Tip # 456 - Prepare for Mother Nature's Fury
Dear Tip of the Weeker,
No one wants to think about the bad stuff that can happen in life - like getting robbed, being struck by a devastating storm, or having a fire in your store - but the truth is that it could happen to you.
You can't always keep bad stuff from happening. But you can take precautions to minimize the effects on your business and your life.
- Write an emergency procedure for your staff. What should be done first, second, third, in case of a fire? Or a power outage? Or earthquake? Or tornado? Or hurricane? Or if the store is robbed? If you don't know what you should do, call your fire department or police department. They can help you.
Having these procedures in place can save lives, prevent injuries, and minimize damage to your business.
- Double check your insurance policy. Make sure you have enough coverage for your entire store, including all your merchandise, fixtures, equipment, supplies, building, etc. Call your insurance agent if you're not sure. Ask if you're covered for debris removal as well as replacement costs. Find out if you've got loss of business coverage.
Although it may be tempting, this is no place to cut costs.
- Take a "one shot wonder" video or digital pictures of your store. You will not remember everything you had until you need to claim it later... and it's gone! Make a spreadsheet listing all the big items you own like furniture, fixtures, artwork, computers, or other office machinery and include make, model and serial numbers where possible.
After a major disaster it is difficult to think clearly - or even at all. Make it easy on yourself by planning ahead.
- Get on-line remote backup for all your computers. Imagine the crippling effect it would have on your business (and your life) if your lost all the information in your computers. Your customer lists, your sales history, your inventory data, and your financial records... not to mention all the seemingly small stuff you'd have to re-do from scratch like merchandise signs, employee manuals, forms, checklists, brochures, and other marketing pieces. Ugh.
We use MozyPro for our back-up and it has been worth its weight in gold many times over. If you don't already have on-line data back-up, go straight to Mozy and sign up.
Merchandise and other "stuff" can be replaced, but your data cannot.
Mother Nature's fury is unpredictable so it's important to be prepared. Even though you don't want to think about it... it could happen to you.
