All companies have recruitment challenges, but seasonal recruiting is another species altogether. Making sure you have a foolproof approach in place is essential to being successful at it.

Recruitment for the season is not simple. It’s far from an exact science to try to predict how many people you’ll require for short periods of time. It will be easier to deal with the crowds if you do it right. Fail miserably and your superiors will be asking you why you’re either severely understaffed or significantly overbudget in the first place! There are many moving parts to this process, but we’ll simplify it for you so that you can find, choose, and recruit seasonal workers on-demand and within your budget.

Make a Strategic Budget

The obvious answer is that you’ll need to spend more money if you want to increase your recruitment efforts. To avoid going into the red with your ledger, follow these suggestions:

• Resources and money are required to conduct an interview. It takes time and money away from other duties every time you interview a candidate. You may be surprised how fast this adds up if your organization undertakes many phases in the interview process. The interview procedure for seasonal employees may be more efficient if it is shortened and accelerated.
• A great option to get temporary help during the off-season is to use online advertising that is specifically targeted to your audience. As the name indicates, companies only pay for advertisements when someone clicks on them, making PPC advertising an excellent option for enterprises. The competition for PPC advertising may be strong, depending on the kind of ad. Learn how to use Google Ads to create seasonal campaigns.
• When it comes to contacting applicants, print advertising might be a straightforward and cost-effective option. It’s possible to reach an audience that’s already an advocate for your business by putting up posters in shops or slipping flyers/leaflets into clients’ shopping bags.
• Recruiting technology expenditures (such as job advertisements, applicant tracking systems, video interview software, and so on) are undoubtedly one of the most expensive components of the recruitment process. First, do some study to figure out what’s most important and whether or if there are any cost-saving tech solutions. Consider the following example: McDonald’s has launched a Snapchat employment drive in Canada, enabling job searchers to apply for positions via the popular social media network.

Seasonal Recruiting Is All About Timing

Seasonal recruiting campaigns and advertising strategies should be planned for three to four months. To achieve your staffing needs, it’s critical to provide enough time to identify your target audience, develop a communications plan, and choose the appropriate media.

Time is everything, as they say. In the case of seasonal recruiting, this is particularly relevant. Plan ahead of time to ensure success. All of your requirements and costs will be anticipated, and you will be able to prepare appropriately. Here’s how you keep one step ahead of the competition:

• Organizations should begin preparing their seasonal recruiting campaign and advertising approach three to four months in advance, according to Jared Best, a SmartRecruiters Hiring Success analyst. If you have a large number of job openings, it is critical to plan and provide sufficient time to identify your target audience, message strategy, and media. Filling in the final 10-15% of seasonal recruiting with candidates and recommendations is great if you have 85-90% of your seasonal hiring accomplished with 30-45 days left.
• Recruit year-round by using field recruitment apps and lead collection forms on in-store kiosks to target customers and brand aficionados who may be interested in part-time employment opportunities. The best time to target students is during the vacations and summer months when seasonal employees are most in demand.
• Keep in contact with past colleagues by maintaining an alumni network. It is possible that they will be receptive to a part-time job or that they will know of suitable applicants who will be willing to suggest them.
• As early as possible and regularly, ask for references from your present staff. Employee recommendations were identified as the greatest source for recruits in terms of return on investment (ROI) by 82% of businesses.