I have divided this into two parts

1. Casual convo to referral
2. Direct referral request

Step 1: Find recruiter emails/LinkedIn

Hunter.io - https://hunter.io 

Apollo.io - https://apollo.io 

FindThatLead - https://findthatlead.com 

Snov.io - https://snov.io 

Clearbit - https://clearbit.com 

Step 2: Cold Email/ LinkedIn message Template (Start coffee chat)

Hello <name>,

Hope you are doing well!

I am a <profession> and since you have been working as a <profession> for x years at <company>. I wanted to connect with you to know more about your experience over the years and chat about the same.

Looking forward to connecting and speaking with you.

Thank you.

Step 3: After the first message

• After this casually start adding your conversation, talk about their experience
• Tell them about your experience, how it relates to theirs, and your projects
• Once they learn more about you, and your skills, they would give you a whole hearted referral

I have gotten sooo many referrals from the above method, look below for screenshots:

Step x: If you dont have time to start a coffee chat, look below for direct referral messages.

Step x1: Cold Email/message Template (direct referral)

Hello <name>,

Hope you are doing well!

I'm a <occupation and specialisation in> and I am interested in the new grad software engineering position at <company_name>.

<one or two lines about your experience and what was your impact>

I feel I will be a great fit at <company_name> which caters to <relation of your experience with company profile>. Please let me know if you'd be open to giving me an opportunity to interview or a referral. I appreciate your support.

Link to the role: <link>

I am attaching my resume for your reference as well.

Thank you for your time,

Jugal