Climate change has gone wild. Lately, we have been experiencing the worst hurricane, tornados, floods, and other devastating calamities. If you have a business, can it survive a natural disaster? When a natural disaster strikes, some companies cannot get back up their feet. That is why it is essential to have a disaster recovery plan.
Communication Disaster Plan
There are obvious things that you have to prepare for an expected disaster; you have to secure your business property and stock non-perishable food and water. But, the less obvious one is how to prepare when communication services are cut off.
You have to develop a chain of command. Ensure that the message prioritizes the needs of its receiver. Moreover, it is important to create a message for different types of disasters. Ensure that it can be used for different audiences and at different times.
- Employee communications: You do not have to be particularly formal on this. What’s important is to let them know their job status and when they should report for work. Moreover, do not forget to let them know what precautions they should take during a disaster.
- Business partner communications: It is expected that your business partners become concerned with the interruption of services. When a disaster strikes, it is essential to inform them of their products or services and when they will be delivered. Moreover, it is best to let them know beforehand that a foreseen natural disaster is coming.
- Customer communications: Your customer base constitutes groups. When a disaster strikes, you have to be accurate, timely, and apologetic in communicating with your customers. It is essential to let them know which products or services you cannot provide at the moment, whether you have any alternative or compensation to make.
Always be present and communicate with them. A small business CRM will help you demonstrate your empathy for the service disruption. You can easily reach out to your customers, business partners, and employees through communication software to quickly post, spread, or send messages. Do not forget to include backup data in your disaster plan. When the worst happens, you can still have access to your business data.
But, if the disaster did not leave any damages or victims, be grateful. Next, analyze whether some of your employees and customers were affected by the disaster. If you can communicate with them, ask what they need and give them special instructions. Giving them information about their work or order status gives them ease. That’s the least you can do.
Take Advantage of Communication Channels
The disaster you experience most likely determines the business communication method you should rely on. If the power is out and your options are limited, it is best to keep battery-powered radios at hand.
But, if you have power during the disaster, use each communication to its advantage. You can post relevant disaster-recovery updates, set up an automated system to reduce call congestion, and provide status updates on social media.
A solid disaster plan and informed staff help your business spend lesser time recovering from the disaster and not worrying about the communications.
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