From establishing internal COVID-19 policies to ensuring that your website’s host can effectively service your website, small businesses can sustain themselves by using proactive approaches tailored to their unique needs.
COVID-19 presented challenges on multiple fronts with the most critical being public health while and preventing the economy from completely tanking. This is an unprecedented challenge that affects industries and sectors globally, but it’s taking a particularly dire toll on small businesses, especially those with no online presence to continue taking product or service orders.
So, how can small businesses put themselves in the best position to not only survive but thrive when the pandemic is over? Here are a couple of survival steps.
Establish internal COVID-19 policies. Be clear with your employers concerning different policies within the business and safety protocol for the virus. You should closely follow the government’s guidelines, including clean work areas, social distancing, environments, and good hygiene. If you haven’t, stay flexible on sick leaves that your employees want to take.
Manage cash-flow budget and variable costs. Fixed costs will help you’re your doors open and needs to be paid. Start with a list of priorities and begin setting money aside depending on the timing of when they are due.
Assess cuts to unnecessary costs that don’t produce revenue or secure key business functions. Remember to move carefully concerning layoffs, terminations, or furloughs of employees. Remember that your employees are one of your greatest assets. Cutting too deep might cause them to perform weaker or you might even lose them after the pandemic.
Be honest with your employees. It’s vital as business owners or managers to show your leadership. Setting the tone and being calm in the storm is one way to do this. However, don’t plan too far out since things change often. Start planning for the next few weeks, then the next month, etc. Your plans will inevitably change.
Retain sales/marketing efforts. Ensure that you communicate consistently and clearly with your customers. Ensure that you know how to interact with integrity within your organization. Ensure that your products and services are easy to purchase. Stay creative and find new opportunities to market and sell. With our current conditions, find what product or service resonates with your customers right now that you provide. Think outside the box.
Make sure to utilize social media channels to keep your customers updated. Utilize newsletters or series of emails if you aren’t already doing so. This will communicate your ability to help customers and changes to how you regularly work.
Ensure the work-from-home system is set. Some small businesses are having employees work remotely for the first time. Set the expectations for those who work remotely. Create a work-from-home agreement and set expectations for a weekly productivity report.
Enhance your level of technology as quickly and as affordably as you can. If you use a server, you must set up VPN accesses for employees to access their work computers from their home computers. This is much easier when you use cloud applications, including Gmail/Google, Outlook 365, Salesforce, CRMs, and others. This is also the time to ensure that you’re on the best web hosting India has if you operate locally. This ensures that your website has rare to virtually no downtime and you have the best possible customer service when you require assistance.
Finally, try to go beyond as a business and help those in your community with whatever you can. Helping others worse off than you will not only feel good personally but will help the morale of your employees. Now is the time to lift each other so we can all get out stronger than ever. Best of luck!