Strengthening the bond between the employees and the organization is essential in allowing companies to achieve their goals faster. Strengthening these bonds is only possible through effective internal communication! If so, how effective can conventional in-house communication, commonly conducted by mail traffic, be for employees in the retail sector?

Mail and similar communication channels are still among the most widely used communication tools by companies with a large number of employees engaged in desk jobs. Sharing updates about the company, adopting decisions about new goals and expectations and taking actions to these ends can thus be ensured up to a point in lines of work with a fixed working arrangement.

However, the examination of in-house communication options available in the retail sector reveals a completely different outlook. Since most of the employees in the sector work in the field – i.e. in the store – devices such as computers etc. are used less often. This means that the communication between the employees and the company is very limited. This may have a negative effect on the employees feeling of belonging and morale/motivation.

Ensuring a high level of motivation for employees in the retail sector is of vital importance for companies for purposes of achieving sustainable success. To be able to do this, one of the most important considerations is to build a strong internal communication network!

1. What are the Advantages of Increasing Employee Satisfaction in the Retail Sector?

A Gallup survey conducted in 30 countries and featuring 23 thousand 910 organizations and 17 million employees demonstrated that customer-oriented approach, efficiency and profitability are higher by 12 percent, 18 percent and 12 percent, respectively, in companies with a high level of employee satisfaction. The same survey also found that companies with lower employee satisfaction and loyalty have 31 to 51 percent employee turnover, and experience stock losses of 51 percent as well as a higher occupational accident rate of 62 percent.

It is only natural that strengthening the bonds between employees and the company leads to a strength of purpose. This makes it possible for the employees to internalize the company’s goals and thus to enhance their performance and motivation to succeed. In fact, this even contributes to reducing the likelihood of accidents by ensuring that the employees are more focused on their work throughout the working hours.

2. How Does the Rate of Employee Circulation Impact the Retail Sector?

The Gallup survey revealed that productivity decreases and workforce circulation rises in companies lacking employee satisfaction and loyalty, and that this causes such companies to suffer from frequent talent losses. And retail is one of the sectors that are impacted the most from talent loss. It can be much more challenging to create and retain a team of knowledgeable employees in the retail sector where employees tend to switch jobs often.

3. To What Extent Do Experienced Employees Impact Customer Satisfaction?

Despite the fact that these can sometimes be merely arbitrary trips, the majority of visits to stores are made in order to meet either the existing or potential needs. Accordingly, many consumers feel the need to learn about all the features of the products they are scrutinizing in order to be convinced to buy. Therefore, retail companies must have customer representatives in their employ to deal with the buyers and to provide them with information from many perspectives.

According to a survey conducted with 419 participants in the retail sector in Istanbul, the most important factors that affect the satisfaction of customers as well as their loyalty to the store are as follows:

• Employees having sufficient knowledge and experience about the products,
• Employees being enthusiastic and positive about assisting the customers,
• Employees paying close attention to customers and making them feel valued,
• Employees being capable of empathizing with the customers…

These responses serve to demonstrate that the interested attitude and experience of employees play a very important role in turning store visitors into loyal customers. So, how can the need for qualified and willing employees in the retail sector be related to in-house communication? Let us see!

4. Is it Possible to Create an Ideal Employee Profile in the Retail Sector via In-House Communication?

All new recruits in the retail sector need to become well-versed in the organization, the store and the products sold in the fastest manner possible. However, as the sectorial conditions do not lend to long orientation periods, this may become a major predicament for companies. The need for in-house applications that enable the full implementation of training, organization and orientation activities cannot be ignored from that point on. In fact, the orientation process for the employees can be accelerated by a huge margin thanks to such innovative applications.

In-house social networks enable employees to quickly become aware of what’s going on in the company and the store while handling their customers.

For instance, when a new product is introduced in their own department, the employees in a store can easily access the related content via the application and thus be in the know. Such a convenience allows employees to feel more knowledgeable and professional before long. These capabilities are also positively reflected in the level of employee satisfaction as they make the work easier.

5. What About the Expectations of Retail Sector Employees From Their Companies?

A company aiming for success must not only offer opportunities to its employees to meet the company’s own expectations but also take heed of its employees’ expectations! A survey of employee satisfaction in the retail sector demonstrates that communication and a sense of belonging comprise one of the most important factors affecting the level of employee satisfaction. According to the same survey, ‘senior management’s support’ is one of the most important considerations in this respect.

An employer or manager paying attention to the employees’ ideas and wishes has a great impact on employee commitment. The vast majority of employees indicate that being able to access the senior management easily at any time tends to create a sense of trust in the company. There can be no doubt that the best way of achieving this is to have an internal communication network that allows 360-degree interaction.

Friendly relations among the employees do not only increase the employees’ satisfaction about the working environment but also reinforce their sense of belonging to the company. One of the major factors that strengthen friendly relations is allowing employees to easily communicate during working hours as well as the rest of the day.

6. What are the Effects of in-House Social Media Applications on Employees?

According to the Global Workplace 2017 report conducted in 155 countries, only 15 percent of employees have their company’s goals occupying their minds. In-house social media applications, on the other hand, offer a more interactive, relational and wealthy multimedia environment compared to traditional methods in terms of business. Thus employees can concern themselves with the company’s goals for longer periods.

As one might expect, the fact that the working arrangements in the retail sector are scattered and that there is a lack of communication between the senior management and the employees affects the corporate culture negatively. Uniting communication methods are essential for an organization that walks together with its employees on the road to success, i.e. an organization that has integrated within itself.

The fact that in-house social media allows employees and managers to freely share their ideas also increases the employees’ interest in and loyalty to the company.

7. Discover the Enjoyable and Easy Way of In-House Communication!

With the mobile in-house communication application intouch, you can easily carry out all in-house communications on a smart phone. The application enables employees to easily share their ideas and any issues they experience during the day with their managers and colleagues, as well as to follow any developments related to their roles and areas of interest.

• You can share the entire training and informational content supporting sales with either the staff in general or only with some specific teams.
• You can make all your internal announcements and posts public to allow access to all employees or private only for some employees.
• You can share in-house activity programs with all employees or only with certain groups; you can even monitor the awareness and participation of employees.
• You can contact all users directly by making use of the direct messaging feature.
• Thanks to public or private feedback, you can easily carry out performance review processes.
• By granting your colleagues badges, you can help them discover themselves further from a personal and professional perspective.
• You can adapt all of the application’s features to your company’s operation and culture by setting them in line with your organization’s preferences and needs.

Thanks to the advantages offered by intouch, you can always act in harmony with your colleagues without any gap in communication!

References:

• ‘‘Employee satisfaction and motivation of retail store employees’’, Marketing and Management of Innovations, 2022
• ‘‘Examining the effects of internal social media usage on employee engagement’’, Public Relations Review, 2020
• ‘‘The Impact of Enterprise Social Media Identity on Job Performance and Job Satisfaction’’, 24th Americas Conference on Information Systems, 2018