Holiday Training Tips for Employers
The holiday season is officially upon us. As consumers, preparing for the season may look a little different. As business owners, we’re battening down the hatches and preparing for the holiday rush; however, the rush as we know it, has started early and it looks different. In a global study recently released by Salesforce Inc., 63% of consumers said the way they obtain goods and services “transformed” during 2020 and 57% said the same about the ways they engage with companies. 62% said this year changed how they conduct their lives offline and an equal percentage said it changed their online lives (Digital Commerce 360). As thankful as you are for the boost in revenue, you should also be aware of the importance to have a great customer service team ready to address customer needs. Whether you run a restaurant or a retail store, adding seasonal employees during the holidays is a must. With new employees comes new training. How can you quickly train temporary employees to handle themselves during peak working hours?
These 8 tips will give you the strategy you need to create a successful staff of seasonal employees.
- Hire earlier than later. The sooner you hire and train seasonal staff the more comfortable they will be when the rush hits your business. Allow seasonal employees time to shadow full-time employees before the peak season is in full swing.
- Stock up on answers. Survey full-time employees to create a list of FAQs. Treat your seasonal employees to a quick FAQ section during training. Prepare seasonal employees to accurately respond to the most asked questions during customer interactions.
- Think like your customers. Include role-play in your training sessions as an active way to represent your average customer base alongside the desired response from your employees. This more active model will help temporary staff internalize what a typical holiday interaction looks like and how they should handle it.
- Create Master Multi-taskers. When your business is at its busiest how should your employees respond? Share tips on appropriate multi-tasking actions within your organization. Provide ways to dealing with more than one customer at a time.
- Create a Buddy System. Pair seasonal employees with seasoned full-time employees. This allows your seasonal staff to bring low-level questions to an experienced team member, leaving managers free to deal with escalated issues.
- Rehire often. Whenever possible, recruit previous seasonal employees who performed well. This will cut down on training hours and build a second line of support for the Buddy System.
- Offer seasonal employees breathing time. Allow seasonal employees two short breaks instead of one long break. While year-round employees have built up the stamina needed to make it through a full shift, seasonal employees do not. Allowing them an extra break will be a better experience for seasonals and create a more pleasant experience for your customers.
- Motivate them. Seasonal employees understand that the job is temporary, but motivation will encourage them to take ownership of their employment within the organization. Employees who make the job their own will represent your brand at its best.
No matter how you choose to train and support your seasonal staff, At Your Service Consulting is available to share additional best practices and suggestions specifically for your business. Visit our website at www.atyourserviceconsultingonline.com for more information and to talk with us further about how we can help your organization
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