• Aim to send out some holiday greetings: Thanks to technology, there are so many options available if sending cards in the mail is no longer feasible; newsletters, e-cards, social media posts- options abound!    If you have a very large customer base, an effective way of reaching clients, especially inactive ones that you have not had much of a reason or chance to contact is to send out a festive e-mail. Even businesses with only a few clients benefit greatly from the electronic method in terms of costs savings as well as time. There are those who still send out paper newsletters and are reluctant to join the e-bandwagon and if your bottomline isn’t suffering,  you may have enough reason to continue to do so. However, it could end up being one of those grand ideas that are not sustainable in the future. Think ‘technology’. According to Tesco ‘Every little helps’. Your mail should be able to achieve  4 things – thank clients for past business , pitch to prospects for new business,  wish them a prosperous year ahead, and remind them of the services you offer. The shorter the content, the better. Now that last point is your main focus!

• Offer a holiday discount, free delivery or other benefit:  If you provide a service or offer products that can be discounted, this would be a fantastic time to boost seasonal sales. You’d get new clients, or encourage existing ones to do more business with you. For service-based business, you might need to be a bit more creative with your offers. Consider gift cards, free consultations etc.

• Review staffing gaps within the company and those that need to be dealt with because of a temporary rise in demand due to peaks from the holiday season: Avoid emergency recruits unless the new employees will be needed after the holiday season. If existing staff can shoulder more responsibilities, delegate more tasks to them. If the increased work load will be permanent, hire employees. Consider temp workers or contract workers for short term needs. Don’t miss out on opportunities that will generate a lot of business for you when it it clear that profits generated from the new business will far outweigh the cost of a new employee. 

• Start planning early: For many retail businesses, holiday planning starts as early as June. For some others especially seasonal businesses or larger corporates, planning can start a year ahead – in January. Understand your business model, what drives your clients to buy and their conversion cycle. This will enable you to determine the best period to start, but err on the side of caution. The earlier you start, the more prepared you are. For service-based businesses, you can risk starting much later as many of the concerns of product-based businesses such as inventory management, altered working hours will usually not be relevant.  Some start a week before Christmas!

Whatever you do, we do wish you a healthy and wealthy year ahead!

Contact Brand Leverage at www.brandleverageusa.com or call us on 763 347 0122 or 763 208 9774.