Four Tips to Help Your Business Make the Most of the Holiday Season

Holiday season is typically a time when people let their hair down, take comfort in the Australian summer, indulging on Christmas feasts, and take a bit of time off from the pressures of their work lives. Even though not everyone has time off during this time, many of us take the chance to close our businesses and have a few extra days off.

This all sounds great in theory, but for many business owners, Christmas is a huge challenge. Whether it's getting access to employees who want to extend their vacations, finding suppliers, or finishing work for clients before Santa comes to town. Here are five things you can do to help your business make it through the holidays: 

Christmas is a time to set realistic goals.

I think this is a great business idea all year round, but it's especially important around Christmas. Quite often, people make it seem like work has to be done before Christmas even though it doesn't have to be. People like to clear their minds of unfinished business before they raise a glass to the New Year. This can sometimes put too much pressure on you and your business to finish up work in a short amount of time.

With your clients, it's crucial to communicate with them. Do your best to set reasonable expectations with clients, and avoid taking on too much work as the year winds down for Christmas. Unless you promised to build a pool or pergola for an annual Christmas party 6 months ago, most clients would understand if you can't finish their work before the business closes. As long as they know about it early and it hasn't already been promised.

Christmas is a time to start making plans.

Christmas is one of the few times of the year when many business owners can really get away from their work for a few days. Often, these breaks last until the beginning of the New Year. If you're going to be gone for a long time, you should have a plan for how to handle your work both while you're gone and when you get back. If you must keep your business open during that time, make sure your employees have plenty to do that doesn't require your direct involvement so they can be productive even while you away on a holiday. The better your break is likely to be, the more you need to plan before you leave.

Giving is what Christmas is all about.

It's a tired saying, but a good one. Christmas is a great time to show gratitude to people who help your business. Whether it's your hardworking employees, valued suppliers, or loyal customers, showing appreciation at this time of year goes a long way toward making sure your New Year starts off on the right foot. Christmas is a good time to connect with business partners, whether it's over a meal, a Christmas card, a simple phone call, or a text message. Inadvertently, it may also create future profit and growth opportunities.

At Christmas, people spend money.

Christmas is always an expensive time, whether it's for Celebrations, client gifts, annual leave payments, or staff penalty award rates. The other thing that makes it hard is that if your business is closed between Christmas and New Year's, there is no billing and no collection of receivables. Putting a little extra in the Christmas Tin is always a smart way to make sure these expensive costs are covered.

For many people all over the country, Christmas is a happy and uplifting time. With the right mix of planning, budgeting, rest, and relaxation, you can make sure that your workplace is stress-free during the Christmas season. It will put you in a position to start the New Year with good energy, momentum, and money coming in.

If, like most business owners, you're having a tough time getting work done at the end of the year, it might be time to hire an offshore team like hammerjack . We will hire hardworking professionals to do your holiday work for you, so you don't have to worry about it. Get in touch with our team today and we'll be more than happy to help you.

The hammerjack team wishes everyone a safe, happy, and joyful Christmas and New Year's!

About The Contributor

JP Galinato is the Head of Community and Marketing at hammerjack, one of the fastest growing outsourcing providers in the Philippines. He has an eclectic mix of interests ranging from dogs, food, tv and movies, and remote work. He lives in Manila, Philippines with his favorite dogs Juancho, Han, and Darcy..