In the past, you probably posted a job, hired fast as fast as you could, and hoped for the best. But seasonal hiring doesn’t have to feel like a gamble. Done right, it can give you flexibility, protect your margins, and improve your customer experience. Done wrong, it creates more work than it solves.

Most small businesses rely on referrals and word-of-mouth to get new opportunities. Behind these businesses is a network of relationships that passes on opportunities through trust and loyalty, which are crucial for local economies and take time to build.

Every business is convinced they offer stellar service but if you can’t think of a company in your area that offers bad service, it might be you. It’s statistically impossible for every business to offer “the best” service. One is better than the other. We aren’t all 5-stars all the time.

Some days it feels hard to compete with the loss leaders big box stores employ, the operating hours they’re able to keep, the programs, their ad budget, their marketing…the list goes on. But small businesses do have an advantage box stores don’t and it’s one that’s rarely used.

You don’t need 47 dashboards or a data analyst to track the KPIs that matter. You just need to choose a few that tell you whether you’re growing, stalling, or unknowingly throwing money out the window.

Here are five simple, high-impact updates your business can make right now (some so quick you can implement them between customers) to get ahead of the holiday rush.

With time being so precious, it’s important to consider which digital tools are essential in today’s business climate and which are more optional.

As the business owner, it is within your discretion to raise them at any time.