Engaging Energetic Employees
By Lerrina Collins

Many visit tourist areas. Convincing a few to stay and work, however, can be a big problem. Especially for the 'little guys.' How does a small employer compete? Where can they find quality employees season after season? The good news is, some small, seasonal, local employers have successfully recruited helpers who return year after year.

You need to start early. At least, five or six months in advance. With unlimited funds, one could afford to use the shotgun approach. A small, seasonal business can not afford this luxury. So, how does one know where to place that 'help wanted' add? Tactics which work for large businesses, rarely help the little guy. College placement boards and summer job fairs are not valid options. However, radio announcements, print mediums, and the World Wide Web offer possibilities. Still, choosing the best alternative can leave us feeling like we're swimming in a bowl of stew looking for a kernel of corn.

Radio advertisements face strong limitations. They only reach their listeners. Most potential employers need to paint with a broader stroke. Nowadays, newspaper adds appear in print and on the web providing broader circulation. However, their changing add content does not fair well against long-standing web pages. Thus, if a prospective employee Google's "Island Park Help Wanted", our local classifieds do not show up on the first three pages. Studies have shown, few people look past the third page. Still, they are a viable option. Because advertising rates can range from relatively reasonable to extravagant, employers need to do their homework.

In addition, newspaper advertisers make an assumption. They assume potential employees will be searching their area classifieds. Sometimes this is the case. However, since one cannot predict where their next 'perfect' employee will look, it behooves employers to also try other mediums.With the overwhelming expansion of the Internet, electronic mediums are quite competitive. They reach world-wide. Instead of connecting with hundreds, even thousands of prospective employees, the World Wide Web can reach millions. This, however, raises other issues. Not only does the web reach millions, it offers millions of advertising options. How does one differentiate between the worthwhile and the useless?

Certainly one qualifier is price. In addition, two simple tests help narrow the options. For example, try Goggling a key phrase. Although the search for 'Your Town Help Wanted' did not turn up any newspaper adds, it did turn up two job posting sites. Then Google something less specific like "seasonal jobs." This brings up a variety of listing opportunities. To narrow them further, choose and open a web page. Ask yourself a couple of questions:
1 - Does anyone else in a 100 mile radius advertise with them? If so, maybe they have had success.
2 - Where is their focus? Are they designed for seasonal employers in your industry or do they attract long-term employers?

This search will turn up about a dozen potential advertising options. Check out any that look interesting. Advertising prices will vary from a few hundred dollars to under a hundred dollars. A couple help-wanted sites which offer 'free' or 'link' listings are:

www.helpwanted.com Not only do they have a good page rank of 5 / 10, they also offer a free 30-day employer listing. They also allow employers to buy access to their resume data base. A recent perusal of their page only showed 5 tourism related listings in our general area.

www.jobopenings.net is worth checking out if you have a jobs page on your web site. They offer a free link to your company's job openings page. With a page rank of 4 / 10, they are also a viable advertising option. They charge $100 a month for up to two job postings. A recent review showed over 50 'local' listings.

There are three other employment markets worth mentioning. Although, slightly different in focus, all have been used successfully by local employers. The first market is work campers. This group is a significant force in the seasonal and temporary employment market. They bring their own lodging and are often highly skilled and dedicated. Two things to keep in mind. One, they are usually older people. They are often more reliable, but they may be limited physically. Clarify if your position requires regular heavy lifting. Two, because of their skill level, some are not interested in much manual labor. Don't let this put you off, just clearly state your needs. There are several sites dedicated to connecting work campers and prospective employers. One such site is Workers on Wheels. However, the primary site dedicated to work campers is:

www.workamper.com. Google ranks this page at 5 / 10. For $102 a year, an employer can post jobs and search their extensive application data base. The second market is caretakers. Although many seasonal employers would not consider listing here, most of their seekers list resort and ranch jobs in their employment interests. Unlike other prospective employees, these folks are usually looking for a place which includes housing in the benefits package. Even if you can not provide housing, it still might be worth giving them a try.

Again, there is more than one site dedicated to this employee market. Caretaker-jobs.com is a site which offers free advertising and allows potential employers to view their profile data base. Another excellent site is:

www.caretaker.org offers a well-designed site. Google ranks them 5 / 10. Both job seekers and employers are charged a fee. Job seekers get both an online and / or printed edition of their quarterly newsletter. Employers can post a job for $.65 per word. An add for a resort position posted last year garnered over 50 responses. Many were well qualified.

Finally, employers shouldn't overlook seasonal international workers. These employees often work harder, for less, than their American counterparts. It is understandable when you realize one 3 - 4 month US job can cover a year's worth of school expenses. In fact, one restaurant owner said she would only hire international students. However, you must provide housing.These are English-speaking workers who can interact with you and your customers. In addition, hiring international workers saves you money as they are exempt from Medicare, Social Security, and Unemployment taxes. Perhaps best of all, they can start in early May and work through September.

The site listed below, will make sure your workers come with the proper documentation. They will select resumes from interested and qualified applicants for you to review. Then they will take care of the paperwork to get your help here. This site and a couple others are worth checking out if you're interested in pursuing the international employee market.

www.seasonalstaff.org is an international employee source. They provide servers, dishwashers, store clerks, movers, housekeepers, and ride operators.

Once the resumes start arriving, employers need to have a package to reel them in not turn them away. Workamper.com suggests a minimum of $7 to $12 an hour. Remember, RV hook-ups for work campers, housing for caretakers or international applicants, and / or food allowances can all be non-taxable additions to your total package.

Finally, if our goal is to keep those employees, or at least have them return, we need to make 'coming back' attractive. Make their working experience a good one. Offer reasonable benefits, positive working conditions, and, maybe even a return bonus.Certainly, finding and keeping good seasonal employees can be a challenge. It does not have to be an insurmountable one!

Lerrina Collins lives with her husband and family in Montana's wild and pristine Centennial Valley. She and her family own and operate a small Western Montana Lodge. You have permission to reprint what you have just read. Use it in your ezine, at your website, or in your newsletter. The only requirement is that you include the following footer: "Engaging Energetic Employees by Lerrina Collins. Visit http://www.elklakeresortmontana.com for more original content like this."

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