With the shadow of the pandemic behind us, brick-and-mortar stores have regained their footing, with 80% of sales happening in-store today, according to the National Retail Federation.

“Brick and mortar stores are never going away in any category, but in beauty specifically, there are several important reasons they’re here to stay,” says Michelle Israel, a former Senior Executive at Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s, and currently Senior Advisor for AllWork.

“Beauty is a learning experience, and consumers are showing us that they still prefer to go into a store to fully experience a product — especially something new,” says Israel, who adds that an in-store beauty shopping experience also typically translates into greater sales than one generated online, which is why it’s so important to have freelance talent ready to engage customers wherever they want to be.

 

While the world around us is undoubtedly changing, some aspects of beauty shopping remain the same, which is why Israel prefers to call beauty retail “an evolution — not a revolution. The need to still hire freelance talent in-store is a perfect example of that,” says Israel. What is changing, however, is the way you can manage, pay, train, and communicate with those workers. AllWork takes freelancing, an age-old business model, and reimagines it with technology.

AllWork is purpose-built for the beauty industry and continues to iterate their end-to-end platform in collaboration with some of beauty’s biggest brands. It’s a one-stop shop for everything a brand needs to onboard, manage, and pay this critical retail workforce — and helps brands eliminate what has historically been a tedious, manual process.

The tech-forward AllWork platform is already utilized by 60-plus beauty brands (including large global brands like L’Oréal, and successful new, emerging brands like Tula and Paula’s Choice) and is designed to help move your freelance business into the future by streamlining administration, optimizing your spend, and improving your bottom line.

Ready to make the most of your freelance dollars and save your team valuable admin time? Here’s how AllWork can help you reimagine the future of freelance.

AllWork’s fast onboarding and easy access to training materials enables freelancers to start selling right away.

“One of the biggest pain points, particularly for a digitally-native brand coming to retail for the first time, is finding a sales force as knowledgeable as you want them to be and getting them onboarded and up-to-speed as quickly as possible. AllWork offers an elegant solution by taking a remote, tangential, or part-time salesforce and makes them feel like they are part of the company,” says Israel.

With a brand’s learning library built into the AllWork app freelancers can use their phones as a mobile education center. “It’s like having an archive of your training manuals handy. And that’s very helpful for a freelance worker, because some of the best freelancers work for multiple lines and may need to double check info — and find it quickly. AllWork takes the best of technology and clears up stumbling points.”

Imagine if your freelancer could now easily open an app to review training guides, product ingredients, and sales strategies—then immediately apply that information to the customer in store. This easy access results in both more engaged, educated freelancers and happier customers inclined to buy more products.

AllWork makes freelancers feel like part of a team (and that’s good for your bottom line).

 The AllWork platform strives to create a harmonious relationship between freelancers and the brand that employs them.

“I had a fleet of stores reporting to me at one point in my career and found that the better a brand’s engagement survey score is, the better the brand’s sales are,” says Israel. “And when you think about what would give a freelancer a good engagement survey, it’s feeling connected to the brand.”

In addition to the educational material, the AllWork app lets a freelancer accept their shifts, know when they’ll get paid, clock in and out, and submit digital timesheets. There’s even a geotag to make sure no one shows up at the wrong store location. “Having immediate access to information, a consistent paycheck, and a responsive contact when there’s a problem makes a big difference in employee satisfaction,” says Israel. “Even in a gig economy, most workers want to feel like they are part of something bigger — whether they’re working two hours a week, or 40. The AllWork tool helps you do that.”

AllWork optimizes your freelance spending strategy.

“Historically, there’s been a lag between creating a budget and evaluating sales performance,” says Israel.  “AllWork closes that gap. It enables you, in real-time, to change how you’re deploying your sales force.”

By providing tools for easy budget management, freelancer scheduling, timesheet approval, and even instant messaging with in-store talent — as well as sales figures that help you determine if your sales strategy is working (or not) — you can nimbly adapt and reallocate your freelance dollars to ensure you’re maximizing your return.

“The primary obstacle of a new-to-retail brand is often just figuring out the staffing component. AllWork helps you get up to speed quickly, shortening that learning curve,” says Israel.

AllWork manages freelancer compliance, HR, and administration for you. 

“AllWork protects your HR people from getting tied up with freelance administration, which can be time-consuming — and not business-driving,” says Israel.

It is especially valuable to new-to-retail beauty brands who are dealing with freelancer talent for the first time. “You bring this new administration to your HR department and there’s a good chance they’ve never dealt with in-store freelancers before and have no idea how to onboard, classify, and ultimately, pay them correctly. It can bog them down for days, even weeks. AllWork removes that burden completely,” says Israel.

“At the end of the day, everyone wants a little bit more out of a little bit less. And that’s what AllWork does. It allows you to keep building your business, but in a way that’s better, smarter, and more efficient. The end result is you get the most out of your freelance talent and improve your top and bottom lines.”

To learn more about how AllWork can help you onboard, manage, and pay your in-store freelancers, please email laura@allworknow.com.