MightyRecruiterWhen the holiday season starts to roll around, you may find that you need a larger workforce in order to compensate for the additional foot traffic. Some of your full-time employees may be willing to take on a few extra hours, but if your store gets particularly busy at the end of the year, then it will be in your best interest to hire a few extra employees to help you out. Although every city is different, there is bound to be plenty of local talent for seasonal hiring, and if you know where to look, you will be able to find hard working, dedicated employees.
Talk to Your Current Staff
One of the easiest ways to increase your workforce during the holidays is to simply ask your current workers if they know people who are interested in extra work. They may have friends or family members who are looking for seasonal work and can vouch for anyone who applies. A very good way to make this approach even more productive is to offer incentives. If an employee refers someone and that person stays on staff throughout the season, then you can reward your full-time employee with a little bonus.
Schools
Some of the best local talent for seasonal hiring you will be able to find is at schools in the city. If you own a retail store, then you may be willing to hire on high school students who are looking for some extra spending money. You should also visit any colleges in the area to see if students there are interested in work. There will likely be bulletin boards around campus where you can post job listings. You can also contact the front office to see if there are any other resources for reaching out to students.
Retirement Centers
While students can be a great untapped resource, make sure to consider the opposite end of the age spectrum. Individuals who have already retired are great local talent for seasonal hiring because they may be looking for opportunities to get out of the senior center and be a part of the community. One great advantage is that these people already have decades of work experience under their belts, so they may not require as much training as others. You can visit these centers in person to drop off applications.
Newspaper
When you are looking for seasonal workers, the newspaper is still one of the best resources out there. Many companies only post ads online, which is a perfectly fine approach to take, but you could be missing out on talented individuals who still browse through the ïClassifiedsï section looking for work. You could be missing out on some great local talent for seasonal hiring if you neglect this viable resource.
Religious Establishments
Even if your business is not particularly religious, you can still find some great resources by going to the various places of worship in your community and asking for help. Some places put out a weekly bulletin, and you can ask if you can place an ad in it. The leader of the institution may know someone who is looking for extra money during the holidays and will pass along any information you provide.
Update Your Website and Social Media Pages
If someone is looking for a seasonal job, then they may just go straight to the source and check out your website. Make sure everything is updated, and if you use Facebook, Twitter or any other social media pages, post that you are looking for seasonal work. Someone scrolling through their Facebook feed might just happen upon your listing and decide to apply. It is crucial to update the essential pages early enough in the year to where people are still looking for work. If you think you will need some extra hands on deck starting in November, then you should start posting listings in October or even September. This will give you ample time to take applications, interview qualified candidates and hire people you trust. There is no shortage of ways to reach out to the community to find local talent for seasonal hiring. With a little ingenuity, you could probably come up with a few more ways to find the best employees possible. If everything goes well during the holiday season, then you may decide you want to hire certain workers on as full-time employees. No matter what time of year you are hiring new people, Mighty Recruiter has numerous tips on how to hire effectively.