It is almost silly season again! The Christmas holidays are a time to enjoy family, friends, sunshine, and good food but they also bring challenges for business owners. Preparing in advance can make all the difference in managing these challenges so you can relax and enjoy the holiday. Here’s a guide to help manage common holiday challenges and ensure your business is taken care of while you enjoy the holidays
The budget
The Christmas holidays can strain your cash flow due to increased expenses such as Christmas parties, gifts, and additional staff wage expenses if you are paying time and half or holiday pay during the time the business is closed while not generating money. Christmas is commonly a time to expect slower payments from clients which can cause business owners a lot of stress. Prepare by reviewing your expected incoming and outgoings, and make a plan to set aside staff holidays and money for additional expenses. We can help with preparing your cash flow forecast
Staff
This impacts businesses depending on the industry you are in, retail often has longer opening hours so providing a work timetable ahead of time gives more opportunity to ensure you have the right mix of staff, and opening leave requests give plenty of time for management to review staffing levels and approve/decline where needed
Plan so the only post-holiday blues missing the sun and free time instead of money worries.
Tip -I recommend reviewing annual leave owning monthly and setting aside in a separate account.
Holiday Fraud Risk
Increased online transactions with gift shopping can lead to a higher risk of fraud and cyber threats – What can you do to protect your customers? Use well-known trusted providers to provide online sales services
Marketing and Promotions
Effective marketing is a must to stand out during the holiday season! Plan and execute promotions early to attract customers with social media and email marketing. Social media marketing is a great way to keep audience up to date with Christmas promotions and hours of operation
Customer service
During the holidays, customers expect prompt and efficient service. Ensure your customer service team is well-prepared by providing them with additional training and resources. Implement a system for handling customer inquiries and complaints efficiently, even during peak times. For office-based roles, an out-of-office email response communicates when you will be responding and you can turn the notifications off – go on, do it!
By planning, you will be minimizing any challenges and all set to enjoy the silly season with your family and friends while knowing that your business is under control and ready to hit the ground running in 2025.