As a marketing manager, I have the pleasure of answering all of the emails that come through Apollo Retail’s website. 90% of the time, I’m answering those interested in a retail merchandising job with us. I get a broad spectrum of contact form submissions that range from very good to very bad, so I thought it would be helpful to point out the Do’s and Don’ts of submitting an employment inquiry if you’re looking to work in retail merchandising or do assembly work for us.
First off, “Do” leave an actual message on the form. I really love it when I get a message with the subject line “job”, but then there’s no actual message in the body of the email. This honestly makes me think of someone walking into my office and just blurting out “Job!” and standing there after in silence. It also makes me think that if this person can’t put forth the effort to add four more simple words to actually form a complete sentence, they certainly won’t put forth any effort for the retail merchandising job and that’s not the type of people we want merchandising or assembling for us. So, please do leave an actual message when you're looking to get hired, preferably with a nice greeting and your work experience – especially as it relates to retail. And if you really want to look impressive, form nice complete sentences with proper punctuation and capitalization. For instance, “how do I apply i want to work for you guys” seems indolent. Try, "Hello! I saw your website and would love the opportunity to work for you. I have 4 years of experience in retail merchandising!"
Which brings me to my second topic, “Do” give your retail merchandising experience. I don’t know which sourcing manager to pass you on to if you don’t give me any background on yourself. And most likely, you’ll get a canned email response from me which says to apply online. We have several divisions at this company: Merchandising, Installation, Assembly, the list goes on. I will need specific retail experience information from you. Also, don’t just email us saying “Resume available upon request” with absolutely no added retail experience in the body of the email. If you do this at least say, “Hello! Worked for Walmart and did some retail merchandising at the store-level for 10 years! Resume avail upon request.” Chances are if you have a good amount of experience with a retailer, you will be passed on to our Director of sourcing, Gail Olson, who will connect you to one of our sourcing managers.
Speaking of email, if I didn’t require names and email addresses on our submission form I can guarantee you over half of these types of submissions would result in no contact information. Do send a good contact phone number if you’d like a recruiter to reach you right away. In addition, make sure your email address is somewhat professional. MaryJane420@hotmail.com ? Really? HR probably won’t bother sending you to get drug tested if you ask me. And emails like sexybaby69@yahoo.com should probably be used never.
Finally, one of the best inquiries I received was the following:
Good afternoon! I formerly worked for what once was Impact Resource Group, for 13 years, doing work in Kmart, Target, Staples, Office max, Office depot, and in-homes. I saw a post for a position, I would like to talk to the manager over this area before I apply. You can email me or call me at [number]. Thanks so much!
This is not a very long submission, but it was nice and thought out with proper contact info! I passed this one on immediately. He had the retail merchandising experience, wrote an actual message, left a phone number, and signed off.
Finally, you need to tell us where you live. Include the town, state, and let us know how far you’re willing to travel. Also, if you’re in a small town we’ve probably never heard of it. Help us identify where you’re located with more information such as, “I live in Dover, FL, a suburb 40 mins outside of Tampa.” Believe it or not, this will help speed up our connection to you. If we know we need a retail merchandiser or an assembler in that area, you’ll be first on our list to call.
So, if you want to get your contact information passed on to one of our retail merchandising recruiters, remember to do the following four things:
1. Write an actual message in the body of the email. Be specific, and use proper grammar and punctuation.
2. Include a few examples of your retail work or assembly experience or how many years you’ve been in the retail industry.
3. Use a professional email address and leave a contact phone number.
4. Help us identify where you live and if you’re willing to travel.
Thanks, and we look forward to reviewing your job inquiry submissions!
