I used a lot of verbal cues for DD when she was a baby. So I gave her plenty of warning with "oooh, it's nearly sleepy time now sweetie," for a couple of minutes then I'd pick her up and give her a cuddle and keep saying, "sleepy time now, oooh yes, it's definitely sleepy time now" then I'd walk her up the hallway saying it over and over again, then wrap her and rock her until she was calm, then put her in her cot. I also sang her the same song over and over again too. Gradually (and I mean very gradually over months and months), I cut down on the amount of time I was rocking her for and she eventually self-settled. She made it pretty clear to me as well which was her favourite wrap as she'd go nutso smiling and kicking her legs when I wrapped her in a fluffy blanket and she still goes to sleep with that blanket now (though not wrapped obviously as she's nearly two).