Okay, you have all probably heard the old saying that April showers, bring May flowers. Have you ever stopped to think how storms affect our lives unexpectedly? Is your business set-up to weather it’s next storm?
Think of this scenario: You are in a car accident and have to go to the hospital where you stay for a few days. How would your business be affected? Would phone calls and e-mails go unanswered? Would orders not get shipped out? Would orders come in and no one is there to respond? Would your social media fall to the wayside?
Or imagine that you are doing your business as a side job and you lose your main job? Would you be able to support yourself on your business or would you need to find other work? Would your new job still allow you to work your side business? If you were using some of your full-time earnings to start up your business, do you have a savings account to fall back on? This is also something to consider if your sales have slumped, but you still have bills to pay.
Heaven forbid you are in a coma or even die? Will people be able to get into your accounts and profiles?
The point is that many of us forget to set-up a back-up or emergency plan for when things happen unexpectedly. Even solopreneurs need some kind of plan. You should have a written plan for unexpected occurrences and for the first scenario you should set-up something with a staff member, family member, colleague, friend, etc. that you can trust, where they can handle your business temporarily while you can’t. This could even be just an announcement on your site, social media profiles, and an e-mail blast just to let people know that you have had a personal emergency that has caused you to be unable to manage the business. You won’t to let people know that you are not ignoring them or that you are slacking somehow. Additionally, someone might need to be available to ship out previous orders, pay invoices and bills, etc. so that those things don’t mess up your financial end.
For the second scenario, you should consider placing money in a savings account to help back you up when something financial unexpectedly occurs. A good measure is to try to have at least two months of operating expenses put aside, in the event that an emergency happens. This way you business can keep on running without you.
This post was written for the April theme for the Become Better Brands– “Weathering the Storm: Setting up your emergency/ back-up plan for when the unexpected happens.” BBB Elite members can participate in bi-weekly livechats with me, as well as a webinar to discuss this topic in more thorough detail.
As always, comments are appreciated. Tell me about your back-up plan.
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