What's Christmas without connection?
As a large business, we connect with people daily
Whether we’re building relationships with our Partners, networking with new clients, or collaborating as employees; these interactions are what makes TalkTalk Business a great place to work.
In this blog we’ll share how we’re planning to stay connected over Christmas as a business and offer some tips for you to improve your own connections over the festive period.
1. Working remotely? Stay connected
Don’t get lost in email, connect with your colleagues via instant message instead. Whether it’s catching up on last night’s I’m a celebrity get me out of here, or the best online shopping bargains, the key is to keep the conversation flowing. Regular contact is how we best support colleagues as you would if you were all working in the office together.
Working remotely but have a meeting? No problem, you can have a virtual meeting using telepresence or connect with conference call using VoIP.
2. Keep your customers in the loop
Make sure your customers know your opening and closing hours, busy periods (that they might want to avoid) or special offers over the festive period. Having a support team ‘on call’ is also a good way to show customers that you’re still available to help them even when your business is closed. Alternatively, you could set up Live Chat functionality on your website connecting customers to chatbots to deal with common queries.
3. Create a great place to work
You know what they say…Christmas is the most wonderful time of year! There are plenty of opportunities to have fun and establish meaningful connections with your co-workers around the Christmas period. You could decorate the office, go for a festive team lunch, do a secret Santa gift exchange, or wear Christmas jumpers.
4. Make your office party the best one yet
Don’t forget the most highly anticipated event of the year- the office Christmas party. Whether you’re planning a small get together, or a big night out, ensure that every employee can let their hair down and celebrate.
While you’ve probably already decided on a venue, you can use technology to upgrade your party. Stream Christmas films on a projector, play festive themed karaoke, create a photobooth and share the best ones on your social media channels - the possibilities are endless with a bit of creativity!
5. Give thanks to your customers
Say thank you to your customers with a Christmas card or gift. You don’t need to break the bank, sending a thank you email is enough to show gratitude. If you send a monthly newsletter, you can put a festive spin on it and include a thank you note expressing your appreciation and best wishes for the New Year.
6. Make sure you have a secure connection
These days Wi-Fi is readily available in most coffee shops. While popping out for a festive hot chocolate is a nice idea in theory, make sure you don’t end up on your organisation’s naughty list by breaching security. Be aware that public Wi-Fi isn’t secure so always try and use your VPN while out and about for business purposes.
7. Create a highlights video
Inject some personality into the end of year highlights blog or newsletter. It doesn’t matter what platform you use, or how professional the video looks, the important thing is the message you’re putting across. Your customers are much more likely to respond positively to a home-made video that gives them a concise update.
8. Give something back
Christmas is the perfect opportunity to help those who are less fortunate. If charity work or volunteering is something you’ve been considering, why not boost your numbers by volunteering as a workplace?
Here at TalkTalk Business, we have donation boxes around the Soapworks office to allow people to easily donate toys for the charity Mission Christmas. Many of our team have also offered their digital skills and expertise to support people who are digitally disadvantaged, never been online or using digital technology to help their communities to be a better place via iTea and Biscuits at the Hamilton Davies Trust in Irlam. Whether you’re donating items to shelters, selling cakes at a bake sale to raise money, or volunteering – work together and spread some festive cheer to help others.
9. Ask your customers for feedback
Customer feedback is vital, so why not create a dialogue with your customers and help your business improve for the next year? Creating a survey and sending via email is a good way to gather feedback, however it’s even better if you can put a personal touch on it by calling your customers or setting up a meeting. You can use this feedback to drive your strategy in the New Year and your customers will appreciate that you’ve listened to them and made changes.
10. Don’t forget to switch off
We understand that Christmas and January can be busy, and often stressful, but remember to take time to enjoy the season too. Put down your work phone, stop checking your emails and spend quality time with the people who mean the most to you. Doing so will help you come back refreshed and happy, ready to kick start 2019 with a bang.
