However I have seen a number of emails arriving with the obligatory 'we are now closed until the 4 January 2011' message and in some cases that has also been mentioned on a Facebook Page.

Here is an example on one status update I saw on a brand Facebook Page:

We're now signing off for Christmas. Thank you all for your feedback throughout the year and wishing you all a happy Christmas and 2011. We'll be back in early January with lots more info on our products, special offers and competitions!

The Page has actually closed off the ability for people to post to their Facebook Page as it is obviously not going to be managed over the holidays.

Here however is a response from a member of their community:

Happy Christmas to one and all….. hopefully next year you'll let us start posting questions back on this Page.

I have to say the Facebook Page in question is one that is usually very active in responding to people - I am just using it as an example of what I notice happening.

Of course no one is expecting you not to take time off over Christmas. And just because you close your Page off from more content being added does not mean that you are going to be able to stop people commenting on your Facebook Page.

Over the Christmas holidays you want to ensure that while you are not on Facebook you receive a notification if people post content to your Page so that you can respond in a timely manner. (Note: In some cases, dependent on your product or service you might even want to check on your Page on Christmas Day just in case people are posting questions there.)

So here is a resource I recommend that you check out and subscribe to which enables you to get an email notification if someone posts to your Facebook Page. I highly recommend checking out the service if you want to get real time notifications of posts on your Facebook Page so that you can then go back and engage with those comments.