Holiday Business Communications Checklist

The holidays may be the happiest time of the year, but they are also the busiest. With all the hustle and bustle it’s easy for things to fall through the cracks. We thought it would be helpful to jot down a list of holiday related business communications items that you won’t want to forget.

Update Your Auto Attendant to Let People Know about Your Holiday Hours

If you are expanding your hours or taking a few days off during the holidays, be sure to let your callers know by adding a message to your auto attendant.

Make Good Use of Your Hold Messages

Don’t forget to update your hold messages to mention any special promotions or holiday related offers. You might even include a message of well wishes for the season and throw in a Christmas carol or two. For a professional touch, consider a voice recording service like Snap Recordings.

Don’t Forget about Your Website and Social Media Properties

Your holiday hours should be updated on all of your online properties including websites and social media networks.

Make Sure to Set Email Auto Responders

Employees who will be taking time off during the holidays should be reminded to set auto responders for email so that customers and prospects will know when to expect a reply. It is also a good idea to set these up for generic email addresses like “support@” or “sales@” if you will be closed.

Review Your PSTN Failover Settings

The busy holiday season is no time for your phones to go unanswered. Make sure that your phone system is properly configured to route calls to home numbers or other branches in case a weather event or other problem keeps employees from getting to the office. For our SIP trunking customers, this is easily accomplished in the control panel.

Make Sure You Are Ready for 2016

This is a great time to evaluate your business communications needs and determine if your current systems and services will be adequate to support your plans for 2016. If you are using a traditional telephone system with expensive PRI lines, think about switching to a SIP trunking solution to cut costs and simplify communication in the new year.

Do you have any other holiday tips to add to our list? If so, we’d love to hear them. We wish all of our readers a safe and joyful holiday season.