Is Cold Emailing rude?
Just got off an Informational Interview call with someone at a BB I reached out to via cold email. Throughout the call I felt like they were shading me for reaching out. I told them who else I had spoken to in the team and they said, "oh okay, you are really proactive. while this is great great work, I think this can easily backfire on you. I would recommend doing warmer introductions, eg. Get introduced through someone" The problem with that is I don't have anyone from my school in that division already so this was my only shot.
Throughout the conversation, whenever I asked them for advice they told me you clearly have these great research skills so why don't you look for someone from your school in the division? They also said nobody in the team, even the ppl I have spoken would be able to vouch for me because they haven't worked w me professionally. While this makes sense, I thought the entire point of recruiting interns/grads was hiring people you don't know or have worked with before?
They also recommended me to reach out to higher level employees, like directors and then simultaneously said that I should be careful as I can be easily misconstrued in the wrong way.
I really wanted to know if I was doing something wrong, and if cold emailing is perceived in the wrong way by the S&T/ Markets divisions in Asia. I have spoken to 20+ people through this method and never had this experience until now. My only intention is to expand my network + improve my chances but this call made me feel like I'm screwed and all my previous efforts have been misdirected as well.
What an asshole that person is. Most of my networking emails were completely cold as I go to a non-target and had to branch out more. Everyone I’ve spoken to was extremely friendly. That person probably had their interview handed to them via a close connection and/or diversity program and has no idea what’s it’s like to grind on the networking front. Keep doing what you’re doing
Yep, they did interview through someone they knew and asked me to do the same as if everyone has that opportunity. Anyway, thanks I'll keep at it.
Some people are rude, or perhaps the person you spoke to was having a bad day. Cold emailing is how I built my entire network, so no it is not rude. As long as you are polite when you request 15-30 minutes of their time, you are making an offer. If they choose to except then they have no right to be rude, as they were never obligated to do so.
However, you cannot expect people to go to bat for you based on your work performance when you have never worked with them before. That's not why you get interviews through cold emailing. In my experience, I developed relationships with professionals and when the time came I "hinted" that I would really like to work for their group/firm/etc. Usually whomever you are speaking to will at least be up front at this point and say "yeah I think you would be a good fit, send me over your resume" or "we're not looking for interns right now." Developing relationships takes time, and I would often try and speak with certain bankers 2-3 times before "hinting" that I wanted to work with them.
Thanks - that makes sense. How can I arrange a follow-up call with the bankers I have spoken to? And after how long would it be an accurate time to do so?
Just reach out 2-3 weeks later and say something along the lines of "thank you for making the time to speak with me the other day, I really appreciate it. If your schedule permits, would you have 15-30 minutes some time this week to catch up. I'd love to learn a little more about your role/bank/firm etc."
Dude, not at all. I say 1/20 calls I make is a rude, disinterested person. My very last call was like this, and you’re left wondering why they even agreed to chat. I think some are really just assholes, but most are just maybe not having a good day. On the flip side, about 1/20 calls I’ve made turns out to be a really solid addition to my network (resume push, introduction to somebody more senior, etc). Most are eager to talk. This is just how you build a network. Don’t let one person discourage you, it’s never anything personal. It’s just a numbers game.
This is encouraging, thanks. I was genuinely wondering why they agreed to speak as well. Felt like the most advice they gave me through the conversation was to not cold email people.
I ignore cold emails
I don't know anything about Asia but networking with S&T people in NY has been nothing like what that guy said. I've made connections with a bunch of people off a cold email who've vouched for me. Sounds like an outlier. Only time someone got mad at me was because I emailed them at 8 AM which he said is when markets people are super busy and because I addressed him by his first name (he's a more senior person).
I thought its okay to refer to people by their first name? Didn't know people actually get mad
I thought so too and that it was actually preferred. I think the only reason to address someone as Mr./Ms. is if they are 50+. Number one lesson I think is that you never know how people are going to react so don't sweat it too much.
No, not rude at all. Keep doing what you’re doing. People in Asia are a bit weird / overly formal about this sort of stuff, so I wouldn’t be surprised if your response rate to the emails is much lower vs. what it would be in the US, but it sounds like you’ve had good success thus far.
As an earlier poster said, you’re making them an offer - 15-30 mins of time. If they don’t want to speak to you, they are under no obligation to respond to your email.
Yep, it's definitely harder in Asia. The people who have replied and spoken to me have mostly been from an international background (university/ prev work exp in North America/ Europe/ Australia)
Asia's defo difficult, but not impossible. Yes response rates will be super low and yes the odds of leads turning into meaningful ones are very slim. But u gotta really keep pushing, ping as many people as you reasonably can (while keeping the msgs personalized enough and whatnot) and you'll eventually come across senior guys who appreciate you reaching out.
source: been there done that, lucked my way into offers thru cold networking - APAC s&t recruited last fall. Good luck OP!
Thanks man! thats encouraging to hear, gonna keep at it
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