Retail is reopening! That’s good news, but how is recruiting going to keep up with the new demand?
Across the nation retailers are tailoring their reopening strategies toward safety and public confidence. This is great news for business owners and shoppers, but with the fourth quarter being the busiest shopping time of the year, how will recruiters keep up with the demand that reopening is placing on recently-decreased store personnel?
Appeal to Emotions
Throughout the 2020 global pandemic, nearly 53% of all retail sales occurred online, forcing retailers to convert their marketing and sales strategy from brick-and-mortar to digital, and many were faced with the decision to lay off employees or close locations completely. This impacted both employees' trust and morale, and even motivated workers to seek positions outside the retail industry. To recruit new employees in preparation for Q4, try appealing to emotions: the desire for belonging, the ability to help a re-emerging economy, the joy that the upcoming holiday season brings to consumers, etc . Whether you are looking to surge hire cashiers to get your shop through the holiday shopping season or you need to fill management positions, focus on the company culture and how you value employees and their contributions.
Discuss What You’re Offering
Of course you’ll want to discuss your position’s roles and responsibilities, but to make the role more appealing than the competition’s you’ll also need to offer more than just a job. Discuss what you are doing to promote shopper and employee safety in the face of ongoing COVID-19 requirements. Talk about store and/or company growth, and how each employee is a vital part of the future of the organization. Are you offering flexible hours, employee discounts, or on-shift benefits like snacks and drinks? Let potential candidates know.
Know Your Worth
Whether you offer online shopping options or are a small boutique catering to an in-person experience, it’s important to know that most retailers have recovered to pre-COVID sales and Q4 is anticipated to have the typical 23% revenue influx (similar to previous years). This potential increase in business is juxtaposed against the fact that nearly 22 million Americans have lost their jobs during the pandemic, and only about 42% have landed reemployment. You have valuable positions to offer and should carefully vet applicants to ensure the right match.
Consider Online Fulfillment
If you don’t already have online shopping options, consider offering them. Whether your retail store will function as a fulfillment center, an in-person shopping center, or some hybrid of the two, offering online shopping options can help improve sales and diversify the positions you are looking to fill. While behind-the-scenes order fulfillment requires employees to be more organized, customer-facing staff needs to be service oriented and personally attentive. Diversifying position availability can help you find a variety of qualified candidates to run your retail business successfully.
Use Retail Recruiters For Best Results
There’s a lot to do to prepare for Q4 as a business owner. Sifting through high stacks of resumes and interviewing candidates who aren’t the right fit should not be on your growing to-do list. When you partner with a reputable recruitment agency that focuses on your unique business and the current staffing challenges you’re facing, you’ll discover access to a pool of qualified candidates and a pain-free screening process. Regardless of what you are looking for, a trusted talent acquisition partner already has the resources and expertise to conduct the entire process from job posting and interviews to the employee onboarding process. Your best bet to prepare for Q4 on time and on target is to partner with professional recruiters.
At Stillwater Human Capital, we offer a variety of recruitment services to help fill your vacancies with high-quality talent that has the skills you need. Our surge recruitment outsourcing (SRO) solutions provide you with specialized recruiters that work alongside your existing human resources infrastructure, adding our tools and human capital to provide cost-effective rapid employment growth. Sound interesting? Contact us to learn more.
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