It’s always the prepping and planning of a new program or system that seems to take the longest. And in some cases, just the sheer thought of that part of the equation will render a person or team from taking action and moving forward.
The same is true for a uniform program. That's why we wanted to give you a better idea of what to expect when planning and starting a uniform program in your company or business.
You might be thinking that you're doing fine without a uniform for your business. And there may be some truth here.
But if you're considering building your brand further by defining an image for your team and business, then this article is for you. A uniform program can improve your brand while establishing a consistent look you can be proud of.
To help you better understand the process, let’s take a look at an example here of a fictitious company that may be experiencing the same problem you’re having.
This article will help you better understand the uniform e-commerce side of the process, as well as some perspective from the client.
Fictitious Company: Deep Drilling
Deep Drilling is a third-party Oil & Gas company, who has a field staff of 75 people. The staff is spread across four states and is never in the same place at the same time.
Sam is the safety manager and needs more time. He wants to find ways to make his daily tasks easier, especially when it comes to safety.
Going to a drill site to check safety in another state, and going back to order a uniform for a new hire becomes almost impossible. Sam wants to look into a uniform program where uniforms are already chosen and logos are added, according to the company's brand standards.
Step 1: Preparing to launch a uniform program
The first phase of building your uniform program could easily be called the decision phase. This is where you will make multiple decisions, including who will be involved at your company and what uniforms / apparel will be needed for your operations staff.
We'll highlight that this is often the hardest step, especially when your team learns they'll be wearing a uniform provided by the company.
The reason is that many employees take this personally. Not because they don't want to wear a uniform. Instead, they want input on what they'll be wearing every time they go to work.
Sometimes this works fine. Employees are reasonable and just want to focus on their jobs.
Other times, it becomes a real problem where the simplest decisions are held up because of input from too many employees.
See our related article on why too many uniform options can be bad for your business to learn why a lean program works best.
The uniform provider’s tasks
Once the relationship is built and a uniform program is being installed, it is very important to get all decision-makers involved in the process. Having worked with multiple clients through such a process, your program manager is key. They can help you identify potential company stakeholders, who can help you make decisions quickly.
They can also help you choose your uniform choices, whether it's for inside workers or outside workers. It can also help you find out what kind of clothes you need to wear for specific jobs.
Sam’s tasks
- Sam has talked to a business uniform company and says he wants an easy-to-use online uniform program for his employees. He also gathers the leaders from the field operations crew.
- Sam, from his meeting with his leadership team, has decided who will be involved in this process.
- After the people who make the decisions decide what uniforms will be needed, they decide what FR uniforms are needed for the operations crew. In Deep Drilling, FR uniforms are a must for the operations crew.
Step 2: During the uniform program launch
In this phase, you will start identifying what logos will be used and/or created for different uniform pieces. In this middle process, all the logistics will be decided upon, regarding the online ordering and store.
The uniform provider’s tasks
Your uniform provider will probably want to make a list of good, better, and best uniform suggestions. They will also explain the difference between all of those suggestions.
Once you have identified your uniform choices, they should create a mockup of your logo, with their design team. The logo is assigned an art id number and any other variation will also receive its own id number. This way, they can create various versions of your logo, as certain logo colors will look better on different clothing colors. Be sure they send mockups to you, this way you can give final approval, before the first logo is even stitched.
When your uniform e-commerce provider is about to launch, they should have a meeting in their office. They will talk to their account rep about the details of the account and who you will be able to contact. This will allow you to not only get the best customer service experience, but build a relationship with the customer service rep.
Sam’s tasks
- Now that Sam has decided what uniform he needs, he gets the company's logo and sends it to his uniform provider. They make a mockup of the logo design and send it to Sam to approve.
- Sam needs to decide who will run their online uniform program. He chooses to be one of the admins and then has the e-commerce uniform provider also give admin roles to their office manager. This will help him when he is out of the office for a few days and keeps everything flowing smoothly.
- Sam talks to the uniform service company and establishes his shipping budget, employee spend allowances, and billing terms. While these terms are being completed, your uniform provider should be building your website to go live.
- Sam and his office manager get training from the uniform/e-commerce provider. They'll help Sam and his office manager understand and manage the system. The order process is live now.
- Sam now has all of his 75-person team ready to order, with their own log-in information and spending budget. Sam and his office manager are only left with approving or denying orders and seeing the entire information from their dashboard.
Step 3: Completing the uniform program launch
At this stage, training is scheduled and the site is ready to use. The goal is to make ordering easy at the start and make sure the new admin knows the system and their jobs.
The uniform provider’s tasks
Once your uniform provider is ready to start, their systems manager will schedule a meeting with the client. They will show them how the system works and answer any questions about the private uniform store.
After you order the first time, call them to make sure everything went well and understand how you used the system for the first time. You should also receive an ongoing monthly call from your account rep.
Sam’s tasks
- The ordering process is now live and ready to use.
- Employees can now start ordering their uniforms and the billing cycle now starts.
Hopefully, this example of Sam will help you to better understand the process. It's pretty straightforward, but if you have any questions, let us know. Our priority is to make it simple to outfit your team and we're happy to help you launch your uniform program the right way!
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