Do you get a warm glow when you think about the upcoming Christmas festivities, or are you breaking into a sweat thinking about how to get everything done in a short business month?

Now is a great time to hire a virtual assistant for some Christmas help. You still have time to hire and train a virtual assistant up to speed with some of those extra tasks—the ones which can otherwise wear you down in the Christmas rush.

Here are 7 virtual assistant services that will help see you through the festive period.

1. Show your clients some appreciation

Taking the time to write personally to your clients is a great way to reaffirm your relationship with them and show appreciation for their loyalty; and what a better time to do this than Christmas. However, this task can be quite time-consuming when you could be spending time improving your business. Virtual assistants can take care of this whole process for you, whether it is sending e-cards or going the extra mile and buying gifts for your clients; you are able to keep on top of the more important tasks before the end of the year

2. Organise a festive promotion

During this time of the year, businesses may slow down as your clients get ready for the festive seasons. To keep clients interested, why not run a festive promotion. It can be a fun way to keep your clients interactive and maybe attract new clients with your offers and Christmas themes. For example, a virtual assistant can start a marketing campaign on your social media or maybe design a festive newsletter with information on what’s to come next year. Whether it be big or small a virtual assistant can provide support.

3. Keep an eye on your emails and correspondence

Emails still need to be answered, social media accounts still need to be updated and orders still need to be filled. You are probably keen to take a few weeks off during the Christmas period but unfortunately not all your clients will be doing the same thing. A virtual assistant can give you peace of mind knowing everything is being taken care of professionally and efficiently, keeping you and your clients happy during the holiday period.

4. Take control of your Diary management

The end of the year should be a time of relaxation and reflection, but with Christmas parties and festive gatherings every week, your diary can fill up very quickly during the festive period. In addition, you may have a family holiday planned and trying to find the time for it all can be time-consuming and stress in of itself. A virtual assistant can arrange and book both your business meetings and your family holidays using their expert organisational skills, so you are able to have a more carefree Christmas and enjoy this time of the year.

5. Throw an office party

As well as showing your clients appreciation, you cannot forget about your employees. Plan them a Christmas party where they can unwind and have some fun. A virtual assistant can have this all sorted a planned in no time, with only a little information such as a budget, numbers and location ideas, they will be able to find you the best deals, so you and your employees can celebrate Christmas in style.

6. Finalise outstanding payments

Not exactly what you want to be thinking about at the end of the year, but it must be done, and it is definitely something that you don’t want to be starting the new year with. Hire a virtual assistant to do the hard work for you and chase down those last-minute payments. An experienced virtual assistant will know how to handle this subject sensitivity and professionally to ensure you start 2018 with a fresh financial footing.

7. Prepare for 2018!

Planning and preparing are very important to small businesses. Analysing both what went well and what to improve on can be vital to moving your business to the next level, but finding time to plan ahead with all your business tasks to sort out and Christmas parties attend, you can find yourself wishing for more hours in the day and more days in the week. Instead, hire a virtual assistant to help you with your tasks during the Christmas period so you can plan for the new year. Create new goals and revamp your business so that next year can be even better than the last.

Even Santa gets all the help he can at this time of year, so why shouldn’t you call in your very own troop of elves? And once all of the cards are sent, emails are answered and parties have been attended, you can put your feet up in front of the fire and enjoy the Christmas season with the ones you love!