How many times should I follow up with a HR Director (long time no contact)?

Ask after you've given them a reason to want to help, not after the first coffee. Send when you have a real trigger: news, a useful artifact, a role change, a season. After that, send a breakup note and archive it. A HR director who wants it will answer a clean close more often than a fifth bump.

Should I offer a referral fee in the email?

Only if that's already how you work and it won't make them look mercenary. Many operators prefer a clean intro. If you do mention a fee, keep it secondary to why the intro helps the other person. Name the stall they care about, offer one small next step, and stop before the thread feels like a sequence.

Is it weird to email someone after six months of silence?

Not if you have a new reason and you don't pretend the old thread is still warm. Lead with the trigger, remind them who you are in one line, and make the ask optional. Nostalgia without news is just another cold email with extra steps.

Is it okay to send this referral request on LinkedIn instead of email?

Yes if this HR director is actually active there and the thread isn't about long attachments. Keep the LinkedIn version even shorter. Don't paste the full email. One context line and one question is plenty. Name the stall they care about, offer one small next step, and stop before the thread feels like a sequence.

What should I never say in a Media referral request?

Don't promise a viral moment. Promise a clean flight. Treating employees like a funnel or joking about culture. Don't open with 'it's been a while' and then paste the old pitch. Those three mistakes show up constantly in Media inboxes and they all read as "this was templated."

Media · HR Director · Long Time No Contact

Referral Request for Media HR Director: Long Time No Contact

Use this referral request template when you're emailing a HR Director in Media (long time no contact). The thread is months old. They may not remember you. You need a reason that belongs to this week, not nostalgia. Keep the note aligned with Calm, respectful, concrete. No 'ninja recruiter' energy.

Last updated: 2026-09-02 · Reviewed by: Sales Email Template editors

We write templates the way we wrote emails on quota: short, specific, and easy to forward. When we cite research below, it is because the number changes how a buyer reads your note, not to pad the page.

Sources: HubSpot sales email benchmarks; Gong follow-up research

Why does this referral request work for a Media HR Director?

Include a forwardable paragraph.
Speaks to flights that stall, brand-safety scares, and follow-up that reads like leftover kit copy instead of a generic "value prop."
Fits how a HR director actually reads: Keep it human and under 100 words.
Bring a new observation about their world, then offer a small, optional next step.
Explain why they'd look good for making the intro.

When should I send this to a Media HR Director?

Ask after you've given them a reason to want to help, not after the first coffee. Send when you have a real trigger: news, a useful artifact, a role change, a season. For this combo, treat "Only when you have a trigger" as the default, then adjust around upfronts and flight dates create urgency. random tuesdays don't. If you're emailing a HR director, Keep it human and under 100 words.

What this HR Director actually cares about

A HR director in Media is protecting people, policy, and the company's legal exposure. They screen for risk, employee experience, and whether you'll create a mess for managers. Confidentiality isn't a buzzword to them. The hook that earns a look is hiring drag, manager load, or a process that candidates complain about. The ask should stay at this size: a conversation about one process, not access to their whole org chart. Delete trigger: Treating employees like a funnel or joking about culture. They protect people, policy, and the company's legal exposure, so keep the ask at "a conversation about one process, not access to their whole org chart."

How Media changes the note

Media buyers are sales leads and operators selling attention in a market that keeps changing the rules. They can smell leftover media-kit language. Bring delivery math or a sharp audience observation. A credible proof point in this vertical sounds like: rescued two paused IOs by sending a delivery diagnosis instead of another one-pager. Watch the language. Words that land here include IO, flight, brand safety, CPM, makegood, inventory. If you cannot name an RFP, a missed flight, or a new show / property launch, wait until you can. If you cannot name an RFP, a missed flight, or a new show / property launch, wait until you can.

How should I customize this template before I send it?

Replace the pain line with a publisher whose advertiser follow-up still leads with 'unique storytelling'.
Keep the tone calm, respectful, concrete.
Don't attach a commission offer unless that's already your model.
Time it for Only when you have a trigger. Send when you have a real trigger: news, a useful artifact, a role change, a season.
Don't promise a viral moment. Promise a clean flight.

What mistakes should I avoid with this long time no contact note?

Asking 'who do you know?' is lazy and gets no names.
Don't open with 'it's been a while' and then paste the old pitch.
Don't promise a viral moment. Promise a clean flight.
Treating employees like a funnel or joking about culture.

How does this long time no contact scenario compare?

Dimension	For this template
Best send window	Only when you have a trigger
Ideal length	Keep it human and under 100 words.
Primary ask	a conversation about one process, not access to their whole org chart
Industry metric to cite	CPM, fill, and campaign delivery against IO
Tone	Calm, respectful, concrete. No 'ninja recruiter' energy.
Unlike no response	This isn't a 4-day bump. It's a re-introduction with a new reason.
Unlike breakup	You're opening a door, not closing one. Still keep it easy to ignore.

What should I copy and send?

Copy-ready template

Subject

[Company Name] / CPM

Body

Hi [First Name],

If you're willing, I wrote a blurb you can forward as-is.

In Media, that usually shows up as flights that stall, brand-safety scares, and follow-up that reads like leftover kit copy. Blurb you can paste: '[Your Name] helps [audience] with rescued two paused IOs by sending a delivery diagnosis instead of another one-pager. They asked if you'd be open to a short intro about [topic].'

Given this is long time no contact, ask if the old problem still exists, or if you should leave it archived.

Thanks either way. I know intros cost you something.

Best,
[Your Name]
[Your Title]
[Your Company]

Questions people ask before they hit send

Name the situation and the business object, not your excitement. Something like "[Company Name] / CPM" outperforms "Just checking in" because a HR director can decide from the preview text whether it's worth opening. Keep it under 50 characters when you can.

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