Retail is one of the most challenging industries for recruiters. Whether filling seasonal or long-term roles, your hiring process must be fast, efficient, and engaging. This is especially important when you consider that job seekers who apply for retail roles are exploring multiple opportunities—and will drop off or “ghost” the moment they have a poor experience. Simply put, retail candidates won’t tolerate delays, miscommunication, or complicated processes.
Taking steps to prevent candidate drop-off is essential for keeping retail stores properly staffed and accomplishing a high-volume hiring strategy. By implementing the right tactics, retail recruiters can minimize drop-off and hire and retain the right talent.
The first step in reducing candidate drop-off is understanding what typically causes it. In retail recruiting, candidates disengage for specific reasons depending on where they are in the hiring process. Let’s explore the most common drop-off points and what drives candidates to exit the hiring process at each stage.
Your job posting and career site are the first things potential candidates encounter. If these aren’t clear and engaging, they may never end up applying (thus dropping off in the hiring process before ever entering in the first place). Retail candidates—especially those seeking hourly or seasonal positions—need concise and informative job descriptions and employer branding content that outlines role responsibilities, compensation, and career growth opportunities.
Retail candidates want to know what will be expected of them, when they’ll be scheduled to work, and what they’ll be paid. If job descriptions are too vague or omit these important details, they’ll be hesitant to apply.
Given that the majority of retail candidates are Gen Zers, it’s critical to have a modern and mobile-accessbile career site. If candidates cannot find relevant jobs and apply via their phone, they’ll leave your site and continue their job search.
Candidates often check employer review sites like Glassdoor and search social media before applying. If they see negative feedback about the hiring process or work environment, they may decide not to apply.
The application stage is a major drop-off point in retail recruiting. Candidates, particularly those applying for entry-level or hourly positions, expect an easy and straightforward application process. If the application is too long or difficult to navigate, they are likely to abandon it midway through.
Long forms asking for excessive details frustrate candidates. Applications should be simple and ask only for the most essential information to keep candidates engaged. Always avoid asking for information that is readily available on the candidate’s resume.
Again, retail candidates are applying from their phones. If the application process isn’t mobile-friendly, most candidates won’t move over to their computer—they just won’t apply at all.
Lapses in communication are one of the most common reasons candidates lose interest in a job opportunity. Most retail candidates are eager to start their next job ASAP and delays in responses or failing to quickly schedule an interview can result in them accepting an offer elsewhere.
If a candidate stops hearing from a recruiter, they’re going to assume they are no longer being considered and move on. Consistent, timely communication is key to keeping candidates engaged and preventing drop-off.
Scheduling an interview often causes delays in the hiring process. If candidates are constantly going back and forth with the recruiting team to set a date and time, they may drop off in favor of opportunities with more efficient processes.
Retail candidates expect a streamlined and efficient interview process. As we’ve mentioned, they are eager to start working, so if you ask them to participate in too many interviews (or provide a poor in-person interview experience) they’ll get frustrated and drop off.
For hourly retail roles, multiple interviews are often unnecessary. If the candidate meets the role requirements, can work the required shifts, and has a positive attitude, the interview team should feel comfortable hiring them. The more times you ask a candidate to come in for an interview, the more likely they are to no-show the next one.
If the interview is poorly managed or focuses on irrelevant questions, candidates may feel their time is being wasted. Interviews should be concise and focus on assessing the candidate’s fit for the role.
Even after accepting an offer and committing to join your team, candidates may still drop off—or no show on day one—if they aren’t properly engaged as their start date approaches. This is especially common in retail hiring, where candidates are applying for multiple jobs and may be considering different offers.
Once a candidate accepts an offer, consistent communication is crucial to keep them engaged until their start date. Simply following up with basic information like what to wear, when to arrive, and what to expect on their start date goes a long way in reaffirming their commitment to your company.
If you wait until the new hire’s start date to kick off the onboarding process, they may lose enthusiasm for their new job. Consider sending them onboarding materials like the employee handbook and I-9 and W-4 forms before day one.
Now that you know where and why candidate drop-off tends to occur, it’s time to review your recruiting process. Here are some ways you can pinpoint what exactly is leading your candidates to exit the hiring process.
Your recruiting software holds quantifiable insights that can help you understand candidate behavior and identify inefficiencies in your recruiting process. Collecting data from your Application Tracking System (ATS) and/or your Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) platform will reveal exactly where drop-off is occurring. Take some time to look at metrics like application completion rates, interview no-show rates, and offer acceptance rates, and consider the underlying causes for the data you’re unpleased with.
There is no better way to understand how candidates view your recruiting process than to ask them. Survey candidates—including those you hired, those you didn’t hire, and even those who dropped off—to understand how they view your employer brand, the application process, and the interview experience. This direct feedback will give you a clearer picture of where improvements are needed.
If you work as a recruiter for a major retailer, you likely survey thousands of candidates across multiple locations. While having a large sample size is ideal, analyzing and understanding all these survey responses requires a lot of work.
The good news is that AI can instantly extract insightful takeaways and trends from a large set of survey data. Simply upload your survey results and get a list of action items that will help you improve the candidate experience.
Run A/B tests on different aspects of your hiring process to learn what does and doesn’t resonate with candidates. For example, try shortening your application form or testing different communication methods (e.g., email vs. text) and messaging within those channels. This allows you to fine-tune your process and refine your candidate engagement strategy.
Generative AI can also instantly create candidate messaging content for A/B tests. It’s capable of matching your company’s tone, style, and brand, ensuring that any message a candidate receives has a consistent feel to it.
AI will also craft messaging content that is optimized for deliverability and responses. This helps you test quality messages that capture candidates’ attention.
Recruiters are often the first to notice when candidates are disengaging and likely have a hunch as to why. Regularly meet with your recruiting team to gain their perspectives on what is and isn’t working and adjust your process accordingly.
These meetings also provide the opportunity to collect different hypotheses on what is causing candidate drop-off. You can then validate these claims using recruiting analytics or ask about them in candidate surveys.
Keep an eye on employer review sites like Glassdoor and social media as a whole. Negative dialogue about your hiring process will signal where candidates are becoming frustrated. Addressing these issues will improve candidate engagement and reduce drop-off—all while elevating your company’s employer brand.
Modern recruiting requires leveraging the right technology, particularly in high-volume retail recruiting. AI and automation enable recruiting teams to accelerate the hiring process and provide personalized candidate experiences at scale—drastically reducing candidate drop-off.
Here are some of the core features included in a Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) platform that retail recruiters can take advantage of to drive a successful hiring process.
A CRM helps you attract candidates directly at your different retail locations by enabling them to apply for jobs on the spot. Using AI and mobile-friendly features, you can expand your hiring funnel and simplify the application process for candidates.
A CRM allows you to automate key touchpoints in the hiring process. This ensures every candidate under consideration receives timely updates and remains engaged throughout their journey.
In retail recruiting, speed-to-hire is crucial. A CRM helps automate time-consuming tasks like interview scheduling and applicant screening, streamlining the hiring process and keeping top candidates engaged.
Employee referrals are a top source of new hires. A CRM includes numerous employee referral features, making it easy for employees to recommend a candidate and for recruiters to manage and prioritize referrals.
A sleek, mobile-optimized career site is key to attracting top talent and showcasing what makes your company a great place to work. A CRM allows you to create a user-friendly site that enhances both the candidate and recruiter experience.
As we covered in the previous section, starting the onboarding process before a new hire’s start date helps prevent late-stage drop-off. A CRM can automate onboarding tasks for every new hire, maintaining engagement between the conclusion of the hiring process and the start of employment.
In retail recruiting, keeping candidates engaged throughout the entire hiring process is critical to reducing drop-off and filling roles quickly. By leveraging technology like a CRM, you can automate communication, personalize interactions, and streamline the end-to-end hiring process—ensuring that every store is always fully staffed with great people.
