Where did this year go? It’s not long till Christmas now! But not too late to start planning the last quarter of 2018.
From now on it will start to get busy. I have made a plan for October and November, so I am clear on what I need to achieve. Where are you at with your planning?
So, let’s break it down:
Ask yourselves some questions…
- What do you want to achieve before December 31st, 2018?
- What can you offer to your current clients or new clients in this last quarter?
- Do you have a product or service that would be beneficial to businesses at this time of year?
Time to plan. So how do we start? We can look at a few key areas.
Shall we start with your sales targets?
How many more clients would you like to bring to your business before the end of the year? And how many sales coffee meetings does that equate to? What is your success rate in sales?
Put your sales plan for quarter 4 in place now. It’s not too late. My VA will be doing this research for me! Seeking out new sales contacts for my business. There is so much research that can be done online to find new and exciting business contacts.
What about your last quarter marketing plan?
Do you know exactly what is happening in your social media for the rest of this year? Do you have a brochure or flyer you would like to send out to your clients or prospective contacts to sell a product or service? It’s not too late to organise this now.
Have you planned your holiday?
Why not sit down tonight with your family and work out exactly what you would like to do at Christmas and in January. It is so important at this time of year to have a break. Spend some time with the ones you love and stop thinking about your business! And get in quickly before places book out.
At my house we have a calendar specifically for each school holiday. Every member of the family adds their important dates to the calendar. It is a really good communication tool to make sure everything runs smoothly for the holidays. You can do this in an electronic format by sharing calendars or the old-fashioned paper way! Most of us have smart phones now including our children so having a shared calendar for the family is an easy option.
So, what will your office be doing over the Christmas break?
Now is a good time to speak to those who work for you to find out exactly who is taking holidays, and when. Decide what dates (if any) you will shut the office, so that everyone has time out. Maybe you don’t shut the office, but instead stagger the holidays so that its business as usual but everyone gets a break at some point.
If you are shutting the office over Christmas, don’t forget to use your favourite communication tool to inform your clients what dates you will be closing down in December and January. Communicating with your clients early will make it easier for them to plan their holiday period as well. Also, put a note in your diary in December to remind you to set up an out of office email and a message on your phones before you go on holidays.
Then there is the budgeting and accounts.
You need to look at your budget for your employee’s annual leave, a Christmas party, Christmas gifts for your clients, marketing in the last quarter of this year, and of course a personal budget for your own holiday. Just to name a few.
Start looking at this now so it doesn’t come back to bite you! You don’t want to go into January and the New Year with a debt from Christmas. Having a conversation with your accountant now will relieve your stress later. Make sure your accounts are all organised well before Christmas, so your BAS is ready in February. You don’t want to come back from holidays and try to remember what each of the payments were for. Organise your receipts before you go away so you can relax and enjoy your time off.
Did you know that Streamlined Organising can provide you with a Virtual Assistant (VA) for a short-term project, to help you get organised for Christmas! Would you love to send out Christmas cards each year, but you usually run out of time? A Streamlined Organising VA can do it for you! Organising gifts for your clients at Christmas can be a chore but one of our VA’s can do it for you!
So many things to think about for the last quarter of the year. Make a plan now and communicate well with the people around you, and it can come and go without an issue. No more Christmas stress and, instead, a lot of Christmas cheer!
If you need a hand with any of these things, please give us a call and let us know how we can help you through what is the busiest time of year. It’s not too late!
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