How should a small business prepare for Christmas?
For many local businesses, December is the busiest month of the year, and the one with the least time to market yourself. The answer is simple: decide everything before you get swamped, then follow a plan prepared in advance.
This guide focuses on Christmas. For the rest of the year, see our guide to preparing seasonal promotions and our free marketing calendar. To set holiday hours on Google, see Google holiday hours.
When should you start, and in what order?
This countdown is for Christmas 2026 (Friday 25 December) and New Year’s Day (Friday 1 January 2027). Adapt it to your trade.
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Late October | Choose the offer: Christmas and New Year’s Eve menus, gift boxes, seasonal products, vouchers. Set prices. Order packaging. |
| Early November | Take the photos. Put the offer on your website. Prepare the order form and deadline. |
| Mid-November | Announce: Google post, social media, customer email, in-store poster. Open party-night bookings. |
| Late November | Set holiday hours on Google and your website. Dress the window. In the US, Small Business Saturday falls on 28 November 2026; in the UK, on the first Saturday of December (5 December 2026). |
| First half of December | One reminder a week. Push vouchers for undecided shoppers. |
| Week before the deadline | “Last chance to order”. Plan collection slots. |
| 22-24 December | Collections, today’s hours in stories, replies to messages. |
| January | Thank customers, ask for reviews, bring new customers back. |
Free tool, no sign-up
Free marketing calendar 2026-2027
Every key date of the year for a local business, with when to start preparing each one.
Shops: gift boxes, vouchers and the window
In a shop, Christmas comes down to three things: helping customers choose, saving them time, and making people want to come in from the pavement.
Ready-to-give gift boxes
Three to five boxes at round, distinct prices (small, medium, large), already wrapped, reassure customers in a hurry. A “gift idea for…” label (a wine lover, a mum, a colleague) does more than any sales pitch.
Vouchers for the undecided
Hair salons, beauty salons, restaurants, wine shops, bookshops: a gift voucher is the ultimate last-minute present, and it brings you a new customer in January. Show its value, expiry date and how to use it clearly.
The window and your hours
Plan the Christmas window in late November, and think about extended hours. In England and Wales, shops over 280 square metres can only open for 6 consecutive hours between 10am and 6pm on Sundays, and must close on Christmas Day (GOV.UK). Smaller shops are not covered by those limits.
Discounts: be honest
If you advertise a reduction, compare it with a price you genuinely charged before, and keep proof of it. In France, the rule is explicit: show the discount and the reference price, i.e. the price charged for at least 30 days before the reduction (Entreprendre Service Public). Many local shops prefer not to discount at Christmas at all and compete on advice and wrapping instead.
Bakeries, caterers, wine shops: how do you run pre-orders?
Holiday orders (Yule logs, platters, roasts, wine) often turn Christmas Eve morning into chaos. Three rules prevent the crush:
- One order form (paper in store plus a form or email) with name, phone, products, quantity, collection day and slot.
- An order deadline shown everywhere: poster, website, posts, emails.
- Collection slots (every half hour, for example) to spread the rush. Show them in “More hours” on Google if your category allows it.
On the day, a table or till dedicated to collections, with orders sorted by slot, makes all the difference.
How do you get your online shop window ready for Christmas?
Before they walk through your door, many customers look at your Google profile and your website. In December, these are your two most-viewed windows: they should show at a glance what you offer for the holidays.
On your Google profile
- Three or four recent photos of your festive products or dishes, taken in daylight (our smartphone photo guide has the settings).
- A “Christmas offer” post with the price, the deadline and a button to book or order.
- Holiday hours entered day by day.
- Quick replies to reviews and to questions asked on the profile: in December, many customers are choosing between two places.
On your website
- A “Christmas” section or page visible from the home page, with the offer as text, prices and the deadline.
- The booking or order button at the top of the page, with closed days blocked in online booking.
- Your special evenings (New Year’s Eve, tastings, workshops) listed as events, with date, time and price.
The same photo and text can work everywhere: Google profile, website, Instagram and email. Prepare them once, in early November.
What should you post, and when?
You don’t need to post every day. Five well-timed messages are enough for most businesses:
| When | Message | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Mid-November | “Our Christmas menu / gift boxes are here” + photo | Google profile, Instagram, Facebook, email |
| Early December | Behind the scenes: preparation, a new product, the team | Instagram, Facebook |
| Mid-December | “Last chance to order / book” + deadline | Every channel |
| A few days before | Holiday hours, last-minute vouchers | Google profile, stories, poster |
| Early January | Thank you + review request | Email, social media, in store |
Your Google profile is often the first thing a customer sees when searching “Christmas catering” or “New Year’s Eve dinner” nearby: post your offer there with a photo. If you have an email list, one message in mid-November and one reminder before the deadline are enough; our email newsletter guide explains how.
Templates to copy
Launch post (restaurant)
Christmas is coming at [restaurant name] 🎄
Our festive menu is served on [dates]: [starter], [main], [dessert]. £[price] per person.
New Year’s Eve: only [number] seats. Book online or call [number].
Launch post (shop)
Your gifts are ready!
Gift boxes at £[price], £[price] and £[price], wrapped in store. Still stuck? A gift voucher always goes down well.
Open [December days and hours].
“Last chance” email
Subject: Christmas orders, only [number] days left
Hello,
You can still order your [Yule logs / platters / gift boxes] until [date]. Collection on [date] between [time] and [time].
To order: [link or phone].
Happy holidays,
[First name], [business name]
January thank-you message
Thank you for celebrating Christmas with us! If you enjoyed [your meal / your gifts], a quick Google review helps us a lot: [link to your review page]. Happy New Year.
After Christmas: how do you keep new customers?
December brings people who didn’t know you: voucher recipients, gift shoppers, New Year’s Eve guests. January is the time to bring them back.
- Ask for a review from happy customers, in store with a QR code or by email. Our guide to getting more Google reviews covers the method.
- Welcome voucher holders warmly: it’s their first visit, so invite them to stay in touch (newsletter, loyalty card).
- Plan what’s next: January sales, Valentine’s Day, Mothering Sunday in the UK.
- Write down what worked: sold-out products, boxes left in stock, peak hours. It’s your best starting point for next year.
Which mistakes should you avoid?
- Announcing too late. A menu published on 15 December arrives after customers have booked elsewhere.
- No order deadline: everything lands on the 23rd.
- Different hours on Google, your website and the door.
- A PDF-only menu, unreadable on a phone.
- A fake discount (an inflated “was” price): it misleads customers and it shows.
- Forgetting January: December customers leave without a trace.
What matters most for your trade?
| Trade | Christmas priority |
|---|---|
| Restaurant | Festive and New Year’s Eve menus published early, online booking, written terms |
| Bakery, patisserie | Pre-orders, deadline, collection slots |
| Wine shop, deli | Gift boxes at round prices, pairing advice, vouchers |
| Shop | Window, gift boxes, extended hours, wrapping |
| Hair or beauty salon | Pre-holiday appointments opened early, vouchers |
| Bar | End-of-year parties, private hire, New Year’s Eve hours |
The steps at a glance
The steps to get ready for Christmas without rushing in December.
- Decide the offer. Late October: menu or gift boxes, prices, vouchers, hours.
- Prepare your material. Early November: photos, offer on the website, order form, deadline.
- Announce. Mid-November: Google post, social media, email, in-store poster.
- Update your hours. Late November: holiday hours on Google, your website and the door.
- Remind. In December: one reminder a week, then “last chance” before the deadline.
- Bring customers back. In January: thank you, review request, invitation to return.
Do it without spending your evenings on it
Voxtya social media
Christmas post ideas, with text and visuals ready for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and your Google profile, organised in a calendar: plan December in one go. €29/month, 30-day free trial.
This guide for your trade
Go further
Sources
The rules quoted in this guide come from these official pages, checked on October 18, 2026.