Bottom Line Up Front: Attracting top talent is hard. Employee Welcome Kits make it easier. We break down what they are, how to pitch them, & why they’re the strategy you — and your customers — shouldn’t be sleeping on in 2021.
For new hires, there’s always a transition period where they feel disconnected. Unsure. Awkward.
Now multiply that by one hundred for new hires emerging at the tail end of the pandemic. Not only are they dealing with an entirely new office environment and team of colleagues, but they’re also coping with an entirely new world — just like the rest of us.
Their day-to-day isn’t just changing from 9-5. It’s changing from all sides, at all times. And that means anything your customers can do to alleviate the shock, minimize the disconnectedness, and invite them in with open arms is a good thing.
And not just on the human level either. The research shows that when there’s a positive employer brand — when a workplace has a reputation for caring about its staff — there are higher levels of cooperation and productivity.
So? Employee welcome kits are the key to ensuring that that positive employer brand — that positive dynamic between workplace and new hire — exists from day 1. Here’s how to motivate your customers to leverage that power.
The Breakdown
Employee welcome kits are the first physical item a company gives its new hires. That means they should reflect everything salient about the company: its values, its mission statement — and more generally, its identity.
If your customer is a local non-profit with a smaller budget, their welcome kit could include a branded t-shirt and water bottle.
If your customer is an accounting firm with a moderate budget, their welcome kit could include a branded hoodie, notebook, and calculator. If your customer is an international candy bar manufacturer with a sky-high budget, their welcome kit could include a branded thermos, travel pillow, and portable cutlery set.
Every customer you work with is different. They have different needs, hiring rates, and budgets — but most importantly, they have different identities. So, as you begin your pitch, make sure that they know these welcome swag boxes are — and should be — completely customizable. Whatever branded apparel and promo products they want to give their new employees, they can.
And it’s exactly that uniqueness that will have the strongest effect.
Because beyond just wowing their already-hired new hires with a strong dose of brand identity, these employee welcome kits are actually working to wow a different subset of eyes too. Coming out of the pandemic, the job market is crowded — from the company side. Employers are fighting to get the attention of their dream workers and to do that, they need to differentiate themselves from all of the other businesses looking to hire.
Why should their ideal prospects pay attention to them? What can they offer that the bigger tech company, the closer accounting firm, or the nonprofit with more Instagram followers can’t?
For many workers looking to find their next “˜right fit,’ the answer comes down to community. What sort of community is your customer’s workplace fostering — is it one that champions its people and prioritizes bringing them together, or is it one that evokes an “˜everyone-for-themselves’ mentality?
If they see other new hires receiving those employee welcome kits — in real life or on social media — it sends a message. A message that the workplace cares.
Real-world social media swag kit unboxing example
Yesterday I received my new hire swag from Twitter and emotions kicked in. I’m beyond excited to be working at one of my dream tech companies. My team is amazing and the culture is authentic. However, I never forget the journey that it took to get here.
Noel Claudio, Strategy & Operations @ Twitter View original Linkedin Post here.
So, while employee welcome kits might seem like an innocuous gesture at first — do they really need another branded t-shirt? — the truth is, that innocuous gesture has the power to pull the people your customers want in. Because it tells the story of their company: what they stand for, who they want to be. And because it tells the story of their community.
For employers, there’s nothing more important than finding the right people. But finding them is only half the battle. Employee welcome kits empower your customers to finish the process, finding their ideal employees and hooking them in a way that sticks. When you pitch it like that, they won’t be able to say no.
Mind the Details
Now that they’re hooked on the idea and brainstorming what swag to offer, remind your customers not to overlook the finishing touches. The details. The packaging. In other words? The box matters.
Just like the welcome kit is the first authentic piece of the company that the new hires will see, the box it comes in is what’s responsible for making that very first impression. It has the power to generate excitement — or a Tweet! — but it can also look tired. Generic. The same old cardboard box.
Which is why you should be pitching the importance of the unboxing experience to every prospect that’s looking to hire. Whether it’s a custom branded box, branded tissue paper, or bold stickers — or partnering with vendors that align with their values, like the 100% eco-friendly packaging company Noissue — your customers’ brand identity has the opportunity to shine through.
Encourage them to take it. To show their new hires exactly who they are, to create unique and unforgettable unboxing experiences, and to ultimately spread their branding to new eyes. (Their new hires do have networks of their own, after all.)
No matter how you pitch it, make sure your customers know they have the power to produce welcome kits that are as unique, top to bottom, as they are.
Pitch With Care
The best way to convince your customers that a welcome kit isn’t just a meaningless box of swag, but something that sends a genuine, important, and impactful message, is by showing them.
Have samples available. Use them in your proposal presentations — virtual or otherwise — and in your product photography.
Better yet, make welcome kits for your new hires and use those as your samples. When your customers believe you believe in what you’re selling, they’ll be all the more inclined to listen.
If you’re still looking for a creative way to sell them — try giving them a welcome kit. A box of branded swag that thanks them for being a new client, while showing them who you are as a company. And if this tactic motivates them to buy in, it might just motivate them to imitate your strategy and send swag boxes of their own to their first-time customers too. That’ll give you a double-dose of selling power for the same offering — creating exponentially more sales opportunities as a result.
The options are, as you can see, truly limitless. You don’t have to partake in all of them — but you should capitalize on the opportunity by choosing the one that speaks loudest to you.
Just like the offering you’re selling, the pitch is, and should be, customizable. Prove why you’re the expert for the job — why you’re the decorator they should be eager to work with — and then let employee welcome kits serve as your most unexpected profitability boost in post-Covid times.
The Wrap Up
For your customers, the welcome kit is a way to increase unity and cement brand identity. With their new hires, with their potential new hires, and with all of the people who might see their swag in passing as a result of their endeavor.
For you, the welcome kit is a way to get your foot in the door. Once you’ve shown them how useful and how meaningful branded apparel and promo products are, you’ll have opened up a new channel for more business. This is your post-Covid entry point, and once you’ve proven yourself, you’ll be on your way to bigger sales.
For companies, organizations, and institutions, there’s always a need for branded merch. But that’s even more true today, after our world’s been disconnected — and stripped of our normal — for so long. Your capabilities mean that you can reinstate connectedness, that you can reinstate community, and that you can help your customers make themselves known amid a sea of other businesses trying to do the same thing.
Employee welcome kits are your ticket to doing it. Get in there, impress their new hires, and watch as their organization flourishes. Because when it does, and when they have new merch needs, they’ll think of you.
And here’s where we give you our final tip for ensuring the success of your pitch: with InkSoft’s Online Proposals system, you can present your employee welcome kits virtually, effectively, and in-depth. No more winding phone calls or rigid in-person sales presentations; just your products, and your capabilities, speaking for themselves. Get the full picture here.
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