Christmas in September: Why You Should Start Prepping Now
This month on LSMGuide, we’re talking about holiday promotional planning! Believe it or not, there are just over 100 days until Christmas. That means there are just about 70 days until the holiday shopping season officially begins! And while it’s not quite time to hang the wreaths and pass out candy canes, there are a few things your small business can do to get ready for the holidays!
Organize and Order Inventory
For many small businesses, inventory can be a tough thing to manage. How many of each item do you really have in stock? If possible, set aside a Sunday afternoon (or other slow time) to do an inventory assessment. Update the numbers in your inventory management system now so you’re not searching for something that isn’t there in December. Also, if possible, place all of your orders for the holidays by the end of September. Don’t forget to include shopping bags, tissue paper, gift-wrapping supplies and other holiday decorations!
Clean Up Your Customer Database
The holidays are a great time to send out targeted messaging to your customers. However, if you don’t have an up to date customer database, the process can seem overwhelming when it’s time to hit “send” in December. In the coming months, make updating your database a priority. Every time you ring up a customer, ask to verify their contact information. And, look through your records and delete duplicates or outdated customer profiles.
Create a Holiday Calendar
What do you want to achieve this holiday season? Do you want to host a toy drive for a local charity? Or, do you want to have all holiday gift basket orders in by a certain date? What about your annual company holiday party? The time is now to create a holiday calendar. You can make it as detailed as you want (“Assemble faux Christmas tree on [this date]”), and you can even schedule the coordinating blog posts/social media posts to go along with each event or key date.
By doing the bulk of your planning and organizing work now, you’ll be freed up to execute on all your fantastic plans then!
Have you started planning for the holidays yet? Members, want more information on promotional planning? Check out our Promotional Planning Guide! Not a member yet? Join today!
