by researching subjects, preparing questions, and interviewing subjects pinch my publicity background.
  3. Conduct quantitative investigation connected what kinds of videos execute champion connected YouTube successful bid to pass what your adjacent viral video looks like.
Would you beryllium unfastened to a speech 1 time successful the coming weeks?I besides saw that you're looking to grow your world beingness successful the United States and person moved your activity meetings to English. I'd emotion to adhd a caller position to your squad arsenic a autochthonal of Silicon Valley pinch connections successful the Chicago area, wherever I'm presently located for school.Let maine cognize what you think!Thanks,Judy

This was the first clip I tried thing for illustration this. The CEO didn't respond astatine first, truthful I sent a speedy follow-up. He past thanked maine for reaching retired and said he was willing successful speaking. After the reply, I had a speech pinch a elder personnel he looped in. Then I was capable to meet up pinch the CEO successful San Francisco since I was visiting the Bay Area complete outpouring break.

In our conversation, we discussed the company, his vision, and the caller media landscape. Both of my conversations pinch the elder personnel and CEO felt much for illustration java chats than general interviews. Afterward, I sewage a verbal offer.

Understand the institution earlier you scope out

If you're utilized to sending retired wide applications, this is simply a different model wherever you want to deliberation cautiously astir the institution you want to subordinate and whether it would beryllium a bully fit.

You should return the clip to really understand the institution and its business needs first. I deliberation utilizing LinkedIn is an underrated strategy for knowing what's going connected astatine definite companies and reaching them.

A batch of CEOs, decision-makers, and senior-level folks station connected LinkedIn astir what's going connected astatine the company, what they're reasoning successful the moment, and whether they're hiring. They station astir their philosophies and if they're trying retired caller experiments.

Luck plays a role

I would decidedly urge reaching retired to a CEO, but it depends connected the contented aliases the institution you're reaching retired to.

This will not activity retired successful each industry. I don't deliberation you could email the CEO of a consulting elephantine and past get a job. It has to beryllium a institution that's OK pinch group disrupting accepted hierarchies aliases hiring pipelines. At the extremity of the day, a large portion of occurrence pinch this method is besides luck.

Did you get a occupation done acold outreach? We want to perceive from you. Contact the newsman via email astatine [email protected] aliases stock your communicative successful the comments below.

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Ana  writes astir workplace trends and really AI is reshaping the roles of package engineers. She besides regularly interviews C-suite executives astir their profession trajectories and activity insights.Ana hosts a play video bid called "Work Shift," which breaks down the biggest workplace news of the week. She holds a master’s grade successful multimedia publicity from NYU and has been featured connected BBC, NPR, and different world media platforms.Have a tip? You tin interaction her via email at [email protected] or done the secure-messaging app Signal astatine aalt.19.

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