Now is the time to start planning for the busy holiday season (OND).

We’ve written about OND planning in the past, but this year we turned directly to our experts and asked: What are they seeing “on the ground” this year, and what advice do they have for wineries for the coming season?

Here are their top three tips.

Tip #1: Decide on Gifting/Kitting ASAP

Gifting, especially corporate gifting programs, can be great for wineries. Those gift packages and kits will likely need additional items, however. For example, a gift set might include:

• Special seasonal packaging
• Collateral (brochures, catalogs, etc.)
• Gift items(opener, glassware, etc.)
• Specialty bags
• Bellybands

“Anything special—packaging, bellybands, collateral, etc—should be ordered soon [in summer months] so as to not risk delays,” says Amanda Castorena, Account Executive here at Copper Peak. “If you order later when more wineries and companies are ordering as well, it might take longer than expected to receive what you need.”

Need some ideas for kitting and gifting? Talk with our team, or read about some of the cool ideas we’ve seen.

Tip #2: Get You Calendar Together

“Now is the time to submit all of your club setup forms, with ship dates, for the remainder of the year—if you have not already done so,” says Mike Galvan, our Senior Account Manager. Working daily with our clients, Mike has a good sense of how quickly schedules fill up.

For example: Because planning for OND is well underway, some ship dates have already been “blacked out” for the remainder of the year. (Mondays especially—these are typically the first to be blacked out.) And nothing is worse than creating a late-stage calendar, only to find out that your ship dates just aren’t possible.

Also, plan on adding a couple of days to your carrier’s normal time-in-transit commitments. That way, if there is a delay, you will still have some wiggle room.

Tip #3: Refresh and Schedule Your Marketing

When orders are rolling in, you might not have the  time to make sure your marketing materials are up-to-date and effective. So do that now, while in the planning phase.

For example:

• Is the contact information on your website and any collateral accurate? (That includes email, phone number, website, social media, etc.)
• Do you have enough printed material for your club orders and gifting? (See tip #1 above.)
• Do you have enough merchandise for your gift kitting?
• Is there a plan in place for publicizing your promotions? 

“You would be surprised how much frustration is created simply because a catalog or website lists an old customer service number or email,” says Mike. Correcting that is a quick fix, but one that is easily overlooked in the holiday rush. 

Other Planning Tips

Looking for a way to track all of your “to-dos” that need to get done before the OND season hits? Check out this article and scroll down to find a checklist you can print.

We also recommend this recipe for holiday shipping success by our own Senior Vice President of Client Services, Merilee Anderson.

Need a little more “hands on” guidance in preparing for OND this year? Feel free to reach out to your Client Services Team.