Is Your Private BC Liquor Store Job Description Attracting the Right Candidates?

Your liquor store job description may be the most valuable tool you have for attracting suitable employees who’ll stay in the position for some time. If the job description is well written, concise and accentuates the positive, not only will it attract more candidates; it will attract more of the right candidates and save you time and money!

Since the start of the pandemic, BC liquor stores have struggled with attracting and keeping employees. In the Alliance of Beverage Licensees (ABLE BC) 2021 Annual Report, 67% of BC liquor licensees said finding employees was “very challenging”. 38% of survey respondents described retaining staff as “very challenging”, while 46% said it was “somewhat challenging”.

While a well-crafted job description won’t solve all employee recruitment and retainment problems, it can eliminate many of them. The following are some quick job posting writing tips from Thrive Liquor & Cannabis Advisors – BC liquor license experts.

Quick Tips for Winning Liquor Store Job Descriptions

Use Targeted Job Titles

The liquor store job title is arguably the most important part of a job description because it is what the candidate first reads. A targeted job title attracts more appropriate candidates than a generic job title and should include the official job title plus some attention grabbing keywords. An example best illustrates the difference.

Generic job title:

Liquor Store Sales Associate

Targeted job Title:

Private Liquor Store Sales Associate – Full Time, Great Benefits and Bonuses!

As you can see, the targeted job title provides information that might screen out some candidates (they may be looking for work at a government liquor store), while accentuating selling points of the job (full time work, great benefits, bonuses on top of their salary).

Start with a Summary

Write a brief summary that describes your liquor store, the job responsibilities, experience, expectations, salary, benefits and location. The summary acts as a “table of contents” for the job description. It allows job hunters to quickly see whether they are suitable while highlighting aspects of the job that are important to job seekers (i.e., salary, benefits).

Be Concise & Present Information in Digestible Chunks

Although liquor store job descriptions should provide job hunters necessary information about your company and the job, there’s a fine line between “detail” and “information overload”. A long job description won’t keep a reader’s attention because important details are easily lost in all that text. One way to make lengthy job descriptions easier to read is by using sections with headings, bullets and short, crisp bullet items.

Include Daily Tasks with Job Duties

Job duties are best presented in a bulleted list. Keep list items as short as possible. Below the list, add a sentence that briefly describes the employee’s daily tasks. The sentence about daily tasks gives job candidates a better sense of what their work routine will be.

BC Liquor Store Recruitment Services at Thrive Liquor & Cannabis Advisors

Thrive Liquor & Cannabis Advisors provides recruitment services to BC liquor licensees including liquor stores, wine stores, bars and restaurants. Since 2003, Rebecca Hardin, CEO, has worked as a BC liquor licensing and retail liquor operations consultant, and has owned, managed and worked in her own food and beverage businesses. Rebecca’s unique experience as consultant, employer and employee has shaped her retail liquor recruitment knowledge. Whether you need liquor store job descriptions, candidate screening, or training, Thrive can help.

If you are a BC liquor licensee who wants to attract suitable job candidates while saving time and money, please reach out.