Q: It can be a challenge to keep my sales staff excited about selling this holiday season. What can I do and say to keep them selling at their peak?

A: There are as many ways to motivate salespeople as there are businesses, from sales contests and incentive programs to pep talks at the start of a big sales day.

Retail author and trainer Doug Fleener, of Dynamic Experiences Group, suggests sending or giving your sales staff a holiday letter that expresses your appreciation and offers tips to make sure you’re among the stores that exceed expectations this year. Here are tips he suggests following and passing on to sales staff:

1. Stay positive.
Attitude could be the biggest difference between the winning and losing stores this year. Every employee needs to do his or her part in keeping a positive outlook. Take a leadership role and turn negative colleagues positive. The press will be looking to cover how bad things are, but your customers will be looking for stores that make them feel good. Make a customer feel great and a sale will follow.

2. Succeed one day at a time.
If you have a bad day, shake it off. If you have a good day, do it again. You make your holiday by making your month. You make your month by making your week. You make your week by making your day. You make your day by making your hour.

3. Maximize every customer opportunity.
You make your day by focusing on the needs of every single customer. Don’t let your guard down and miss even one sale, because that one sale could be the difference in success or falling short.

4. Don’t pre-judge what a customer is going to spend.
Customers aren’t a survey in the newspaper. Customers aren’t a sales projection in some pundit’s article. Customers are unique individuals who offer us a unique opportunity. Give them a unique experience and you’re sure to be rewarded.

5. Become a better salesperson every single day.
Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Keep showing products until the customer says they’re done. Ask them if they’d like to also buy a gift card. Ask the customer who else is on their list that you can help them with. Focus on increasing your average sales and units-per-transaction.