Ways to Welcome a New Team Member in Shout

A new team member is an excellent addition to any team! But how do you welcome them in the best way possible? With technology becoming increasingly prevalent in our lives, many companies are turning to SMS texts and group chats to welcome new team members, train new hires, and share the good news with other team members.

Whether you're a direct sales entrepreneur trying to stop wearing all the hats in your business or you're an established small business ready to add to your workplace family, it's essential to make an outstanding first impression with the new addition to your team.

After all, Glassdoor.com has reported that new hire retention goes up by a whopping 82% when companies welcome new employees properly.

One way to do that is by sending them a warm welcome message that sets the tone for the team member's future at your company, which helps them feel at home within the team.

In this blog post, we'll go over why welcome messages are important, how to write one, and we'll provide some inspirational ideas on what your welcome message might say.

Additionally, we'll discuss how you can use Shout to welcome your new team members!

What Is A Welcome Message?

We know! It sounds self-explanatory. However, bear with us for a moment because it's often more than a simple "Hey! Welcome to the team!"

In its most concise definition, a team member welcome message is a text or email you send when a new individual starts working for your company. It's a way to introduce them to the team officially, and it can also include information about their first tasks, what to expect in the next month, and other vital details.

But, as we mentioned before, it's often more than just a simple introduction. A good welcome message will set the tone for the team member's entire tenure with your company. It can show them that you're excited to have them on board, and it can help establish a culture of communication and collaboration right from the start.

Many companies send out welcome messages when a new employee first starts work. In addition to an email or text message (or both), the employee might also receive a welcome packet that contains a hand-written note and company goodies.

What's So Important About Welcome Messages?

Forget about numbers and statistics for a minute and think about it on a personal level. Many people have joined companies only to find that they're immediately thrown into the fray without any real orientation or introduction.

If you've ever been in circumstances like that, you'll probably agree it's not so nice. A poor onboarding experience creates an atmosphere where it seems apparent you're not truly valued. Consider the fact that up to 69% of new hires are more likely to remain with a company three years or longer if they had a great experience when they were first hired.

Good leaders work hard to create a positive work environment for their team members. When you're made to feel sincerely welcome, you're more likely to put forth your best effort because you know that you're valued and respected.

So, a genuinely warm and welcoming message right off the bat is key to setting the tone for a positive work relationship.

On top of all that, you can also use your welcome message to provide information on your team culture and get the new hire excited about their initial goals.

How to Write Welcome Messages for New Team Members

If you suddenly had to stop what you're doing and find a job somewhere, how would you want the hiring company to welcome you into its fold?

We're sure you'll agree that a non-intimidating, warm and easy-going message that provided exciting and relevant information would be a great way to start.

But, how do you write a message like that? Well, when you start onboarding new team members of your own, you might want to consider the following.

Set Expectations from the Beginning

One of the most crucial issues is to set clear expectations for what the new team member is expected to do and how they are expected to behave.

An equally important thing is to create a sense of purpose for the individual. Why are they joining your team? What can they hope to achieve? Giving them a clear vision will help them feel invested in your business and make them more likely to succeed.

You don't have to go into extreme detail here, especially if you're writing one of your welcome messages via text. However, you can certainly touch on this. A few sentences can convey a broad vision your new team member will appreciate.

Be Friendly While Remaining Professional

It's crucial to ensure your welcome message is friendly while remaining professional. You want to make sure the tone of your message is warm and welcoming while still setting the right expectations for their time with your company.

By being conscientious of your wording, you can avoid any awkwardness and ensure a smooth onboarding process for your new hires!

Reinforce Your Vision and Mission

One way to reinforce your vision and mission is to include it in your welcome message. This will give your new hire a better understanding of what you stand for as a company and helps them connect their work with the organization's larger goals.

By putting your vision and mission front and center, you can show team members that you're serious about them fulfilling their potential and this too helps set the tone for the workplace.

New Employee Welcome Message Examples

As we mentioned earlier, when welcoming a new employee to your team, it's important to make them feel comfortable and appreciated.

Although you could obviously send out longer email messages, we're going to focus on some concise ideas perfect for SMS texts. From funny to sincere, in the following welcome message templates, you should find something that perfectly fits your personal (or your team's) personality!

Welcome Texts for Any Type of Team

• Thanks so much for choosing [Name of Company] as your new home, [Name]! You have no idea how long we’ve needed someone with your blend of personality, skills, and ideas. We feel you'll easily fit into our company culture, and that's so exciting to us! Welcome to the family!
• [Name], we are so delighted to have you as our new team member! We believe in continual personal development, and we're looking forward to helping you learn and grow as you grow your business with us. We have faith in you and know you're going to go far!
• [Company name] is excited to have you as part of the team! We can't wait to work together and believe you will add great value considering your past experience and skillset. Life is good. Let's spread optimism!
• Welcome [Name]! We're so pleased you've chosen us as the next step in your career. Professionalism is at the very core of our efforts, and we work hard every day to make [Name of Company] the most respected service brand in [Name of Industry]. We know you'll do your part and make us all proud!‍

Texts for Direct Selling Teams

• Welcome to the team, [Name]! We're so excited to have you and can't wait to see what great things you'll do for us. Thanks for joining our family! Stay tuned for more onboarding materials in the next few days.
• [Name], it's about time you joined us! (Seriously, where were you hiding these last few months?) Like all the others in our family, we're so happy that you're going to be helping other women empower themselves and realize their own beauty. Let's get started, and remember you are worth SO much!

Texts for In-Office Teams

• Welcome aboard, [Name]. Your previous work as a [position] definitely suits our needs, and we're excited to see what you can do as we work together to provide our customers with the best experience possible while respecting their diversity. We love your uniqueness and can't wait to see what you do!
• We are excited to officially welcome you to the [company] team! Thanks so much for choosing to move from [Town/State] all the way here! We believe in a strong and supportive team dynamic, so please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you get started.
• The team at [company name] is committed to helping every employee reach their potential and make a difference. We're betting on you, and we can't wait to see the positive impact you'll have on our team. Welcome to our family and thank you for joining us!
• Welcome to the team, [Name]! We just want you to know how glad we are to have you. If you need help adjusting to the job at any time, know that we have an open-door policy at all times. We don't expect perfection. We just expect people to do their best. We have great confidence you'll do just that!

Texts for Health Care Teams

• Congratulations [name]! You have no clue the number of people you beat out to win this position. And we're so excited you did! Providing long-term, quality healthcare to those in need is an honor and privilege and it's great to welcome a team member whose values align so closely with our own!
• Welcome aboard, [new employee's Name]! We're pleased to have you working with us and we look forward to seeing your contributions as we work together to develop healthier communities. Let's get you started with helping connect people to REAL [product/service.]

Texts for Coaches or Trainers

• Welcome to our coaching collective! Your life experience is just what we need to help nurture and inspire our clients as they move forward in life. Over the years we hope you'll remain with us, you'll see so many lives changed for the better and you'll likely grow as a person too! We know we have. Again, welcome, welcome, welcome!
• Hey [Name], it's awesome that you've chosen to be an instructor at [Name of Company]. Helping others get healthy and fit is a life calling and it's not for everyone. That you've made the kind of commitment we demand of all our health coaches means a lot. Look forward to some great things moving forward as we create positive change in peoples' attitudes toward health and fitness.

Texts for Non-Profit or Volunteer Teams

• Welcome! As we work together to help end the exploitation of our most vulnerable, isolated communities, we know you'll step up, speak up, and challenge us with daring new initiatives. We all know the world needs a change. We're excited to have an Earth-shaker on our team!
• Hey [new employee's name], we're so excited to have you join our team! We believe you're going to make a huge, positive impact, and we're proud to have you. Looking forward to doing great things together!
• Welcome aboard, [new employee's name]! We're glad to have you on our team and look forward to seeing the amazing innovations you'll come up with as we strive to save our local environment!
• We're so grateful you joined us, [Name]! We know you agree it's about time to provide a helping hand to those around the world who want to enrich their lives. Leading by example and lighting the way forward with solid business opportunities that lift people out of poverty is so rewarding! Thanks for choosing to embark on this journey with us.

Use Shout to Welcome Team Members

Using Shout to welcome a new team member is incredibly easy. Whether you want to craft a welcome message to send by text or via Instagram DM, you can do it all within the Shout app.

Not only that, once your new team member becomes a Shout user, all conversations between the two of you are totally free!

Learn more about using bots to onboard team members

Use Shout to Introduce New Members to the Team

Now that we've gone over a few ways you can write a brief welcome message for your new employees and send those messages via Shout; you might want to also consider writing a note to introduce them to your whole team.

One of the easiest ways to do that is in your team’s group chat, where your entire team can get the news at once. In fact, when you send your new team member a welcome message, you can add them to the same group chat so they can see your introduction too.

Learn more about using group chat

Summary

It's always exciting when a new member joins your team, but sometimes it can be hard to know how to welcome them and introduce them to your business. Fortunately, Shout makes it super easy—literally as easy as texting a friend!

Remember, welcoming new team members is key to having a productive, positive work environment. The Society for Human Resource Management reported "1 in 25 employees leaves their new job because of bad onboarding experiences"  That means you've got some incentive to ensure your new team members’ first impression of what it will be like working with you is the best it can be.

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Click here for a step-by-step guide to onboarding new team members in Shout.