In order for your business to remain open during a disaster, some preparation and flexibility are needed. Severe weather events can create hazardous conditions that are often difficult to navigate. For small businesses, those conditions will vary, based on what your business does.
So how can you prepare your business operations for extreme weather? We’ve rounded up some best practices that can help your business weather the storm without sacrificing customer experience.
Ideas for Contractors and Tradespeople
Landscapers
Droughts and lawns aren’t usually the best mix. Fortunately, as a landscaper, you can provide water-saving alternatives for your customers. Explore some drought-friendly landscaping options1 such as:
- Swapping thirsty grass lawns for more water-efficient plants and ground cover;
- Incorporating features that require no water at all, such as stone walkways and garden art; and
- Promote irrigation by using porous materials.
Tree management companies
For some essential employees, inclement weather can be a blessing and a curse. Tree servicing businesses know this firsthand. Everything from snowstorms to hurricanes can create a huge demand for their services, but they also run the risk of being overbooked.
Providing preventive tree care2 is a great strategy for reducing future risks. This can include anything from taking proactive measures such as removing dead or dying branches to removing environmental stressors that could be harming the trees.
Contractors and handy workers
Thinking ahead is also important for contractors, plumbers, and other construction trades. When it comes to disaster restoration, clients typically need help fast to avoid being displaced. A little forward thinking could help keep your business running smoothly and get your clients’ lives back on track.
So what can you do to prepare?3 A good place to start is to track weather patterns and environmental conditions so you can stay on top of the situation. With that in mind, you can stock up on materials now to get ahead of back orders, make sure you have the equipment you need and that it’s secure, and work out an action plan with your team. Preparedness could be the most important step you take to prevent a natural disaster from becoming a business disaster.
Opportunities for Health, Wellness, and Lifestyle Businesses
Retailers and e-commerce
If your shop has employees, consider implementing a bad weather policy. A formal policy should offer guidance on weather-related closures and procedures for making certain employees are notified. And remember that storms and disasters can’t always be predicted, so be sure to keep emergency supplies on hand — think water, flashlights, and shelf-stable snacks.
Adjusting how you serve your customers can also be a great way to circumvent the weather’s impact on your revenue. With weather events like heat waves,4 retailers are seeing a drop in foot traffic. As a result, flexibility is crucial. Use the same thought process you would when preparing for a big sale. Be sure to keep your store well-stocked with essentials and popular items.
Starting or expanding your online storefront can also help bring the shopping experience right to the customer. In periods of severe weather events, e-commerce can be a Godsend. Whether you sell exclusively online, or want to bring your brick-and-mortar store into the digital age, we have resources to help you optimize your website, get the most from your mailing list, and more.
Therapists and counselors
If you’re a therapist or counselor, you’re probably going to see climate anxiety cropping up in your client sessions if you haven’t already seen it. The health risks of climate change can run the gamut, including mental, physical, financial, and beyond. So how can you help?
An important first step is to reckon with your own eco-anxiety.5 If you don’t, you risk bringing your own issues to the table instead of merely focusing on the client’s. By working through your own climate-induced emotions, you may find it easier to process your patient’s experience without preconceived opinions muddying the waters. Some other basic strategies6 include helping clients build skills to:
- Avoid burnout;
- Honor their feelings;
- Be emotionally resilient;
- Take direct action in their community; and
- Create a disaster recovery plan.
Yoga and wellness
Your business could experience interruptions due to inclement weather, but mindfulness shouldn’t have to stop for anything. In fact, meditation and reflective habits7 could be the key to surviving in the changing climate. These are some tools to incorporate into your own yoga practices, as well as what you teach:
- Mindfulness meditation;
- Pranayama breath techniques; and
- Restorative yoga.
How Professionals Can Offer Solutions
Real estate agents
Extreme weather can have a major impact on real estate sales. In fact, it’s changing costs and market patterns.8 Storms, fires, and rising sea levels are all threats to property in some areas. When disaster strikes, it can create a housing shortage, causing home prices to skyrocket. And for areas prone to frequent flooding, home prices can drop, while property maintenance costs become prohibitive.
How can real estate agents adjust to unpredictable market conditions? Your best approach will likely be to prepare clients with suggestions for offsetting future costs. These might include:
- Focusing on weather preparedness and creating a disaster recovery plan;
- Investing in energy-efficient appliances, HVAC, and lighting options;
- Adjusting their budget to prepare for unexpected costs; and
- Bundling insurance coverages to cover as many bases as possible.
Insurance professionals
With weather events increasing in frequency and severity, many insurance professionals believe many of their commercial clients are underinsured9 for the climate risks they may face. Many agents are wondering what they can do to help.
The answer? Transparency. When you speak with your clients, make sure they’re fully aware of the environmental risks where they’re located. The more informed they are, the easier it will be for them to choose the coverage best suited for their individual needs.
Notaries
Wondering how weather affects business for notaries? Historically, notarization has been done in-person. When severe weather strikes, it can impact the ability to travel for both you and your clients. Worse still: natural disasters can mean a lot of paperwork for those impacted. Notary services may be needed, but inaccessible.
Fortunately, advances in technology can help. Remote notarization10 is an increasingly popular alternative to traditional pen-and-paper transactions. It offers a solution for clients who need your services but are unable to travel, and allows notaries to earn income as they work from home. Rain or shine.
IT consultants
Severe weather can create hazardous conditions both off- and online. Major storms could lead to damaged hardware, loss of connectivity due to power outages, and more. Creating an IT disaster recovery plan11 is a great way to prepare your clients for extreme situations and to help keep their data secure. The plan should include:
- An inventory of your client’s hardware and software;
- An overview of what types of data they have; and
- How that data will be backed up.
If your client is a business owner — or you’re making a plan for yourself — the recovery plan should be included in the business’s continuity plan.
Helping You Weather the Storm
Looking for more ways to help set your small business up for success? The Simply Business Resource Center has guides and tools to help market, protect, and grow your business. Here are three we recommend:
5 Tips for Creating a Business Budget (+ FREE Budget Temp
Small Business Risk Assessment: Learning Your Top Business Continuity Risks
- https://www.bhg.com/gardening/landscaping-projects/landscape-basics/drought-tolerant-landscaping-ideas/ ↩︎
- https://newurbanforestry.com/news/2021/5/26/proactive-tree-care-mitigating-storm-risks ↩︎
- https://www.catrentalstore.com/en_US/blog/preparing-for-natural-disasters.html#:~:text=Create%20a%20process%20for%20securing,to%20prevent%20loss%20and%20damage ↩︎
- https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/retail-extreme-weather-climate-change-in-stock-1235761896/ ↩︎
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/therapists-are-reckoning-with-eco-anxiety/ ↩︎
- https://counseling.online.wfu.edu/blog/climate-change-and-mental-health-eco-anxiety/ ↩︎
- https://eveyoga.com/2017/02/13/yoga-and-extreme-weather/ ↩︎
- https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/extreme-weather-impact-on-real-estate/#extreme-weather-statistics ↩︎
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/study-shows-agent-commercial-client-differing-views-on-severe-weather-readiness-301980178.html ↩︎
- https://www.nationalnotary.org/notary-bulletin/blog/2022/03/a-guide-to-remote-notarization-providers-for-notaries ↩︎
- https://www.ready.gov/business/emergency-plans/recovery-plan ↩︎