Retail shops are putting their shutters down, employees are being laid off, supply chains disrupted… Covid-19 has brought about unpredictable economical consequences and the odds are that you've been impacted hard as a business owner. The effects of this pandemic are unfolding quickly and so are your daily operations. In these dire times, you must be thinking that the worst possible nightmare has befallen you. But there is hope; hope which lies in your willingness to innovate and in your ability to adapt and adapt fast.

So what can you do to keep your business afloat?

1. Keep your customers and employees safe

Your first priority is keeping your customers and employees safe at all cost. If your employees are still punching in for work and customers are still visiting your brick-and-mortar store, adopting the necessary safety precautions is of the essence. Endorse strict cleaning procedures, disinfect surfaces regularly and keep premises stocked with soap and sanitisers to maintain a healthy working environment. Moreover, emphasising the importance of social distancing, implementing flexible sick leave policies and educating your employees on hygiene etiquette will reduce transmission amongst employees and guarantee safe operations.

Visit one of the local pharmacies to stock up on hygiene products and set up strict cleaning contracts with one of the local cleaning companies.

2. Keep tabs on your finances

Covid-19 has without doubt affected the amount of revenue your business generates. Now's a good time to go through all your expenses and create a cash-flow budget if you don't want to be running out of money anytime soon. Where is your money currently going? What are your fixed and variable expenses? Are consultants a necessity right now? Do you need office supplies? If you're paying rent, have you tried negotiating your contract terms? Make sure you revise your revenue goals and timelines and adopt the necessary cost-cutting measures.

Contact one of the accountants on Yellow to give you a helping hand.

3. Have a plan in place

This Covid-19 pandemic has forced businesses to forfeit long-term strategies and re-adjust plans. During these unpredictable times, don't attempt to plan for upcoming months, but rather for the next couple of weeks, or you'll surely be required to re-adjust your plans over and over again. Determine how you can protect your employees and maintain operations, while always keeping in touch with reality and sustaining your willingness to adapt. Consider shifting teams around, reducing working hours and pausing recruitment campaigns to survive this pandemic. Also make sure you keep up-to-date with new measures and have backup plans which you can revert to in case of absent employees, a higher demand of certain products and disruptions in supply chains!

4. Review the initiatives which are being introduced by the Government

Keep up to date with the initiatives the local Government is putting forward. These currently include:

• Wage supplements
• Deferral of payment of taxes
• Liquidity measures
• Social measures in case of parents who are required to stay at home
• Quarantine leave
• Monetary support for teleworking solutions

Any monetary help you can obtain is a godsend at this point. Check out in more detail the measures which the Maltese Government is introducing to alleviate pressure from businesses.

5. Adapt your business

If you're one of those businesses who's been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, acting fast is crucial. The key to survival is adaptation and you must determine how you can still carry on providing your products and services to your customers in an efficient manner. Here is some inspiration:

• Health & fitness clubs: Stream daily online classes at a small charge
• Hairdressers: Create videos on how to take care of your hair and sell hair products online
• Language schools: Offer online courses to your students
• Accountants: Provide online financial consulting services to businesses at a reduced price
• Hotels: Offer discounted accommodation to healthcare workers and people who need to self-isolate.  
• DIY stores: Put up videos on DIY work that people with time on their hands can try their hand at to promote your products.
• Museums: Plan virtual tours around your place of interest.
• Wedding planners: With the current volume of brides in distress, now's your chance to turn frowns upside down and help out brides who've had to cancel their wedding.
• Make-up artists: Create tutorials on popular make-up looks for your customers to try at home.  
• DJs: Use this downtime to experiment with sound and create unique music.

6. Set up remote working

Remote working has proven to be a lifesaver for many companies in these dire times. If your line of work allows your employees to work from home, go for it! It might actually have positive long-term benefits for your business. Discover how to effectively manage remote employees, maintain expectations and implement productive procedures. It's crucial that you clarify communication channels and keep the communication with your employees active.

If remote working is not viable, consider:

• flexible working hours
• implementing different shifts
• increasing the physical space between employees and between customers
• delivering services remotely
• delivering products

7. Boost your online presence

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced people to lock themselves inside their homes and spend more time online. Thus, having an online presence is imperative. What's the use of starting a delivery service, but not share the information on as many online platforms as you can? Keep customers updated with any changes your business adopts and share your new services to maintain your current customers and try to attract new ones. Read more about tangible actions you can adopt to enhance your online presence in the article coming out next week, so stay tuned!

8. Tackle the projects you've been postponing

Free time is definitely a thing you'd never expected to have as a business owner. But now that you've got it, use it in your favour! Sit down and speculate how you can take your business to new heights after this downtime. How can you improve operations? How can you attract more customers? Is your business 2020-friendly? Ask for feedback from both your employees and your customers as these two parties are the ones in close contact with your business. If necessary, use this time to train any idle employees you may have.

9. Give something back to the community

Is your business running slow? Have you considered doing something for the community? Volunteering will fill your employees' time, keep their minds off the negativity and keep your brand alive.

Check out the range of voluntary organisations which may require assistance during these times.

10. Assess your personnel

Laying off your staff is definitely not the ideal cost-cutting measure but it may unfortunately be required. If it comes to this, it would be wise to carry out a talent assessment to determine who your key personnel is. Who contributes most to your business? Make sure you:

• Offer compensation if possible
• Lay off employees with compassion
• Consider cutting the salaries of executives first

11. Use this pandemic as a learning opportunity

You may not have been fully prepared for a pandemic of this scale, but if you manage to survive these dire times, make sure you learn from your sufferings. Creating a savings plan is one way to start.

This time of crisis doesn't need to have a deadly impact on your business. It definitely won't be business as usual but if you're proactive, take action and configure your services with a positive frame of mind, you can avoid a financial blow. What your business offers from this moment onwards may be a better and more innovative version of your past trade, so perceive this time as a pivot, rather than an obstacle which cannot be hurdled.

Contact one of the business consultants to acquire professional guidance during these unpredictable times and click here for all updates you need on Covid-19.