The Small Business Survival Guide for the COVID-19 Crisis

We are living through unprecedented times.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused widespread disruption on a scale the world has simply never seen. With nationwide lockdowns meaning people are required to stay at home as much as possible, many businesses are being forced to adapt – and fast.

If your business is lucky enough to do so, moving to a work-from-home model is perhaps the best way to weather this storm – but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Here at Get Support, we’ve been working with many of our customers to help them make the switch to remote work and minimize disruption to their operations.

With that in mind, we thought we’d share some of the insights we’ve picked up here in the form of a small business survival guide. We’re all in the this together, after all.

Let’s get started.

Step 1: Make the move to working from home as smooth as possible

In some ways, Get Support is ideally placed to provide support during a crisis like this. Setting up businesses for remote working is something we’ve done for many years, so we’re well-equipped to make the switch as seamless as possible.

If you’re yet to take your business fully remote, it’s probably not as daunting a prospect as it may seem – although we understand completely if you’re a little hesitant.

We’ve covered this topic in-depth in one of our recent blog posts, but here’s a quick idea of what the switch to work-from-home entails:

1. Setting up remote access to either staff workstations or the company server.
2. Deploying cloud-based software (like Microsoft Office 365) to enable anywhere, anytime access to apps like Microsoft Office and services like email and file sharing.
3. The migration of office phone landlines to Voice-over-IP (VoIP) so calls can be made and taken anywhere.
4. Implementing a shared digital workspace like Microsoft Teams for communication and collaboration. (More on this in a moment).

Getting set up to work from home is really just the beginning. Now you’ve got to actually do it. Running a business is tough at the best of times, but don’t worry – we’re here to help.

Step 2: Focus on keeping communication channels open while working remotely

While it’s true that technology has made running a business from home a pretty seamless experience, nothing is perfect. While the day-to-day operations can be managed with online tools, there is one thing which can suffer when everyone’s working from home: communication.

After all, colleagues will no longer be able to drop by each other’s desks for a quick chat about a project, or host informal meetings while making a cup of tea. This may seem inconsequential, but when teams become remote, it’s easy to lose a big chunk of your communication – and that can have a knock-on effect.

To solve the communication problem, you’ve got a few options. Here are a few we’d recommend:

• Set up quick daily ‘stand-up’ meetings for teams who work closely together.
• Use a digital workspace to set up ‘chat rooms’ for teams to meet, talk, and plan – even when they’re not physically together.
• Managers can use one-to-one messaging to stay in touch with direct reports and ensure they’re on track and comfortable.

There are a few different platforms out there which can achieve all of these goals, but our recommendation goes to Microsoft Teams. Even better, we have a comprehensive beginner’s guide to Microsoft Teams so you can hit the ground running.

Step 3: Maintain a solid customer experience (even from home)

There’s so much to think about when it comes to actually getting your business up and running remotely that it’s easy to forget about something important: your customer experience.

One way to minimise the disruptive effects of the pandemic is to try as much as possible to maintain the same customer experience as you always have. Naturally, the process for achieving this will look different for every company – whether you’re a product or service company, for example. But the goal should always be to have it appear – from the outside – as though nothing has changed. This will instil confidence in your customer, which is something we all need right now.

Here are a couple of top tips for maintaining a customer experience when your business moves to a work-from-home model:

• If you host client meetings, move them to a digital platform like Microsoft Teams. With this, you can even invite people from outside of your network, making it ideal for client meetings.
• If you sell online, take the time to tighten up your customer “journey”. A bit of conversion rate optimisation will go a long way.
• Ensure that all of your contact details are up-to-date and easy-to-find on your website. If you have the resources, a Live Chat feature can be a great way to engage prospects.
• If you speak to customers on the phone a lot, make sure that all employees can access their phones (and voicemail) remotely. Our VoIP solutions can really help here.

Step 4: How to keep your team motivated when they’re not in the office

For many companies, the move to working from home should go pretty smoothly – but the process of adjustment doesn’t end there.

Every employee will react different to working from home. Some will be diligent, focused, and productive. Others will sit in their jogger bottoms watching daytime TV. It’s a broad mix, for sure, but you must be prepared to help your employees to adjust – and expect some teething problems here and there.

If you see any drop in productivity, you’ll naturally be concerned, but there are a few ways you can keep teams engaged when they’re working from home. Here are our suggestions for keeping output as high as it’s always been:

• Schedule daily team check-ins at the end of each day via video conference. This will serve as motivation to ensure daily tasks are completed in good time.
• If your business involves employees reaching goals or targets, such as sales roles, you could use your digital workspace to create an interactive leaderboard to get the motivation flowing. You could even allow cross-team commenting for some light-hearted banter.
• Set clear goals and deadlines for staff – even if you’ve never done so before. This way, colleagues can still approach their tasks anyway they like – just so long as they hit the deadline.

Step 5: Remember the light at the end of the tunnel

There’s no question that the COVID-19 crisis is going to be a difficult time for every business in the UK.

In fact, while you’re trudging head-long through it, it can feel like this will go on forever. But it won’t. It’s essential that you remember that this will come to an end. Nobody knows exactly when that will be just yet, but at some point – hopefully in the near future – you’ll be able to move back to your previous operating model… with perhaps a few improvements you learned along the way.

Any downtime you face while we’re going through it might seem unsettling, but it’s better to see it as an opportunity. Is there something you’ve always wanted to try with your business? A plan you’ve been thinking about building out but never had the time? Or maybe you could track the market and identify new opportunities for diversification as things change. Opportunity is out there if you’re willing to look for it.

One final piece of vital advice for running a business during the COVID-19 crisis is to keep planning for the long-term.

There’s no doubt that the future seems murky and unknowable right now, but – because this crisis will come to an end – you should still plan for 6, 12, and 18 months down the road. By only focusing on the short term, you could end up figuratively stranded should the crisis abate sooner than anticipated. In such uncertain times, having a few different plans across various timescales is a very smart idea indeed.

We’re all in this together

We hope this survival guide has given you a few ideas on how to run your business successfully as we make our way through this crisis.

If you’re still not sure about any aspect of remote working, we’ve set up a free IT health check-up so you can easily identify the areas you might need help. Claim your free check-up with our team today.

From everyone at Get Support, we wish you the very best during the crisis. We’ll be here if you need us. Stay safe.