A customer finds your business on Google during a lunch break. They want to pick up a gift, book an appointment, or find out whether you can finish a project before the holidays. They open your website—and the hours look different, the booking link leads somewhere unexpected, or there is no clear deadline.
Those are small details to a busy business owner. To the person trying to make a decision, they are the whole experience.
You do not need to rebuild your website to get ready for a busy season. A few thoughtful updates can make it easier for people to understand what is available and what to do next. For local shops, this year’s calendar includes Thanksgiving on November 26 and Small Business Saturday on November 28. For service businesses, the important dates may be your last appointment, project cutoff, or time away with family.
Start with the hours and availability people actually need
If your business has regular customer-facing hours, check your Google Business Profile alongside your website. Confirm holiday closures, shorter days, and any extra hours. Google recommends confirming holiday hours even when they stay the same, so customers can tell that the information has been checked.
In your profile, look under Edit profile → Hours → Special hours. Use special hours for short holiday exceptions instead of replacing your normal weekly schedule. If you will be closed for seven or more consecutive days, Google recommends marking the business temporarily closed instead. Google also separates service hours, such as pickup or delivery, from a business’s main hours. Google explains how these hours work here.
Appointment-only businesses need a different approach. Google’s guidelines say they should not provide regular business hours. On your website, make appointment availability, booking instructions, and holiday response times easy to find instead. A consultant working remotely does not need to look like a storefront open from nine to five. See Google’s business-hours guidelines.
Look beyond the footer. Check your contact page, booking page, and any announcement near the top of your site. If a customer can reasonably rely on a piece of information, it needs to agree with the rest.
Make your deadlines clear before someone commits
“Order early” leaves a lot for a customer to figure out. A useful deadline explains what the customer needs to do, when they need to do it, and what happens next.
- For a shop: explain the order cutoff, available pickup dates, pickup location, and whether a confirmation is required.
- For appointments: show current availability and explain whether submitting the form reserves a time or only requests one.
- For project work: explain when you are accepting new requests and whether holiday completion is still possible.
Put this information beside the relevant button or form. A beautiful holiday graphic on social media will not help someone who arrives directly on your order page. Include the essential details as readable page text, too, so they are not trapped inside an image.
If you ship products, separate when you will send an order from when it is expected to arrive. Set cutoffs using your actual preparation time and the carrier’s current guidance for the service and destination. Do not copy another store’s shipping deadline or promise an arrival date you cannot support.
Give each page one obvious next step
Think about the reason someone is on that page. A customer looking at appointment options needs a clear way to check availability. Someone reading about your holiday pickup service needs to know how to place an order.
Use a button that describes the action: Check appointment availability, Order for pickup, or Request an estimate. “Learn more” can be useful for browsing, but it is less helpful when someone is ready to act. If a submission is only an inquiry, avoid wording that implies the booking is already confirmed.
Then follow the links people use to reach you. Check your Google Business Profile, social profile links, and website navigation. Where your profile supports booking or ordering links, make sure the public link reaches the right page. Available options vary by business, and some links may come from third-party providers. Google’s guide to business links covers those controls.
The goal is a shorter path to the right action. You can still offer a phone number or another way to get help without giving every link the same visual emphasis.
Try the entire process on your phone
A page looking good on your laptop does not tell you whether a customer can finish the task. Open your public website on a phone and use it as someone visiting for the first time.
- Find the information. Can you quickly see the location, relevant hours, availability, and deadline?
- Take the next step. Does the main button work? Does the mobile menu stay out of the way? Does a cookie notice cover a field or button?
- Check the form or checkout. Are labels clear, fields manageable, and errors understandable? For an online store, use the platform’s test tools to check checkout without creating an unintended charge.
- Follow the confirmation. Does the customer see what happens next? Does the business receive the inquiry or test order in the right place?
Google’s web.dev guidance recommends clear controls, asking only for needed information, and testing checkout across devices and browsers. It also recommends guest checkout as the default rather than requiring every shopper to make an account. Those are useful things to check in an existing store before adding another holiday promotion. Read the checkout guidance.
If your contact form needs more attention, I have a separate guide to making your website’s contact form a better start to a conversation.
Your holiday website check
Four questions to answer before inviting more people to visit, book, or buy.
- When are we available?
Hours, closures, appointments, and response times agree. - What can we realistically promise?
Pickup, shipping, and project deadlines reflect your capacity. - What should a customer do next?
One clear action leads to the right destination. - Does it work from start to finish?
The phone experience and confirmation have both been checked.
Keep the update manageable—and give it an end date
If time is tight, fix the information that could mislead someone first. Then repair broken links or forms. Seasonal decoration can come after the basics work.
You may only need an updated announcement and a clearer booking link. If you need something more specific—such as limited pickup windows, a form that asks different questions for different services, or a better connection to your current booking system—start by identifying the problem. An existing tool may already handle it; a custom addition makes sense when it solves a real gap.
Before you finish, set a reminder to remove expired messages and review your January availability. A holiday announcement should not leave your website looking unattended weeks later.
I help small businesses update their existing websites and build custom features when they need them. If you would like a second set of eyes on your hours, booking process, or mobile experience, let’s talk about what needs attention. We can start with the changes that will be most useful to your customers and to you.