Every retailer wants the cream of the talent crop, but it’s not always an easy task to find them.
You need a strong online presence, a clear profile of the ideal candidate and a smart way of interacting with applicants in order to identify the superstars.
Here’s our guide to creating an effective recruitment strategy!
1. Establish a digital presence
With the majority of retail employees being younger workers, you can be sure they will want to interact with you online.
Make your website eye-catching with bold images and interesting blogs, and create social media channels which invite genuine engagement.
Work on creating an appealing LinkedIn company profile, and advertise your retail jobs via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. This is where job seekers increasingly expect to find exciting roles, so make it easy for them to apply.
2. Understand what makes an ideal candidate
Rather than relying on luck or gut feeling, build a detailed profile of your perfect retail candidate and try to find the best possible match.
Brainstorm with colleagues to come up with the key attributes you hope to find in your applicants, including skills, qualifications, work experience and behavioural traits.
Consider psychometric testing to identify top performers and assess candidates against specific benchmarks.
3. Have real interview conversations
Don’t just ask the same old questions during interview. Take the time to draw up interesting and targeted questions aimed at drawing out the true personality and feelings of each candidate.
Each time the candidate responds during interview, ask another leading question to help them expand their points. This way it becomes a real discussion, rather than just stilted responses to a limited set of questions.
When candidates ask their own questions, you can work out what the queries tell you about their thought processes, attitudes and motivations. You have a chance to engage in a conversation if you want to know more.
4. Interact with canditates on the sales floor
Don’t just sit in a chair and talk – take each candidate on a tour, assessing how they engage with workers and customers along the way.
This can tell you infinitely more about an applicant’s capacity to interact with customers, respond to colleagues and feel at ease working in a busy and sometimes stressful retail environment than talking alone.
5. Be honest about job requirements
If long hours, weekend rosters and phenomenal multi-tasking are required, be upfront about this from the start.
This can be a real test of the energy, endurance and motivation of your candidates.
Pretenders will fall away, while the superstars display their true staying power. These are the candidates who will offer the perfect combination of skill, experience and grit.
6. Use a specialist recruitment agency
If finding the perfect candidate eludes you, consider using a retail recruitment agency with years of experience in identifying and hiring top retail performers.
With the right preparation, you’re on track to finding the cream of the crop.
Nicola Livingstone – Frontline Retail
