Let’s focus on December Organisation! December is a hugely busy month, with lots going on and then a week of bank holidays looming you want to get as organised as possible! In this blog post, we will provide you with a checklist of things to do this month to get your business on track. From creating festive marketing materials and setting your goals for the new year, we have you covered.
Creating a December Organisation Checklist
December is a very busy time for everybody, and it is important to get organised early so you can get on top of everything. Begin by creating a checklist of everything you would like to get done and include some time frames over the month. This will help you get everything done before the new year.
Let’s work on some ideas that you could add to your business’s organisation December checklist together…
Are You Closing for the Christmas Period?
Firstly, if your business is closing for the Christmas period, you may be closed from the 23rd of December until the new year. We recommend letting your customers know in advance that you will not be opening and what they can do to contact you if they need to.
Organise Your Social Media
Your social media can be organised in advance for the month but it isn’t too late now to get scheduling some posts. This is especially helpful as it gets busier and you’re getting prepared for the new year!
Festive Templates
To keep your social media consistent this month, you could create some festive templates which will be used across your socials. Include your brand colours and logo and customise it with whichever festive image you like!
We recommend using Canva to create these templates, it is easy to navigate and share with your other co-workers. Here are some festive template examples that we have put together:
Holiday Posts
Don’t forget to create some posts for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. They all may be something you’d like to touch on in your schedule this month. Depending on your company there will be ways you can relate each day to your business, whether you are selling a product and it is now on discount or you are introducing a new service in the new year! Use these days to promote your business in whichever way you choose.
Schedule
A great way to deal with this very busy period is to schedule all of your posts, this will then open up time for you to complete other work instead of trying to organise posts every day.
We recommend using a scheduling platform such as Gain, which is perfect if you have many different accounts to oragnise, Later and Hootsuite. You can edit your posts throughout the month and add in anything you may think of later, but having a basic schedule will help!
Automate Your Replies
You may already have automated replies set up on your social media platforms, but it is a good idea to change them up to make them relevant to your Christmas period opening times. Make sure people know where to contact you if you are closed, or if they will be expecting to wait until the new year for a reply.
An example of an automated reply for a bakery:
Thank you for contacting Betty’s Bakes! ?
We are now closed until the new year. Reopening on the 2nd of January 2023.
If you have any urgent inquiries please email hello@bettysbakes.co.uk and someone will get back to you within 1-2 normal working days.
Have a very Merry Christmas and we can’t wait to welcome you back in the new year! ?
December Organisation Automated Message
Website Audit
It is easily done to let your website go when it is really busy. Especially if you’re getting a lot of inquiries and orders. So, you’re busy. Why do you need to sort through your website? Well even if you are busy, it is crucial to do a website audit at the end of the year. As in the new year, you will want to open up to new customers that may be looking for your business.
At Digital Marketing Expert, we can offer a full site audit that looks at anything from alt image descriptions, SEO (Search engine optimisation), and site health. All of these things contribute to the running of your website. Contact us today to find out more.
Create December Newsletters
Creating your newsletters for December in advance is another task that you can do to save time during the rest of the month. You may want to send a newsletter with an update on your opening times over the Christmas period as well as your normal monthly newsletter. Create them and get them scheduled.
We would also recommend pre-scheduling a newsletter to go out in the new year. It is the perfect opportunity to showcase any new products or services you have, as well as giving your customers an update on what will be happening in 2023. With this being done in December, it allows you to get on with new pieces of work straight away!
- Newsletter Platforms
Some newsletter platforms that we recommend are MailChimp, SendInBlue, and Klaviyo. Most platforms will offer a free trial or a tester. Then you will be able to decide whether you want to go ahead and pay for the service.
Chase Outstanding Invoices
Organising and chasing outstanding invoices, means you can start the new year fresh with all payments having been made. Starting the new year still chasing customers or supplies for payments will take over the time you need to be planning the new year’s tasks.
Send out a friendly reminder email towards the beginning of the month, and then send a reminder after a week. This should encourage your customers or suppliers to get organised too.
Clear Your To-Do List
Let’s clear your to-do list together! Begin by prioritising the things that need finishing first, and work with your colleagues to get things done quickly together. A great idea is highlighting each task with a range of colours so you can organise an order to get each task done in a timely manner.
You don’t want to drag unfinished tasks into the new year, so make sure you plan out some time now so you can enjoy some relaxing time off over the period of time.
Tidy Your Workspace
You do not want to come back to a busy workspace in January. You want to start the new year fresh and oragnised. Clear up your desk of any rubbish you may have laying around and tidy any documents or files you may have hanging around.
Lastly, we do recommend tidying away any Christmas decorations you have up before you leave on your last day. We know Christmas hasn’t ended, or even start yet but trust us, the more organised you get now, the more thankful you will be when you return after your festive celebrations.
December Organisation for your desk
Review 2022
It is important to look back at the last year to gain some perspective on what worked well and what didn’t work so well. This will help you improve different areas of your business in the new year. It will also help you set goals for 2023. Here are some things which you can look into to review how the last year of your business went:
- Look at data
Firstly, take a look at all of the data you have accumulated over the last year. Things like your newsletter, campaigns, social media, and Google Ads will have data that you can analyse. It is important to know whether you want to run these again and if you want to do them differently.
- Your Staff
Speak to your staff about what they think has gone well and what hasn’t this year. You could also ask them about what they would do differently next year to make things more productive and effective.
Organise an end-of-year meeting either as a group or individually to gain feedback easily. You could also encourage your employees to give feedback anonymously. This could allow them to be more open and honest without judgment.
- Your Customers
Lastly, communicate with your customers, as their feedback will be crucial to your business. Some people will happily give you feedback on their experience. It is important to gain insight from all different areas of the business so that you can improve next year.
An easy way of gaining some feedback is by sending out a survey or some questions via email. Make sure that you keep it short and easy to fill out. Otherwise people may be put off if they have to do too much.
Create Your 2023 Plans
Now is a great time to start your new year plans for your business. Use the time you spent reflecting on the past year to help you outline and define your goals and objectives for 2023. Here are some important factors to consider when outlining these plans:
- Define your business goals and objectives
Before you start exploring any of the other factors, it is important to outline your business goals and objectives for the next year. As the next factors will help you to meet them, but without knowing them you won’t be able to organise anything else in your business. You don’t want to be working really hard but not actually know what you are working towards!
- Understand your target market
Is your target market still the same? If your target audience has changed slightly you need to do some research into this and find out how you are going to connect and engage with them going forward. Even if your target audience is the same, redefining and retuning this is not a pointless activity, there are always new ways to reach people!
It’s important to have a clear understanding of who your target market is and what they’re looking for. This will ensure that your product or service is reaching the correct people, or you won’t make any sales.
- Develop a marketing strategy
Marketing strategies vary from business to business but nevertheless, a solid marketing strategy is essential for any business. Developing your strategy now will help the process of moving into a new year more smoothly. Remember to outline your four Ps – which are product (or service), price, place, and promotion. This should give you a good starting point!
- Define your KPIs
Key performance indicators (KPIs) are a crucial part of any business plan. They help you track and measure your progress toward your goals. Define and outline what your KPIs are for your business in 2023.
Organisation Checklist for 2023
Out-of-Office Emails
Finally, it is time to put your out-of-office emails on. This should notify anybody internally and externally of your availability over the festive period! Make sure you give an alternative contact if there is one and include when you will be returning to work.
Start Your December Organisation Checklist Today…
So there you have it, the December organisation checklist for businesses. We hope by following this guide and creating your own checklist, you will be well on your way to a successful and organised 2023!
If you would like any help with digital marketing in the new year, we would be happy to help you. Please contact us for more information and we will look forward to getting to know your business! We hope that you enjoy the relaxing break with family and friends. We look forward to creating more blogs for you in the new year.
Read some of our other blogs:
Are You Following The Digital Trends Of The Future?
A Beginners Guide For Social Media Marketing
Top 10 Digital Marketing Mistakes
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