I can’t quite believe I’m saying this, but Christmas is on the horizon.
If you’re anything like me, December is about to get busy. From tying up last minute work bits before the break, to school Christmas shows and networking drinks.
So before it all becomes a bit overwhelming, here are 5 little website jobs I’d recommend doing now.
None of them take long. And they mean your website keeps working for you whilst you’re enjoying the festive break. And on that note, please do make sure you’re having some switch off time.
Add your Christmas opening hours to your website
If you’re closing over Christmas, or you have last order or booking dates, tell people!
The easiest way to do this in Squarespace is with an Announcement Bar. It sits right at the top of every page, so nobody can miss it.
Something like, “We’re closed from 23rd December to 2nd January. Last orders by 15th December!'“ would work really well.
Little tip: pop a reminder in your calendar to take it down on your first day back in January! There’s nothing worse than seeing a Christmas message pop up in Feb…
Set your holiday hours on Google Business Profile
Lots of people check Google before they click through onto your website. So if your Google Business Profile says you’re open on Boxing Day, and you’re not, that’s a frustrated customer before they’ve even met you.
If your Google Business Profile you can add ‘special hours’, for specific dates. It’ll only take you a couple of minutes.
If you haven’t set up your Google Business Profile yet, I wrote a whole post on how to set it up and my top tips. Defo worth doing before the new year.
Test your contact forms, bookings and checkout system
Send yourself a test enquiry through your contact form. Does it land in the right inbox? Or is it hiding in your spam folder?
If you take bookings or sell anything online, do a little test run of that too. Especially gift vouchers, as they're so popular at this time of year.
And while you're at it, set up an out-of-office email. That way anyone who gets in touch over the break knows when they'll hear back from you.
Give your homepage a little festive nudge
You don't need to redesign anything! Just think about what people need to know right now.
Selling gift vouchers? Put them near the top of your homepage.
Running a Christmas offer? Make it easy to find.
Already taking bookings for January? Say so!
It's a small change, but it shows people your business is busy and ready to help.
Do a quick end-of-year tidy up
A few little housekeeping jobs to finish the year:
Update the copyright year in your footer to 2027
Check when your domain and Squarespace plan are due to renew, so nothing lapses over Christmas
Click through your main pages and look for any broken links
Have a look at your website on your phone. So much festive browsing happens on the sofa, so make sure it looks good on a small screen!
Need a little more than a tidy up?
If you've gone through this list and realised your website needs a bit more love, January is the perfect time to sort it.
My Expert Day is 6 hours of me working on your existing Squarespace website, fixing the bits that are bugging you. I'm booking January dates now, so please do get in touch if you'd like one!
You can read more about all my packages here.
So, which of these jobs is going on your to-do list?