Peak Season Prep:
6 Must-Dos Before the Orders Roll In
If your business is about to enter its busy season, you need to be prepared. Preparation can be pivotal to customer satisfaction, profit, and keeping everyday operations running smoothly.
Before customers start lining up at your door or filling their online shopping carts, you can prepare for the organized chaos ahead in the following ways:
Connect with Your Suppliers and Partners
If you rely on other businesses to operate your business properly, contact them to ensure they’re as ready for the busy season ahead as you are. For example, if you have a partner in 3PL logistics and warehousing in Melbourne, you can contact them to ask about lead times and whether there’s anything you need to be aware of before you open your doors for business.
You can also connect with vendors to discuss stock levels so you can be fully transparent with your customers about wait times and shipping expectations.
Review Last Year’s Performance
Most businesses strive to do better year-on-year. However, you can’t hope to do that if you aren’t sure what your previous year’s successes and failures looked like. Use key performance indicators (KPIs) to track your progress on business objectives. These can include total revenue, profit, revenue growth, and return on investment (ROI).
You can also think of challenges you faced that you would like to avoid this year, such as poor customer service, shipping delays, and stock shortages. Awareness of your successes and failures can put you in an excellent position for change and growth.
Audit Your Inventory
The last thing you want is to tell your customers that you’re sold out of all their favorites. That’s why an inventory audit is so crucial. Before your peak season begins, ensure your top-selling products are well-stocked – and don’t forget about packaging! You might also consider increasing quantities of items you ran low on or sold out of last year.
Ensure Tech Integration
Most modern businesses rely on technology for everyday operations. Technology can allow for better customer service and increase efficiency and accuracy. Avoid hiccups by making sure every piece of software you use for your daily business will work together in harmony for customer convenience.
Run tests of your website, POS, inventory management, and fulfillment software so you can expect customers to receive straightforward service from start to finish.
Refine Your Marketing Strategy
You’ve got the stock, now you just need the customers. This can involve developing a marketing strategy so they know who you are, what you offer, and how they can shop with you.
Work with a marketing team to create ads, run promotions, build email campaigns, and craft social media content. The more visible you are, the easier it is for customers to find you.
Get Your Team Ready
If you expect to be inundated with orders during your busy season, ensure your team is ready for the sudden influx. Employees on the frontline should have excellent customer service skills and know how to problem-solve. Employees behind the scenes, packing orders and managing everyday operations, should be able to keep up to maintain high standards. If they can’t, consider hiring more employees before customer service is affected.
Most importantly, be available and approachable when needed to keep both your team and customers happy.
The orders are about to start rolling in, and you need to be ready! Prepare your employees, fine-tune your marketing, and ensure your business partners are as prepared as you are. You can then enter your busy season with complete confidence.
