How to Prepare Your Business for Severe Spring Weather

Did you know that the United States experiences the most power outages? Compared to other developed nations, the U.S. experiences more extensive and severe power outages that can leave people without electricity for an average of four hours; many of these outages result from severe spring weather.

Power outages aren't the only impact spring can have on the weather. High risks for flooding and storm damage can harm your business, consumers, and employees. 

How can you prepare for severe weather this spring? We have put together a complete guide on how you can start prepping now for upcoming weather, so keep reading for more information!

How Severe Weather Affects Businesses

Business continuity starts with expecting the unexpected. Weather can drastically impede how your business functions and, in return, how it performs. Here are a few ways that severe weather hurts your business:

• Customer habits
• Prices
• Employee performance
• Property

Customers change their habits based on the weather, and you should closely analyze how your business does quarterly for a better idea of how weather plays a role. You might notice an increase in consumer traffic or purchases during certain months, which can affect your staffing and business operations. 

Price fluctuations and weather can go hand-in-hand. For example, poor weather or winter months can increase oil demand and prices, and agricultural businesses rely heavily on weather patterns that affect crop yield. 

Employee performance can also tie into the weather since bad weather could affect an employee's ability to get to work or finish a project promptly. Luckily, remote work has helped lessen the effects of poor work performance if your business can adopt flexibility. 

Lastly, storm damage can directly result in business property damage. Your business's property includes both IT and physical property. Storms can cause power outages and lost data, which is critical for companies requiring 24/7 online support. 

When your house loses power, you can sit back, light some candles, and enjoy each other's company. With your business, even hours of being down can result in significant losses in revenue. 

Spring Predictions

On March 20th, the shift into spring officially begins. What can you expect for spring weather this year? For many, spring weather isn't necessarily something to look forward to when trying to keep a business flourishing. 

In Southern and Western states and parts of the Midwest, we can expect higher than average rainfall, increasing the chances of flooding.

Warmer-than-average weather can draw more people outside and increase online or in-person traffic to your business. Start preparing now for flood and storm damage by ensuring that you have a business continuity plan in place.

Physical Recovery

Physical recovery is relatively straightforward and can help your business recover from power outages, natural disasters, and more. Approximately 40% of businesses who experience power outages never reopen, so don't let that be you! If your business is physically compromised, you have a few options:

• Backup tech equipment
• Office space
• Backup generators
• Maintaining networks

Spring weather can act similar to the hurricane season with unrelenting winds, rain, and floods. Be sure your business is ready by checking in on these five key business points:

• Employees and customers
• Property
• Processes
• Products
• Partners

Ensure your property is physically secure and that your files are safely backed up. Confirm continuity plans and emergency action with your partners and employees so that everyone is on the same page. Lastly, keep tabs on your products and manage customer expectations when preparing for storms this spring. 

Software Solutions

Arguably, nothing harms a business more than being offline or losing data. When spring weather hits, you have the potential of losing physical property and data. Ultimately, this can lead to layoffs and business failure. 

You need a central platform to manage your software solutions and business continuity plans. A cloud-based solution that provides backups with 24/7 online technical support, like Preparis, is ideal. These include:

• Emergency notifications
• Business continuity plans (e.g., Preparis Planner)
• Business plan testing
• Training
• Data recovery

Did you know that approximately 60% of small businesses don't have an emergency response plan? Preparis Planner and RecoveryPlanner provide your business with proactive strategies and tools you can start implementing today.

The software takes the technical work out of it, which allows you to develop simple and effective game plans before disaster strikes. 

Remote Work

A business continuity plan can include remote work or options to work from other offices. Look for products like ReadyTechGo technology, which provides:

• 40 hours of battery life
• Cellular connectivity
• WiFi set-up
• 24/7 technical support
• Portability (e.g., water-resistant, lightweight)
• Flexible shipping

It's the ultimate emergency tool to have on hand that can keep your business up and running this spring, useful for critical workers or accessing necessary business documents. 

Emergency Notification System

Bi-directional mass emergency messages can send voice, text messages, or email notifications regarding weather. Employees can receive these alerts at home or work, which can help them prepare before disasters hit. 

Timely messaging and communication can help your team develop plans, protect your workforce, and contact incident management teams. You can also create incident reports and access any critical documents you might need. 

Data Recovery Importance

What is the importance of quick data recovery? Backing up your data in a cloud or through other means ensures your business is back online within hours versus days or weeks. 

Small- to medium-sized businesses can benefit from the added cost of data recovery services since minor hiccups can lead to permanent shutdowns or loss of revenue. 

Keep Your Business Running This Spring

Is your business ready this spring? Spring weather can bring flooding and storm damage to your business. Not only can you physically not make it into work, but you could experience downed power lines and data crashes. 

Luckily, you have plenty of time to start developing emergency plans for your business that help you tackle any problem thrown your way. For disaster recovery and help with business continuity plans, contact us today and let us help you get started.