You sift through a pile of AI-approved resumes. You phone screen dozens of people and sit through a rotating cast of potential hires. At last, you find the perfect candidate and verbalize the offer.
Except—you never hear from him again.
Why?
You didn’t send a good job offer letter. That dented the candidate’s experience and sowed confusion.
Take heart. You’re about to learn one of the most important aspects of recruitment strategy:
How to write a job offer letter that kicks off socks.
Sidenote: Make a Call First
If you wait for snail mail to make the announcement, you’re in for a blow—you’ll miss a chance to offer heartfelt congrats and lose the candidate to a competitor.
Why?
Because he is an A+ player, who gets showered with offers. This means you need to act fast. So—always make a phone call before you send an offer letter.
Want to take it a step further?
Get the candidate’s direct manager to make the call. It’ll help tip the scales by making the offer more personal.
Congratulate Them
This one is a no-brainer—the candidate needs to soak in the sense of accomplishment right from the get-go. Also, make sure to mention in the letter the role they’ll fill in.
Example:
Congratulations! We’re delighted to offer you the position of Content Marketing Specialist here at Adobe.
List Responsibilities and Who They’ll Report To
Don’t beat around the bush—open your letter with the direct manager’s name and a quick recap of the candidate’s main responsibilities.
Example:
You’ll report directly to Donald M. Claar from the Marketing team. Your efforts will be mostly focused on:
- Writing high-quality content on Creative Cloud, Document Cloud, and Experience Cloud for Adobe’s blog.
- Evaluating and editing Adobe’s external writers’ articles for logic and flow.
- Blah, Blah, Blah…
Address Expectations
If you don’t—the candidate will run screaming into the Confusion Jungles. So throw in specifics about the position:
Employment type: full-time vs. part-time.
Compensation: this one is self-explanatory. Just keep in mind that if you offer a noncompetitive salary, you might lose the candidate to a competitor.
Pay structure: annual salary vs. hourly rate.
Commission: discretionary vs. performance-based.
Payday: weekly vs. bi-weekly vs. monthly.
Example:
As we’ve discussed earlier, this is a full-time position that comes with an annual salary of $60,000. You’re also eligible for a performance-based commission. You’ll receive the salary on a monthly basis.
Spotlight Benefits
Now—it’s time to lightsaber a potential rejection and make the candidate drool.
How?
Showcase a boatload of juicy perks that come with the job. You can copy-paste them from your job ad if you penned a good one.
Pro tip: Make sure to present the full scope of benefits to avoid surprises for the candidate.
Example:
In addition, you’ll receive benefits the moment you enter the position in the form of:
- Health Benefits: private health insurance + vision coverage with 100% coverage on Adobe’s part.
- Training budget: access to online courses, mentorship opportunities, and employee training.
- Flexibility: up to 3 remote days a week.
Start Date and Schedule
Here—it’s as straightforward as it gets: Tell the candidate when you expect them to start and what the office hours are.
Example:
Your starting date is April 6, 2019, with the regular 8-hour working day.
Outline Contingencies
You want to safeguard yourself if something fishy pops up. Otherwise—you’ll be the one to run into the Jungles. So communicate that the offer is contingent on specific requirements.
Example:
Your employment with Adobe is contingent upon:
- Completion of an I-9 form (U.S. employment eligibility)
- Background check
- Drug screening
- Confidentiality agreement
- Medical check-up
Close with Instructions
Time to seal the deal.
Example:
If you’d like to accept this job offer, please sign this letter and email it back to us at your earliest convenience. Once done, we’ll send you a formal contract of employment. If you have any questions or concerns, please do reach out!
Pro tip: Offer an expiration date to nudge the candidate. E.g., Please note that our offer will expire on April 6.
Follow-Up
You sent a well-crafted letter to the candidate safe in the knowledge they’d accept it. But—they didn’t (bummer!). Now, you need to figure out what went wrong so you can flatline the chances of that happening in the future.
How?
Follow up with a candidate-experience survey to get some insights. Use tools like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey for help.
Bonus Tip: Add a Personal Touch
Do you like to receive generic emails that offer as much fun as a three-hour documentary on Astrochemistry?
Exactly. So—throw in some emojis and GIFs to make your email pop.
Putting It All Together
Want the full template? You got it.
03.22.2019
John Smith
7151 Hill Field Drive Westport, NY 12993
Dear John,
Congratulations! We’re delighted to offer you the position of Content Marketing Specialist here at Adobe.
You’ll report directly to Donald M. Claar from the Marketing team. Your efforts will be mostly focused on:
- Writing high-quality content on Creative Cloud, Document Cloud, and Experience Cloud for Adobe’s blog.
- Evaluating and editing Adobe’s external writers’ articles for logic and flow.
As we’ve discussed earlier, this is a full-time position that comes with an annual salary of $60,000. You’re also eligible for a performance-based commission. You’ll receive the salary on a monthly basis.
In addition, you’ll receive benefits the moment you enter the position in the form of:
- Health Benefits: private health insurance + vision coverage with 100% coverage on Adobe’s part.
- Training budget: access to online courses, mentorship opportunities, and employee training.
- Flexibility: up to 3 remote days a week.
Your starting date is April 6, 2019, with the regular 8-hour working day.
Your employment with Adobe is contingent upon:
- Completion of an I-9 form (U.S. employment eligibility)
- Background check
- Drug screening
- Confidentiality agreement
- Medical check-up
If you’d like to accept this job offer, please sign this letter and email it back to us at your earliest convenience. Once done, we’ll send you a formal contract of employment. Please note that our offer will expire on April 6.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do reach out!
We look forward to having you to our team!
Yours sincerely,
Max Woolf
HR Specialist and Recruiter
