During the holiday season, you're busy buying gifts, attending celebrations and doing the hundred and one things that make the season so frantic.

But what about your business? You can get a real business hangover after the holidays if you forget that you've got a business to run.

You'll want to relax and take a few days off, but don't drop the ball completely. Holidays or not, the bills will keep coming in, and you've got to keep moving and keep your business humming.

If you're tempted to slacken off, tell yourself that your competitors are almost certainly not guzzling champagne or lounging on the beach in Tahiti, they're working harder than ever.

Here's how to keep sales steaming along during the holiday season:

* Send greeting cards to customers: all your customers. Your customers are your personal gold mine. Say thanks. Offer them a special holiday deal;

* Use holiday season parties to network. Keep a stash of business cards in your pocket;

* If you've set a working schedule for yourself, stick to it as much as possible. Don't give yourself time off just because you're the boss and you can. If you don't have a schedule, create one;

* Keep up your marketing schedule. Whether you advertise online or offline, get your holiday period marketing push under way. No excuses, like: "People are too busy to buy from me over the holidays." No, they're not, especially not online, where you have potential customers from all over the world.

Get marketing, and make this holiday season your best season ever. Happy holidays to you and your business.

Author of many books, including Making the Internet Work for Your Business, copywriter and journalist Angela Booth also writes copy for businesses large and small, and consults on search engine marketing. Angela has written copy for companies in many industries, ranging from technology and real estate to the jewellery trade. Her clients include major corporations like hp (Hewlett Packard), WestPac Bank, and Acer Computer. For copywriting services and marketing advice contact Angela at angelabooth.com

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