4 Things to Consider as You Prepare Your Business for the Festive Season

The festive season is upon us. Along with the holidays and festivities also comes the extra stress on businesses. From increased traffic to growth in sales, businesses are definitely going to experience the surge. And while this on its own are good for business, they can as well spell disaster if not managed well by entrepreneurs.

But thanks to increasing digital innovation, entrepreneurs are able to stay one step ahead of the rush. In this post are 4 ways you can prepare your business for the holiday season with technology.

Automated Customer Service

Implementing customer service automation can have a huge impact on your business this season. Having an automated customer service minimizes redundancy and wasted effort. For example, your automated customer care can be programmed to provide scripted responses to the most recurring situations/inquiries/complains. This not only saves your employees the stress but also increases your team’s workflow as your human employees won’t waste valuable time responding to the same request over and over. Hence, you can respond to a larger section of customers within a short period of time.

The use of automation & #MachineLearning can help you understand customer income & expenditure. This kind of insight helps businesses make better decisions for their customers. https://t.co/OPzbSIOMjR pic.twitter.com/9ORE5OfcrM

— Experian Business UK (@ExperianB2B_UK) December 4, 2018

Automated customer service is also not constrained by time or public holidays. So even during the festive break your customers don’t have to wait hours or even days for a response and can have their inquiries resolved at any time.

Sleeker Payment Systems

Because more sales mean more money coming in, your business will be needing a suitable channel to help you process those payments properly. Due to the digital environment we live in, your consumers would likely prefer to do business online. So you could try integrating a flexible, robust Application Programming Interface (API) to your site. It’s also absolutely vital your payment systems are able to withstand the massive influx of payments without crashing as well as provide a user-friendly experience for customers.

Yes! We need better payment systems before anything else!

— Matt Neville (@mn_ville) February 21, 2018

This is because if a customer becomes frustrated by all the stress they have to go through to buy a product/service, they might decide it’s not worth the effort and sign off.

Beef Up Your Security!

Due to recent data breaches in big tech firms like Facebook, there has been a lot of attention to data security. And because of the rush, there would be a lot of information/customer details going through your systems this season. It is your responsibility as the startup owner to ensure that your customers’ details are secure.

With all the sophistication of your security systems @FNBSA HOW do you guys allow unauthorized R99 transactions to go through our accounts on a REGULAR basis MULTIPLE times even? You guys better come correct, tired of your filth!😤😤

— Thole loMthwakazi (@MsAphelele) November 16, 2018

Cyber criminals are also expected to use this period of massive traffic to find loopholes and infiltrate your systems. But there are a several security tools that you could use to remain safe. In addition to those, also ensure that your anti-virus software is up to date and strengthen your admin passwords.

Double-check before downloading any attachment you received in email or any other platform. The criminal may send #malware #embedded in other files, even in images or documents. So, it’s better to download only trusted #attachments. #Cybersecurity tips- https://t.co/yCqRlmPOB0

— Madhurjya Ch (@MaddyChek) December 13, 2018

Outsource your Deliveries

As the demand for your products/services increase, it is also very important that you handle properly your logistics process. Prompt delivery is very important and in order to be efficient and meet the demand. As such you might want to consider the use of a third-party logistics and distribution service that allows you track your products in real-time.

Think of it as an extension of your team, and it will enable you focus on other core areas of your business.

If you intend to outsource your delivery fulfillments, you might want to check how responsible the people are. This bunch. Fail max.

— Sabrina 'Princessa' Wang (@sabrinasg) November 10, 2011

Hey @virginmedia, please be advised it’s now almost 48 hours since my tv package should have been delivered to my address. You might have to consider changing the company you outsource your delivery to. This experience has left me feeling traumatised and depressed. Do better.

— Dr. Dípò Awójídé (@OgbeniDipo) October 5, 2018

And should you decide to outsource, choose the right outsourcing partner. Most especially one that’s reliable, after all you do not want to keep your customers waiting.