It is literally never too early to start preparing for the winter holiday season, synonymous with Christmas.

Not just because time flies, but because there is SO much to do to make sure your online store is ready for the holiday rush. And in a recession year, or as the optimists call it, a weakened economy, every sale counts more than ever.

So what’s a diligent online retailer to do?

There are, of course, the regular year round tasks that need accelerating, such as inventory, sales estimates, and general site functionality – the bare basic you should be keeping an eye on 365 days a year.

To further boost your online business this year you must maximize your sales. To do so you will need to focus on either improving, or acquiring revenue optimizing tools.

You should ideally be offering shoppers salesperson-like services. Good customer service can never be over-emphasized, and by serving your customers in the manner they’re used to, with individualized, helpful assistance, you are certain to increase your revenues this holiday season.

First off, make sure your site is operating at full capacity. Check and double check all existing tools. Is your UI easy and intuitive to navigate? Do you have a search box? If so, is it clearly visible to shoppers? Is it located above the fold and big enough to stand out from the rest of your content?

Shoppers cannot buy what they cannot find. It is pertinent that site visitors are able to find what they are looking for, in as few steps as possible. During the holiday rush, more than ever, your shoppers do not have the time or patience to scour your site hoping to stumble upon the desired item. Make sure your site search and navigation capacities match up and that shoppers are reaching the products sought, straight away.

Customers tend to make more than one purchase at a time. Once your shoppers have committed to spend, it’s easier to add on the right items. That’s why it’s important to employ a powerful recommendation solution. By offering shoppers relevant recommendations along the way, both on product pages and at checkout, you are certain to increase average order value.

Another seasonal biggie is a gift finding tool. Finding the perfect gift for the varied, and seemingly endless list of recipients, is a chore many shoppers dread. A gift finder tool helps identify and locate appropriate gifts for any one, on any occasion. This is the perfect added value feature for the holiday seasons.

And of course, to get your shoppers into the festive mode, a holiday specific display online, is as important as in a bricks-and-mortar store. It shows that your site is dynamic and you are on top of the times. Holiday promotions, such as seasonal sales or special delivery conditions, should be both obvious and easily accessible, with a clear call to action.

Beyond all that, you’ll want to make sure shoppers are making it to your store. To draw qualified visitors to your site, in addition to regular SEO and paid listings, you’ll want to employ tools which are able to deliver top organic search results on major search engines in response to queries about the products carried by your store. Better yet, make sure these results click directly to the right product page, making the shoppers search to purchase process a simple double click affair.

If you feel overwhelmed by all this “advice”, fret not, you can pay others to implement it for you. And you don’t have to do all the aftermath maintenance work for yourself. In fact, it is often worthwhile to pay an expert to manage your site solutions. Not only does it save you the headache of the day-to-day details, it frees up your time to deal with other matters. Besides, a specialist is probably more equipped to handle the seemingly endless minutia involved in data dealings.

Remember, the winter holidays are THE shopping season. So don’t let the opportunity pass you by. Make sure your site is fully optimized to make the most of the holiday season.

Gal Shapira is Director of Marketing for ecommerce solutions provider Celebros.