Aug 13 2021
Earlier this month we co-hosted a webinar with Checkr on how to hire retail workers more efficiently featuring Scott Jennings, Director of Industry Strategy at Checkr, Sarah Wilson, Chief People Officer at ROKT, Patricia Vekich Waldron, Contributing Editor at RetailWire and Founder and CEO of Vision First, and our very own Head of Customer Success and Support, Nico Roberts. One of the major themes of this panel was the importance of creating a positive employer brand to attract prospective retail employees.
Check out three major strategies retail businesses can implement to improve their employer brand.
Align Your Employer Brand with Your Consumer Brand
When your candidates are also your customers this can make for a tricky situation. The key to overcoming this challenge is engaging your Marketing team to build an employer brand that perfectly complements your company’s consumer brand. Paying close attention to how both of these forms of branding interplay with each other will help ensure that even if a candidate is rejected from a retail role they will still continue to patronize your stores.
According to Sarah Wilson, when it comes to retail hiring the best-case scenario is that a candidate walks out of the store with a job, the worst-case scenario should be that they walk out of the store with a bag of clothes. Maintaining brand loyalty from rejected candidates can be tricky but is not entirely impossible.
Engage with Candidates Throughout the Hiring Process
One of the major aspects of employer branding is building a positive candidate experience once a job seeker has chosen to apply with your retail brand. Nico Roberts suggests asking yourself what kind of experience your candidates will have within the first 20 seconds, two minutes, and two hours of applying with your company.
During these early stages in the recruitment process, it’s important to create a relationship with candidates built on consistent communication. You should of course notify candidates of when you receive their application but should also consider sending them resources to prepare for their interview. Helping candidates put their best foot forward will not only keep them engaged with the process but will help you build an even stronger applicant pool.
Build an Employee Referral Program
Employee referral programs are not only an easy way to build out your talent pool but also a good test of how your current employees perceive your company. Make it as easy as possible for your retail employees to refer others to work at your stores by creating QR codes and Text to Apply numbers. If employees don’t refer people to work at your company it’s a good sign that something is amiss with your employer branding and company culture.
If your employees are having a good experience working at your company they will be your greatest influencers and ambassadors when it comes to attracting qualified talent. If they choose not to take advantage of your referral program it’s time to take a closer look at your company culture and employer branding to make positive changes that will improve your overall employee experience.
Employer branding is a key part of any successful talent acquisition program. But, when it comes to turning customers into qualified candidates a positive employer brand is a must-have. If you’re interested in learning more about how to build a great employer brand for your retail business be sure to watch the instant replay of our webinar, Strategies for Hiring More Efficiently in Retail, today!
