Christmas is fast approaching, so in preparation here are our top 12 tips of Christmas.

On the 1st day of Christmas: Don’t forget to take a bit of time off this year. We’re sure your family will appreciate it and anyway, you’ve worked very hard all year so it’s a good time to have a bit of a rest.

On the 2nd day of Christmas: With only two weeks to go, this is a great time to do some last minute marketing in your business. Send out your Christmas cards, yes, but why not include a voucher in there too with a Christmas gift for all your customers?

On the 3rd day of Christmas: What plans have you got for a January sale? Everyone likes to feel that they’re getting a bargain when they buy something. Are you planning to have a sale for your customers? It could also be a big incentive for those who’ve been thinking about buying your products and services to do something about it.

On the 4th day of Christmas: Plan, plan, plan for the New Year. Make sure you know what you want and put a plan in place to get there. If your goals include things that you’re really passionate about and would happily do for no money at all, so much the better – you’re much more likely to want to achieve them!

On the 5th day of Christmas: The period between now and over Christmas, when things are quieter is a great time for some house-keeping and for getting round to the things you’ve been meaning to do all year. Get them all cleared up so that you start the New Year with a clean slate.

On the 6th day of Christmas: We know January seems like months away, even though it’s only just around the corner, and we know you’ve probably been promising people that you’ll look at things in the New Year. If you have, try if at all possible to keep your promises and if you know you won’t, be honest with the other person and let them know.

On the 7th day of Christmas: Keep an eye on your Christmas expenses. It’s really easy to go out and enjoy yourself a little bit too much by treating your customers and staff. But for most of us, we’ve still got another three months to go until the end of the financial year and believe me, if you overspend in December, things will not look as rosy in the cold light of January.

On the 8th day of Christmas: On the other hand, don’t forget to give yourself a reward (doesn’t have to cost a lot). As small business owners, we’re great at beating ourselves up when things don’t go as well as we hope, but not so good at celebrating success. Look at what you’ve achieved this year and give yourself a pat on the back.

On the 9th day of Christmas: Remember to be realistic at Christmas. Everyone is going to be starting to wind down between now and the beginning of January, so if you run a service business and are expecting loads of customers, think again. Don’t be too discouraged about it though – use the time wisely to give yourself a kick-start for the New Year.

On the 10th day of Christmas: Notify your customers when you’ll be working and when you won’t be – letting them know your Christmas opening hours in advance will make sure everyone is clear about what’s happening when. Give them a last update too, so everyone knows what’s been done.

On the 11th day of Christmas: Be green this Christmas – recycle your Christmas cards and reuse your Christmas tree trees.

On the 12th day of Christmas: Finally, remember, that Christmas is about having some fun too, so make sure you have some. Have a very happy Christmas and all the best for 2017!

And don’t forget to contact us in the New Year too and talk to us about outsourcing your marketing – feel free to have a look at how we can help at http://www.exceptionalthinking.co.uk – we will be happy to arrange a complimentary review with you to talk about how we might be able to help. In the meantime, we hope you all have a lovely Christmas and a very prosperous 2017.