6 Best Ways You Can Protect Your Business During the Coronavirus Pandemic, By TalismanCasualty

Are you finding it difficult to stay ahead in business during the coronavirus pandemic? To protect your business during this coronavirus pandemic is more than maintaining social distancing rules and cleaning your workplace. It also means planning for the worst possible scenario and keeping your employees well informed. 

Take advantage of these six tips to protect your business and keep thriving during (and hopefully, after) the coronavirus outbreak.

1. Take Care of Yourself and Your Team

It will not be easy to steer your business through this crisis, especially for small business owners with children. Make sure that you and your employees follow the government’s guidelines on keeping safe during the coronavirus outbreak

Also set aside time to reflect on and maintain your personal, emotional and physical health. Encourage your workers to do the same during this period, and do not everything to be perfect in this period. Another way to take care of your team is with a corporate COVID test at your place of business. A service such as Drip Hydration comes to your workplace and administers COVID tests to your team, helping catch active cases of the virus before they spread.

2. Create a Work From Home Policy

Businesses are finding alternative work arrangements for their employees to keep their business running during the coronavirus lockdown.

If your business can be run from home and you don’t have a work from home policy already, now is the perfect time to develop one. Include such issues as qualifications of your staff, online processes and instructions. Include interim remote job guidelines, too. 

3. Systemise Your Operations and Rely Less on People

The concept of managing systems and not people is especially helpful in this period of social distancing.

In times of uncertainty such as these, people are much less reliable. So, you need to put different structures and procedures in place. It not only ensures that your business runs smoothly, but it also ensures you get predictable results every time.

There are several online tools you can use to create systems in your business. One of the best is Trello and it comes with a free version.

4. Create New Products and Improve Existing Ones

Take advantage of the opportunity offered by the coronavirus outbreak to improve your products or services. If there are other products and services you can offer, do it. Don’t waste this opportunity by taking a partial vacation while other products and services go out of date.

Since you now have more free time in your schedule, it’s a great time to experiment with new business lines and see which sticks. Instead of keeping current systems, think about the features that would help your product sell more or create a better experience for users. 

5. Consider Business Interruption Insurance

Business interruption insurance is not intended to cover pandemics, but the crisis has reminded many business owners that if they suffer a physical loss such as a tornado, fire, or hail storm, the period of restoration may take some time and if you own a business that absolutely needs a physical location, business interruption insurance will cover some of your lost revenue. “Ask your insurance provider about what can be covered under business interruption insurance in case of unforeseen misfortunes,” Talisman Casualty Insurance Company LLC advises, “This may not cover the current pandemic, but the next time your company experiences a significant economic disaster, you will be well prepared.” 

6. Stay Connected With Customers

When you let customers know what you are going through, they can easily empathise with your business and likely patronise you more if they can. 

To stay connected with your clients, use your social media channels, instant messaging platforms, emails and other digital alternatives. if you’re in complete lockdown or operating remotely, also keep your employees updated. 

Staying connected to your clients is important because it lets them know if they can still order items that are still available on your website, and when you are going to reopen. Remember that out of sight is out of mind. So make sure to keep your customers and potential customers thinking about your business.

You Got This!

Things may not look good now, but your company, your employees, your customers, and other stakeholders deserve your best.

You need to take steps not just to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but also to prepare for the future. You can do it. You can do it by following the steps shared here with you to protect your business. 

Chung Nguyen
 

Chung is a seasoned business journalist with a focus on sustainability and corporate social responsibility. With over 15 years of experience covering the world of finance and economics, Rachel has established herself as a respected authority on responsible business practices. Throughout her career, Chung has interviewed some of the most influential leaders in the corporate world and has covered major business events such as the World Economic Forum and the United Nations Climate Change Conference. She is also a regular contributor to leading business publications and has won several awards for her work. Chung's passion for promoting sustainable business practices has also led her to author a book on the topic.