1) First, Determine What Type of PC Your Brand Actually Needs

Before selecting candidates, you should first be clear about what type of PC staff you are looking for, because different types of products require different skill sets.

Questions Brand Owners Should Ask Themselves

• Does your product require detailed explanations?

• Is the sales location in a department store, retail shop, event, or temporary booth?

• Do you need someone who focuses on quick sales promotion, or someone who provides in-depth consultation?

• Who are your target customers? For example: working, mothers and babies

• Does the role require standing all day, working in shifts, or meeting daily sales targets?

Examples

• If the product is beauty-related, you should look for someone with a good personality, strong communication skills, and the ability to recommend products effectively.

• If the product is IT or consumer electronics, you should look for someone who can clearly explain product specifications and features.

• If the product is FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods such as food and beverages) in department stores, you may need someone who is energetic, skilled at promoting products, and able to handle sales pressure well.

The clearer the profile you define, the more accurately you can select the right PC staff for your brand.

2) Check Whether the Personality Fits Your Brand

PC staff are the people customers interact with directly, so personality and appearance should be one of the top considerations. This is often the first factor that either creates a positive impression or causes customers to walk away immediately.

What to look for

• Clean and neat appearance appropriate for the product

• Friendly facial expressions, approachable, and welcoming

• Energetic posture; not standing passively or using a phone during work

• Pleasant and confident tone of voice, not too rigid or overly pushy in selling

• An overall image that aligns with the brand’s identity

Why this matters

Most customers form their judgment based on first impressions. If the staff appear untrustworthy or unprofessional, customers may not even be willing to listen—no matter how good the product is.

3) Evaluate Real Sales and Communication Skills

The main role of PC staff is to turn customer interest into a purchase, which means sales skills are far more important than simply being talkative.

Skill Checklist to Look For

• Able to start conversations with customers naturally

• Can recommend products without being pushy

• Good at listening to customer needs

• Able to answer questions on the spot

• Can compare product differences clearly

• Able to close sales professionally

• Can handle rejection without losing confidence

How to Evaluate Initially

If you are hiring directly, it is useful to conduct scenario-based interview questions, such as:

• If a customer says, "I’ll just take a look first," how would you respond?

• If a customer compares your product with a competitor’s, how would you handle it?

• If a customer says the product is expensive, how would you explain its value?

The answers to these situations often reveal far more than simply stating “I have sales experience.”

4) Check Whether Their Experience Matches Your Product Category

Not all sales experience is the same. Selling cosmetics, home appliances, or products in modern trade environments involves very different contexts and skills.

Questions You Should Ask

• Have they sold products in a category similar to your brand?

• Have they worked in a department store or retail environment similar to your sales location?

• What kind of sales targets or KPIs have they worked with before?

• Have they dealt with the same target customer group?

• Have they worked under sales pressure or performance targets?

Why This Matters

People who have experience selling similar products tend to learn faster, adapt more easily, and have a higher chance of achieving sales targets than someone starting completely from scratch.

5) Check Product Knowledge and Learning Ability

Even if a PC staff member has a good personality and strong communication skills, it will be difficult to close sales if they do not truly understand the product, especially for products that require answering specific or technical questions.

What Brand Owners Should Look For

• What level of product knowledge do they already have?

• Can they learn product scripts or information quickly?

• Are they able to explain key selling points, usage, promotions, and differences from competitors?

• Do they have a good memory for prices, models, sizes, or product features?

Tip

During the selection process, you can ask candidates to read one page of product information and then explain it again in simple language. This method helps evaluate both their understanding and their communication skills at the same time.

6) Check Responsibility and Work Discipline

A PC staff member who is good at selling but lacks discipline can create more problems on-site than expected. Issues such as arriving late, being absent, failing to submit reports, neglecting the sales area, or leaving during shifts can significantly affect operations.

Checklist to Review

• Punctual and reliable

• Responsible in following the rules of the store or department store

• Able to work according to the assigned schedule

• Able to submit sales reports or work summaries

• Consistently takes care of the sales area and product displays

• No history of frequently abandoning or leaving jobs

If Hiring Through an Agency, You Should Also Ask

• How does the company screen employees for discipline and reliability?

• If a staff member is absent, is there a replacement available?

• Is there a supervisor responsible for monitoring and supporting the staff?

This point is especially important because many on-site problems do not arise solely from poor sales ability, but from the lack of consistent management and supervision.

7) Check Whether There Is Training Before Deployment

One common mistake many brands make is sending PC staff to the sales floor immediately without proper preparation. This can result in staff giving inconsistent information, being unable to answer customer questions, and making the brand appear unprofessional.

Before hiring, you should always ask about the following:

• Is there product training provided?

• Is there a sales script or guideline available?

• Are staff briefed about promotions, target customers, and competitors?

• Is there any knowledge assessment before starting the job?

• For long-term assignments, is there ongoing knowledge refresh or additional training?

Why This Matters

A good PC staff member is not created through selection alone, but through proper preparation before stepping onto the sales floor.

8) Check Whether There Is a Performance Tracking and Reporting System

Brand owners should not rely on the feeling that “sales should be happening.” Instead, decisions should be supported by actual data and measurable results.

Systems That Should Be in Place

• Daily or weekly sales reports

• Stock reports or updates on in-store issues

• Photos of product displays and merchandising

• Attendance records or time tracking

• Customer or store feedback

• Performance summaries based on KPIs

If You Hire Through an Agency or Staffing Company

Ask Clearly

• How often are reports provided?

• Can performance be monitored through a system or dashboard?

• Is there a coordinator or supervisor managing the team?

• If sales do not meet targets, what improvement plan is in place?

Having a strong performance tracking system helps you manage budgets more accurately and make better decisions about staffing based on real data.

9) Evaluate Whether the Candidate Fits the Actual Sales Environment

Some PC staff may perform well at event booths but may not be suitable for permanent positions in department stores. Others may excel in specialty stores but struggle in environments where customers move quickly and staff must approach them proactively.

What to look for

• What is the nature of the sales location?

• Is the customer traffic high or moderate?

• Does the role require proactive selling or mainly assisting customers who approach first?

• Are there any time restrictions, store regulations, or dress code requirements?

• Will the PC need to work alongside the store’s staff or team?

Why This Matters

Choosing the right person for the actual working environment is just as important as choosing someone who fits the product itself.

10) Review the Full Cost — Not Just the Daily Wage

Many brands compare only the daily wage rate, but in reality, the total cost of hiring PC staff involves much more than that.

Costs You Should Consider

• Daily or monthly wages

• Overtime (OT) payments

• Transportation expenses

• Uniforms

• Training costs

• Supervisor or management fees

• Sales promotion materials or equipment

• Opportunity costs if staff cannot sell effectively or are frequently absent

What Brand Owners Should Focus On

Do not evaluate based only on which option is cheaper. Instead, consider whether the budget you invest delivers reliable results and peace of mind.

In many cases, hiring a team with a more complete system and support structure, even if slightly more expensive, can be more worthwhile in the long run—because it helps reduce on-site problems and improve actual sales performance.

11) What to Check If You Hire PC Staff Through a Staffing Agency

If your brand chooses to work with a PC staffing agency instead of hiring directly, you should evaluate more than just how many staff they can provide.

Checklist for Evaluating a Staffing Company

• Do they have experience managing products in a similar category to your brand?

• How large is their talent pool, and how quickly can they deploy staff?

• What is their screening and selection process?

• Do they provide training before staff begin working?

• Is there a supervisor or team leader responsible for managing the staff on-site?

• What type of performance reports do they provide?

• Do they have a backup plan if staff are absent, on leave, or resign suddenly?

• Do they communicate clearly and respond quickly to the brand?

Signs of a Reliable Partner

• They do not focus only on providing headcount

• They are willing to discuss KPIs and measurable results

• They have transparent tracking and reporting systems

• They understand the specific needs of each brand and adapt accordingly

12) Define Clear KPIs Before the Job Starts

Another common mistake is that brands hire PC staff without clearly defining what “success” looks like.

Examples of Useful KPIs

• Daily sales targets

• Sales performance per branch

• Number of customers approached or given product recommendations

• Sales conversion rate

• Readiness and presentation of the sales area

• Timely and complete submission of reports

• Evaluation scores from supervisors or store managers

When clear KPIs are established, you can measure performance based on concrete results rather than relying purely on assumptions or feelings.