The end of the year can cause a lot of anxiety for many small business owners. We’re trying to squeeze all we can out of the year, wrapping up projects and getting prepared for the big exciting projects coming in the New Year. From a marketing perspective there’s a few decisions you have to make as well that I thought I’d remind you of. Don’t stress out – none of these are required, all of them are worth making sure you consider!
- Your December Newsletter – if you send out a regular newsletter, when should you send it out? The last week of the year is often a dead time to send newsletters since so many people are on vacation. And how far into the week before Christmas can you send out a newsletter? My suggestion is to send it by the 21st. If you don’t send a regular newsletter – consider sending out a Happy New Year email newsletter in January when inboxes aren’t quite as clogged (wait till the end of the first week of January so inboxes are cleaned up from vacations)
- Client Gifts – If you plan to send gifts to clients make sure you have them ready to send by the 2nd week of December and hopefully get them sent out that same week. Pro Tip – I like making a donation in my client’s honor, no one needs more stuff, and this is a thoughtful way to show your appreciation and give to an organization (CPA husband tip: donations are tax deductible!)
- Holiday Cards – I was labeling holiday cards today to send out to our friends and family and I know many businesses also send out email or mail holiday greetings – if this is on your to do list get them in the mail at least a week before Christmas to ensure delivery. And if you’re card is more general or you prefer, aim for Happy New Years and mail them out the week of New Years when you might be less busy!
- Prep for Early January – If you’re taking time off at the end of the year – make sure to consider what tasks you typically accomplish at the end of the month and beginning of the month. Make sure to do these in advance if you can, or add them to the top of your to do list when you return to your office!
- Take a Break! I’m a big fan of taking time off, especially if my clients are. I know that most of my clients will be on vacation and taking time off the last two weeks of the year, and I plan to take most of that time off as well. It’s certainly not required, but if your schedule allows, take some time to rest so you aren’t exhausted in January!
What other year end tasks and “December Decisions” do you have?
Years ago I heard someone at a nonprofit say there’s three ways to give back: with your time, your talents or your treasure. That’s stuck with me over the years when I connect with a nonprofit. November 2016 has been one of the weirder months on record. And as 
I was at a luncheon last week and the host was talking about the give and take of networking. It’s a hard line to give too much help and get nothing in return, or to only take and never give. But one point that I really appreciated was: