Your Seasonal Staff Is the Secret to Success During Peak. Here's How to Get it Right.

Editor’s note: Kit Campoy is a retail expert and author with two decades of field experience. Connect with her on LinkedIn.

With the last weeks of this sweltering summer stretched out before us, we turn our attention to focus on fall. Lemonade will soon be replaced with apple cider. Football games will begin, and the warm summer air will turn brisk early in the morning.

"Can you believe it?" our neighbors will ask. "How is it almost Thanksgiving?" But we know. We've been thinking about the holiday season, our peak season, all year.

We are retailers.

We've planned and allocated the merchandise, and the wheels have already started to turn. Marketing is finalizing our messages, and our tech teams are ensuring everything is working optimally. Store leaders are receiving the store plans and will soon start to map out their hiring goals.

My expert advice? Don't discredit your seasonal hires or think their position is unimportant because they are a temporary hire.

Don't be this person: "Well, I mean, they're just seasonal hires. They won't be here that long."

As a tenured store leader, I heard that sentiment a lot from new leaders. After 24 years, five companies, and hundreds of new hires, I can tell you that whom you hire really matters.

It matters, whether they're employed at your store for four weeks or four years. One bad hire can wreck your team's morale and productivity in a hurry.

When you get hiring right, your team gets an energy boost, your customers get a trusted advisor, and you may even get a fantastic employee who works with you for years.

I used to have a fantastic co-manager in charge of hiring. Every peak season, she got a burst of enthusiasm. "I love new people!" she'd exclaim. She understood how integral seasonal hires were to the business's success.

Hiring seasonal sales staff is one of the last pieces of the peak holiday puzzle, but it is vital. Without the influx of help, store teams could not handle the peak season.

Read on to learn how to get your holiday hiring right.

Get Planning

Companies worldwide are planning a dazzling holiday season. As the merchandise, promotions, and marketing take shape, turn your attention to the store associates.

Plan incentives and store contests now. Make it fun, light, and engaging. Ensure the entire process, from interviews to the first day on the floor, is carefully crafted and well thought out. Remember, applicants are customers too. Ensure they're treated with respect and transparency throughout their time with you. Even people who aren't hired should leave the experience thinking, "Wow, that company is really cool."

Each store will have its own tailored roadmap regarding how many people to hire and when, but the energy and dedication to associate experience should be consistent throughout the company.

In my last store, I had to hire 25 seasonal salespeople in five weeks to prepare for holiday.

Here are a few of my best practices:

Get a partner

Store leaders need help to do this; it's impossible to go at it alone. Everyone must partner with another leader on the team. Searching through digital applications, setting up interviews, onboarding people, and getting all their paperwork accurate is a ton of work. Once your teammate is established, ensure they are privy to all the necessary information so you can remain in lockstep for the rest of the year.

Map it out

How many people do you need to hire? By when? Do you have any rehires? When do you need to onboard your first group? Based on that, when do you need to begin interviewing?

Did I lose you? No? Good! Let's keep going.

We would begin interviewing right after Halloween. Our managers' office had a whiteboard that listed how many people we needed to hire each week.

That whiteboard was our lifeline. Better yet, all the managers could see it and keep up with where we were in the hiring process. We could also inform our staff, announcing, "We need to hire five more people; tell your friends!"

Onboarding

Orientation day should be fun! It's exciting to start something new. We made packets for our seasonal staff; name tags, pens, candy, and freebie company giveaways were favorite inclusions. There's so much to go over during this step, and it can be overwhelming, so encourage questions and slow down when necessary.

Give the new team members a tour of the store. Have them practice their locker combinations, and show them how the walkie-talkies work. Also let them know whom they can go to for help. Introduce them to any other leaders in the store that day.

Give them their first shifts and a high-five.

Create a team vibe

Creating a cohesive team atmosphere can be challenging when you have a large group of people. Ensure core team members introduce themselves to newer people. Dedicate a bulletin board for shoutouts, and let people have fun celebrating wins.

We turned one of the backroom hallways into a photo wall. Each person brought their favorite photo, and we put their name and title underneath it. The photo wall is a great way to help make sure everyone knows each other, even if they've never met.

Ensuring that everyone is included and treated with respect increases the chances that they'll want to return for the next season.

How Seasonal Hires Help Your Business

Seasonal staff bring a new energy and buzz to the store experience. They're excited about the job, the company, and the discount. They're eager to do well and meet the team. Leaders must nurture this positive aura. Seasonal people help out in so many ways.

They spread that excitement to the customer shopping experience, often recommending their favorite items. They have the patience and time to shop and personally attend to customers' needs. They're not bogged down by operational strategies; their sole focus is on the customer.

Once they've learned the store's layout and are equipped with product knowledge, they can increase the average dollar amount and units per transaction. Sometimes that’s as simple as asking a shopper — who do you need a gift for that you have not considered yet? A teacher or babysitter, perhaps?

When your seasonal sales team is in it to win it, they can boost sales and team morale and make a great addition to your core team after the peak season. Even if they don't stay on part time, invite them to work the following season.

Keep Them Coming Back

In addition to creating a team vibe in the store, we'd communicate with our seasonal hires at every turn.

The leadership team would tell them:

• When their first day is.
• How to access information.
• When the season ends.

On their orientation date, they should know when their last day will be. Be very clear about this. If you have a possible part-time position after the season ends, be clear about that too. Let the seasonal staff know there may be the opportunity to come on as a part-time salesperson after the season ends, and tell them what you're looking for.

At the end of every season, our leadership team delivered letters to the seasonal team thanking them for their hard work. A few letters would be an offer to stay in a part-time role. Everyone must get their letters on the same day.

Information that dribbles out is misinformation. Send it out all at once. Ongoing, consistent communication is crucial to success.

"Hooray, new people!"

Peak season hiring is fun. Is it totally bonkers and stressful? Yes. Does it take black-belt-level planning skills? Absolutely.

This year, there's no need to get distracted; keep your focus. Get a partner, and map out your hiring goals. Communicate with the whole team, and keep everyone on track. Hire enthusiastic people, and make their onboarding process a party. Treat them with honesty, integrity, and respect, and keep them coming back each season.

There's no doubt that seasonal sales associates are the hosts of the peak season party.

Hooray, it's peak season! Let's do this thing!