5 Things To Do For You & Your Business This Month

By Kayte Ferris

We know this is a really busy week for you, so I’m keeping today’s blog post to the point and getting down to business. Whether you’re drowning in orders or wishing you had a couple more, there’s something in here for you to boost your sales or just take a second to breathe. And don’t forget, January won’t wait around for you to be ready so there’s some forward planning things in here too.

Be present on social media

No matter what time of year it is, when we get busy social media is always the first thing that drops off the priority list. But now more than ever it’s vital to be in your followers’ consciousness and popping up throughout their day. When they’re scrolling Instagram wondering what to get their Aunt Jane, you need to be there showing all your lovely soaps or scarves. The more often you appear in front of someone, the more likely it is that they’ll think of you when they sit down to do a big order.

Use Instagram Stories to show you packaging up orders, tweet when things are running low and continue to show up with beautiful, inspiring content on Instagram and Facebook.

Utilise your email list

If you need a little boost to meet a goal, your email list is the best way to do it. The people on your list are your core advocates – they’re ones that choose to get information from you into their precious inboxes and they’ve probably bought from you before. So selling to them is an easier sell than to strangers.

Don’t go overboard and bombard them, but send them links to your gift guides, tempt them with an exclusive offer, and email them about gift cards for those last minute ‘I forgot about Uncle Terry!’ gifts.

I spoke in my last post about using your email subscribers to promote your products for you – Christmas is a great time to do that. Offer a giveaway incentive to get customers to share their purchases online using a hashtag to get you some free promotion.

Set up your January sale

On Christmas Eve you’re going to want to clock off as soon as possible, but if you’re planning a post-Christmas sale you’ll thank yourself for doing it early. You don’t want it hanging over you all Christmas, nor do you want to heave your bloated belly off the sofa on Boxing Day to do work! Get it all set up and scheduled before you turn off for Christmas to avoid last minute panics.

Allow yourself small decadences

I’m a big fan of small decadences in busy times. They are things that don’t cost much, and don’t have to take up much time, but that still feel like a real treat and give you some space to breathe and try to enjoy the festive period a little. They can be as simple as taking a long bath with a candle, or eating a mince pie with a cup of tea in silence in the kitchen rather than wolfing it down at your desk. Do a few little things a week to help you feel sane.

Keep your eye on the end goal

If things aren’t going to plan, or they’re going a little too to plan, keep in mind why you’re doing this. What are the big goals you’ve got in mind for 2018? Are there any workshops, treats or personal development things you want to do? Or is it simply because you want to have the whole Christmas week off?

Whatever is coming up for you that can keep you motivated keep it front and centre of your mind and work towards that as an end goal, rather than just getting the bottom of your pile.

And finally, don’t forget to reward yourself for a 2017 well done! Appreciate everything it took to get to this point, and make the most of the few short weeks left of it. We can’t wait to hear about all your success stories!

Join me next month for more marketing and social media guidance – in the mean time you can find more content on my blog simpleandseason.com. If you have any more questions about this post, or would like to suggest a topic for a future post, you can get me on Twitter (@simple_season) or Instagram (@simpleandseason).