Opinion

Everyone says you should be on social media and it can be an important element in any marketing plan. However, it may not be right for everyone and other marketing tools may be more effective.

Thanks to some clever marketing by the Post Office, the robin remains very much the bird of the festive season.

As we nibble through the Christmas leftovers and mince pies, The Rubbish Diet social enterprise is now getting prepared for the New Year celebrations, launching its biggest national campaign yet.

It’s that time of year again. We’re often told that in an age of presents, parties and pigs-in-blankets, it can be all too easy to forget the ‘real’ message of Christmas. The Christmas which is founded on the story of the nativity – on the birth of humanity’s saviour on Earth – is a time when we preach tolerance and peace. It’s not about the insular family occasion which dominates the Western view of the 25th December.

Last week I collected our Christmas tree, so I now feel very festive It’s lovely to come downstairs to make the morning tea and be greeted by the fresh pine scent of the tree; it really does set me up for the day.

Perhaps the Christmases of our childhood always seem brighter, shinier and more tinsel-strewn than in reality they could ever have been.

I love Christmas, always have and always will. This love affair all started, as it always should, thanks to the festive attitude of my parents. Small things they did for me and my four brothers have stayed with me and been adopted by me, now writing this as a father-of-two.

With less than a week to go, I wanted to wish all the Bury Free Press readers a very happy Christmas.

Now the nights have drawn in and darkness falls within the waking hours of young children, a new experience beckons.

When I joined the Bury Free Press in 2000, there was talk of the A11 being dualled. It was about time, I remember thinking back then. After all, it had been 30 years in the pipeline.

It feels like winter never gets going anymore, gone are the heavy frosts and biting north winds and the fieldfare and redwings are only now starting to eat the hawthorn berries along the track to the reserve.

There is a noticeable upturn in the use of the garden bird feeders as the first real winter weather begins to make itself felt. Alongside the familiar tits, finches and sparrows, you may also see the occasional wintering blackcap, a species more often regarded as a summer visitor.

This week, most readers will have been wrapping up warm against the elements and bemoaning having to de-ice their cars. I, on the other hand, have been dreaming of my bikini.

My natural cynicism abates in December, firmly pushed back by sentimental Christmas films, Phil Spector’s Christmas album and toasted Pandoro for breakfast.

I don’t suppose I’ll be the only person clambering up a rickety step ladder this weekend to rescue Christmas decorations from their 11-month hibernation in the loft.

I remember that dreadful night in summer 2012 when Cupola House went up in flames.

Facebook is one of the most popular websites on earth. Although it’s used mostly by people for personal networking and entertainment, businesses have found that it’s an effective way to build their brand and communicate with their customers.