Does Your Business Take a Holiday with You?
Everyone deserves a holiday, including small business owners. Handling backup for your business or bringing it with you are the alternatives you need to consider.
A friend recently recommended a new business to visit. Then she realized the time we would be in the area, as it is out of town, was the time the business was listed as closed for a vacation. So, the business was closed as the owner took some time off. We found that most unfortunate as we were only in the area for one day. Our next anticipated time to be nearby is not until November.
This is not an uncommon event. Backup is a real issue for small businesses and certainly moreso with a micro business or a sole proprietorship. You see this often in small retail shops or at least that has been our experience. Everyone needs to take time away for their mental and physical health but consider that the brand may be impacted by a decision to just completely shut down.
Professional services, unlike retail shops, may not have the luxury of just shutting down. Depending on the type of professional services offered, a full shut down may not be possible. Email, texting, even a Video Conference, may still be necessary to keep projects moving forward. And if your firm acts as a source of payment for ongoing projects, suspending that process could truly be detrimental to your brand. Expecting others to wait on paymen due to them as you luxuriate on an exotic island or visit historic sites around the world is disrespectful to the work they are doing for you.
One of the most common reasons for work stoppages due to vacations is that the owner on vacation may be the only signer for checks. We have seen this lately and there is no work around. Scheduling a vacation when a large influx of grant monies or owner funding is set to occur is not ideal. If this is where you find yourself, consider electronic payments if possible.
Businesses taking holidays with their owners can and do interrupt the flow of the business and, at times, can impact the brand reputation. Every business is unique so assess such an impact if you are setting sail for that much needed respite cruise. Backup can sometimes be found in the interns you may work with, a family member, or the computer that needs to accompany you on that trip.
While corporate workers almost always have backup, the small business owner may not. We see it as one of the challenges to owning your own small business. The many advantages to being your own boss likely outweigh this one disadvantage. Enjoy your time off, you earned it and deserve it. The right attention to detail with payment or delivery of your product or service can help ease the impact on your business and its reputation.
As Lâffey demonstrates in our photo today, make a splash and enjoy a vacation. Just remember to give some forethought to what happens when you are gone and the impact on your clients.
Be well.
