"Maximizing Sales During the Holiday Season

It’s been a long year and you and your staff are probably tired.  You are looking forward to holiday parties (see our article on Corporate Event Success – Six Basic Rules) and some time off to be with your loved ones.  Why make a push for more sales and business contacts?  Because now is the perfect time!

Start Now for January Sales

Plan your marketing strategy now for those closed sales in January and beyond.  How can you use the events of the season for the most contacts?  Here are some proven ideas:

• Step up your mailings to your customer and contact database with year-end information they can use.  Everyone is looking for those nuggets that they can work into their resolutions or business plans.  Give them some of yours!
• Plan your holiday gift giving carefully.  Determine which clients and contacts will receive gifts and how much you will spend.  Do not put off these plans until December.  See our article on Corporate Gift Giving for more information.
• Start developing your holiday card mailing list.  Consider sending out year 2001 calendar cards instead.  I’ve been amazed how many business people actually keep these all year long.
• Plan an Open House or Holiday Event in your office.  These take careful planning, but can be a great way to show off your new product lines or added capacity.  Make sure your staff is on-board with these plans and work to make the workplace look great for the visitors.  Make displays and signs that illustrate your work.  PowerPoint presentations set to loop on computer screens are good, too.
• Be sure to attend your local Chamber holiday events and donate to the charity drives for toys and auction items.
• Send clients an end of the year report on services and include some ideas for needed improvements for next year.  Highlight the benefits of new products and services to solve the client’s business problems or increase sales.
• Add a special holiday message to your corporate web site – visitors will know that it has been updated for the season.  On January 1st, be sure that the site goes back to the non-holiday format.
• Write personalized messages in the holiday cards of your clients (if possible).  These messages mean more than just the standard signature.
• Raise your prices January 1st.  Let everyone know that deals signed before then will receive the lower price.

Put these ideas into action now and watch for an increase in sales well into the new year.  Let us know if you have any additional ideas for this area in our InfoExchange area.