Volunteers are the backbone of charity shops: they provide their free time to work unpaid for a cause they believe in. There is a lot of hard work involved in volunteering, and this experience can be very rewarding and help your shop to succeed.

Having volunteers with the right traits ensures that expectations are met and that your shop runs smoothly.

Reliability

This is extremely important for any employee and, even though volunteers don’t get paid, they are still working for you. You need to make sure that your volunteers will get to your shop on time; it only reflects badly on you if they don’t! Volunteers can have as much responsibility as a paid worker, and they ultimately represent your shop.

Energy

Volunteering is a lot of work, and finding energetic people is essential. Great volunteers understand how demanding volunteering can be; people with low energy levels won’t be able to focus on tedious and repetitive tasks they might have to undertake. It will reflect badly on your shop and your image if volunteers constantly require to rest.

Integrity

Sincerity and hard work are foundations for any job – especially when volunteering. Prospective volunteers show they care about they work by being honest and taking responsibility. Working hard and respecting not only other volunteers but also your shop customers is vital. Don’t forget you’re trusting volunteers with your resources and facilities, and they need to not take advantage of it.

Flexibility

Volunteering often encompasses a wide variety of tasks, and willingness to help with any needed task will improve is an important quality. Having an open mind and willingness to learn are traits that will help your charity shop make a difference.

Passion

Ultimately, passion for helping others is what should drive every volunteer: they are, after all, giving time to a cause they believe in. You can guarantee a rewarding experience, and selfless volunteers understand how important their help is. Passion is infectious, and passionate volunteers easily share their drive with others.

With both staff and volunteers in mind, here at Charity Retail Systems we develop efficient systems for charity retail shops. Our priority is to look after our customers and ensure that your organisation has a committed and reliable service you can provide your customers.

You can contact us on 01204 706 000 to speak to our friendly team; we are always happy to answer any query you might have! You can also find us on our Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages to see our latest news.