We’re already half way through summer here in the UK, so it’s definitely time to start thinking about Christmas. Wait. What?  In the world of business and marketing, Christmas always comes early.

Things like sales strategies, campaign ideas, marketing plans, and staff schedules take time. They need to be devised, tested, implemented, and followed up in time for the real festive period to begin.

It’s what makes the difference between a successful Christmas campaign, and one which fizzles away before it even gets started.

Evaluate last Christmas, to prepare your business for this one

One of the best ways to succeed to is to acknowledge and embrace previous failures. Not everything you try is going to work, and that’s okay. Use this experience to educate your strategy going forward.

Dedicate some time to analysing how you prepared for and executed the festive period last year. Let the peaks and troughs shape your plan of action for this year.

Make sure you’ve got staff annual leave covered

Long weekends to Christmas markets all around the world, quality time with nearest and dearest, dodging the dreaded weekend shopping… There are a whole raft of reasons why your workforce might seem a little thin on the ground in the months coming up to Christmas.

It’s vital that your holiday booking process is watertight so you can organise, delegate and cover where necessary. This might require some extra pairs of freelance hands, so don’t be afraid to outsource if it keeps the cogs turning.

Get all of your marketing materials ready to go

Many businesses will come up with a seasonal campaign to entice sales or custom during the festive period. It might be a special offer or the launch of a brand-new service at a reduced price for a limited time only.

Whatever it may be, start preparing for it now. Get your communication strategy in place and get all of your digital and print marketing boxed off and ready to go when the time comes. You’ll snap up early shoppers, and be a more established presence when everyone else catches up.

Get yourself a good accountant

The end of the financial year is approaching, return deadlines are looming and you’re being swept up into the chaos of all things Christmas. Summer is the perfect time to find yourself an accounting expert to take at least some of the responsibility off your hands in the final quarter of the year.

Doing so will also help you plot out budget spend and ensure cashflow stays fluid over the festive season. With things like staff bonuses and overdue invoices you’ve been avoiding all year, tying up loose ends as the year comes to a close is best left to the professionals.

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About The Author

Elizabeth Hughes

A content writer specialising in business, finance, software, and beyond. I'm a wordsmith with a penchant for puns and making complex subjects accessible. Learn more about Elizabeth.

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