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Reopening Your Business - Measures to Ensure Success Post-Covid-19

With the loosening of restrictions in many states, lots of businesses are looking to once again open their doors and return to work. But how best to ensure success in the return to normalcy, you might ask?

Businesses which have been able to remain open during Covid-19 have already made major adjustments in the midst of this unprecedented situation, but for them and those others just returning to work or part of a reopening phase-in, this time comes with a lot of uncertainty and questions. Businesses are asking about the best ways to ensure success and keep (and sometimes even re-earn) the trust of their customers.

The CDC has created a list of procedures necessary for you to follow in order to reopen your doors. Your customers need to be able to trust that you’re taking proper precautions so they can feel safe entering the doors of your business, regardless of the size and kind of business you operate.

In order to help ease some of that anxiety (both for you as the business owner and them, as the customer), we’ve put together a list of five ways to help ensure success in reopening your business.

1. Get opening date, requirements and updates from Reopening Massachusetts website.

Check the date of reopening for your business and the specific protocols and best practices to follow. Make sure you check often as the dates and procedures might change.

Here are the basic guidelines:

Social Distancing

Hygiene Protocols

Staffing and Operations

Cleaning and Disinfecting

Sector Specific Safety Protocols and Best Practices

The guidelines are different depending on the type of your business.

Make sure you check the sector specific protocols and best practices and communicate your plan to employees and customers through your local listings, website, email and social media.

2. Update My Google Business Q&As

The first place many look to when seeking answers about your business is Google. If your Google Business listing is not up-to-date, customers will have inaccurate information, which could lead to you losing business or your customer wasting their time or being otherwise inconvenienced.

In the Question and Answer section, make sure to be answering as many questions as possible regarding what precautions and measures you’re taking so that it will be obvious to your customers, both former ones and potential new ones. This will provide assurance to them before even entering your place of business that it’s a safe environment.

3. Create a COVID-19 Response Webpage

Beyond just answering questions on your Google Business listing, that same information should be made obvious on your website. Let former and even potential new customers know what kind of precautions your employees are taking. For example: checking their wellness before starting a shift, wearing a mask, and using gloves when handling merchandise and during cash and credit card transactions. Also include the measures taken on behalf of the physical space such as heightened cleaning procedures (especially in areas of high contact), Plexiglas at checkout areas, increased ventilation and air flow within the building, and hand sanitizing stations.

Let customers know what rules they must follow when on the premises of your business, the need, for example, to social distance and use hand sanitizer. Some businesses will also need to limit the number of people allowed inside at one time. Advance notice of these rules will help customers know before they even come, that you’re taking all the possible precautions and that you care about their safety.

4. Post Visible Signage

Now that you’ve answered all your customers’ potential safety questions and reassured them online before they come in person, it will be critical to retain their confidence once they’re on the physical premises.

Post signage around the store that reminds your employees of hygiene and safety procedures like washing/sanitizing their hands and wearing gloves. This will provide assurance to your customers of the precautions your business is taking and enforcing.

Other signage can remind customers what they can be doing to keep themselves safe, such as keeping six feet apart from others in the store. Additional postings can highlight areas with hand sanitizer, wipes, or even disposable gloves. These physical reminders will ensure that your customers know that you’re not just saying you’ll follow proper procedure, but are actually walking it out.

5. Email your customer base and update the public via social media

Final coverage to ensure that your customer base is up-to-date on all your safety procedures will involve email and social media.

Most businesses keep a database of their customers’ email addresses, and this is the perfect time to use it in order to hit a segment of your customer base who may not use social media or... to remind customers of your presence and save them from needing to look you up online or even call you. Those on social media will benefit in the same way.

Include hours of operation (particularly if these are altered in some way), specific measures your business is taking to ensure their safety, and your strong desire to stay compliant with state regulations. You’ll want to end with links to your website and social media and a sincere message of appreciation for their past business and a desire to serve them again very soon.

This blog outlines specific ways that businesses can regain the trust of their customer base during the re-opening phase post-Covid. Topics include updating your My Google Business page by way of pertinent information and a comprehensive Q&A section outlining specific precautions and measures you’re taking to ensure safety, creating a Covid-19 response webpage with the same kind of detailed information, for the actual business site, posting visible signage and the kinds and types of posting that should include, and sending the same kind of detailed information via email to your customer database and also through your social media accounts.

Resources to Reopen

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