Businesses large and small have been forced to close their doors temporarily to slow the spread of the coronavirus. While many are scrambling to figure out how to survive this health and financial crisis (rightfully so), others are anxious to do their part to support the very communities that have always supported them. Continue reading on for a few examples of how your business can give back.
Close Up Shop
Though this may be a hard pill to swallow, one of the best things a business can do to support their community is close up shop. Remaining open encourages people to want to visit your stores which makes safety measures like social distancing and stay at home orders harder to enforce. It also puts your staff at risk of getting infected. So, if your business has not been deemed essential, it is best to temporarily close your doors.
Create a Safe Environment
If your business is considered essential, the most effective way to support and protect your community during the coronavirus outbreak is to create a safe environment for your employees and customers. This means making sure your facilities are properly sanitized daily (multiple times a day, if possible), equipping your staff with safety gear like masks and gloves, putting up signage to provide customers with instructions, minimizing the amount of foot traffic in your store at one time, and offering separate shopping hours for senior citizens.
Donate to the Cause
Whether you pull funds from your budget or you allot a percentage of your company sales, donating to the cause is an effective way to help your community during the coronavirus outbreak. You can donate to organizations that are conducting studies, developing treatments, or providing essential services to the community.
Keep Staff Employed
Your employees are members of the community as well. They are also an essential part of your company’s success. Ensuring that they have a regular paycheck to continue supporting their families is a great way to give back during these uncertain times. While you may not be able to keep everyone on the payroll, developing a remote team and allowing employees to work from home is an effective way to keep your operations afloat while serving your community.
Offer Free Products and Services
Does your business have products and/or services that can be utilized? For example, if you own a tech or office supply store, you could donate mobile devices and supplies to local schools and small businesses in need. Maybe you’re a local restaurant that can prepare and deliver free meals to nursing homes, essential businesses, or healthcare workers. Simply think about what you have and how those products or services can be used to help someone in need during the coronavirus pandemic.
Hand Out Care Packages
As you likely already know, essentials like toilet paper, sanitation products, and even fresh produce and groceries are in short supply right now. Not to mention, thousands of individuals are now unemployed and unable to purchase the things their family needs. As a business, you have the means to gain access to products in large quantities. You can invest in essential supplies and provide them to members of the community for free. Simply order custom tents or canopies from Instent.com and set up tables with care packages for people to come and pick up. If you can’t afford to do your own event, you can always find other organizations hosting food drives or care package giveaways and serve as a sponsor.
Waive or Postpone Customer Invoices
With people unable to generate enough income to pay for the basic necessities, the stress of surviving this crisis financially is high. You can do something to help ease their frustrations. As the government has provided financial relief to small businesses suffering from the pandemic, you can use some of these funds and give back to your customers. You can offer to provide them with services free for a set amount of time, offer flexible payment arrangements, or postpone their payments without penalty.
There is no doubt that these are some scary times. However, if we’re going to get through this, it is imperative for everyone to do what they can to pitch in and support. Brands large and small are stepping up and showing their employees, customers, and communities, just how much they mean to them. Why not jump on the bandwagon and do something to bring some positivity into a very dark and depressing moment in time.
