Disasters can come in all shapes and sizes, it can be a natural disaster like fires and floods; man-made such as power outages and theft; or personal in the form of an accident, or loss of a close family member.

As a small business owner, you never want to think about the fact that something out of your control could happen and potentially destroying everything that you have worked to build.  The reality is, things happen all the time, and your best defense against a disaster is to have a plan and system in place to help lessen the impact of that disaster.

Disasters can come in all shapes and sizes. They can be a natural disaster like fires and floods; man-made such as power outages and theft; or personal in the form of an accident, or loss of a close family member.

As a small business owner, you never want to think about the fact that something out of your control could happen and potentially destroy everything that you have worked to build.  The reality is, things like this happen all the time, and your best defense against a disaster is to have a plan and system in place to help lessen the impact of that disaster.

The Shocking Numbers

Regardless of the type of disaster, the statistics are shocking. The failure rate of small businesses who encounter a disaster but are unable to recover or reopen, in part because they didn’t have a disaster plan, in place is alarming.  If you google “small business disaster statistics” you will find no shortage of sites that recite some unbelievable numbers.  Here are just a few:

• Nearly 40% of small businesses close after a disaster.
• About 75% of small businesses do not have a disaster plan.
• Approximately 45% of down time is caused by hardware failure.

Technology and the internet have become a key tool for businesses today and the associated data and records of a business can be irreplaceable.  Computer down time and loss of data costs both time and money to recover. This alone could be the breaking point of a business.

Data Storage and Backup

Did you know that there are estimates that approximately 140,000 hard drives fail on a weekly basis? This is without a disaster!  The ability to access your business data and records is an essential part of carrying out business on a daily basis.  Hard drives, flash drives, and external hard drives can and do fail, so relying only on those devices for data storage puts your business at risk.

Cloud based storage is such as Dropbox or Google Drive gives you the ability to access your information from anywhere and with a variety of devices from a laptop to tablet or a smartphone.  Using cloud-based storage also makes it easier to share information with others if needed. Imagine this, disaster strikes, but you can still access your business records and necessary information without skipping a beat.

Backup systems and a routine schedule for performing a backup of your data are also a vital step to protecting your valuable data.  You can either do the backups yourself or there are paid plans that will automatically perform that task for you so you don’t have to worry about forgetting.

Equipment

How do you protect your vital computer equipment?  Simple things like using a surge protector for all your electronics can help protect against an energy surge or a lightning strike during a storm.  A battery backup system can also be useful in case of a power outage so that you can continue working. On a daily basis, it works as a safety net to help protect your equipment from a sudden shutdown and a potential loss of data for the project you may be working on.

Having a maintenance schedule for your equipment can also help prevent issues or correct them before it becomes a crisis.  Establishing a relationship with a repair business before there is a disaster will help give you peace of mind when there are issues because you will already know where to go and who to trust.

Documentation and Records

Documentation and record-keeping are key to having a disaster plan that will be there when you need it.  Part of that documentation needs to include instructions on who to contact in your absence and where and how they can access needed information.

An SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) documents all your business processes.  Software packages that are part of your business with any licensing keys and how they are used is one example.  There is no task too small to document, the more you have documented, the easier it is to have others step in and help in case of a disaster or if you become incapacitated.

An example of things you would want to document are:

• Logins and passwords.
• Bank and financial information.
• Key contact information.
• Equipment inventories with model and serial number for insurance purposes.

Protecting Your Businesses Future

Planning for disasters can seem like an overwhelming task for a small business owner. Typically, already overwhelmed and just trying to keep up with running their business, it may seem daunting.  However, any change, even small ones, can help you make the move to being better prepared in case you find yourself faced with a crisis. Start today, and take it one step at a time.  Don’t let yourself become a business failure statistic.

Find that you need help with your business and wondering how we might work together?  Get in touch with me at lynne@brooksideva.com and lets schedule time to talk.