Are you ready for the next lockdown?

Awaiting a vaccination, the world is bracing for the second and third waves of COVID-19, while businesses are questioning whether they are ready for an extended round of national lockdown. Many businesses have been crippled by the strict measures put in place to keep our loved ones safe and alive, but the price paid was an economic one. While the pros definitely outweigh the cons, businesses now need to adjust to what will become a new normal, providing what may become a lowered reliance on physical office space to save money and a better work/life balance for those who have longer commutes. How prepared is your business? How long did your business take to respond to a crisis? How robust was your remote system plan?

Always be prepared for disaster

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.K., causing the government to issue a national lockdown for all non-essential business, how long did it take your company to react or respond? Did your business already have a disaster recovery plan in place that was routinely tested and fortified for a challenge like coronavirus? Were you prepared? Chances are your business was not, as was the case with many businesses across the U.K. this is why having a disaster recovery strategy is so important.

As a business, you need to know how quickly you can switch from office to remote working and understand how much it impacts your business. Granted, there are some industries that this model will not work with, such as those who are field based or require freedom of travel and movement. However, there are some companies that can take a different approach and offer remote services in place of national travel bans.

Do you have an alternative business strategy?

When your business’ operational locations are closed, does your business close too or can you offer an alternative service structure to maintain a cash flow during a government mandated lockdown? Does your business thrive or stop completely? With many businesses, remote working and e-commerce are the driving forces behind keeping it “business as usual” in a time of crisis. Some businesses even do what they can to help those around them, like the printers who supplied face shields to NHS workers in their area. What part does your business play?

How reliable are your current systems?

Reliability is key when you’re switching to remote systems. How robust are those systems? In the event of increased users jumping onto that remote system, do your software providers have reliable failover services or will they crumble under the pressure? Reliability has come into question with some of the world’s largest software providers as they struggled initially to cope with the influx of millions of new users and existing users all being online at once.

When you’re looking into remote working software, you have to choose a reputable company who has a reliable track record of managing sudden mass usage. Making sure your disaster recovery plan works is only one part, as the software would be running normally when you run a mock remote working test. The other part is ensuring that your software providers have systems in place for disaster failover and reliability across their coverage. Click4Assistance passed that test as their clients remained online while the country transitioned to work from home more, whereas some software companies were not so lucky as many buckled under the sudden pressure. Who would you trust in a disaster?

Click4Assistance’s live chat software allows your customers to keep in contact with you no matter where your customer service agents are located. The best live chat, video chat, AI chatbots and social media integration allow your business to stay online while brick and mortar locations are closed. Keeping your communication channels with your customers  open will assure them that you’re still there to answer any questions they may have, giving them peace of mind and ensuring they don’t migrate to a competitor who is still online to answer their questions. This is a competitive advantage that can be considered one of the simplest methods with a massive return on investment for your business. The benefits of Click4Assistance’s best live chat software include increasing your revenue potential by capturing those customers who are mainly online only or who browse out of working hours. Doesn’t every business want to access that revenue stream?

If you’re interested in deploying Click4Assistance, the UK’s premier GDPR compliant live chat software solution, to increase your business’ productivity for 2020, give us a call on 08451235871 or send an email to theteam@click4assistance.co.uk and one of our experts will be with you right away. Not ready to reach out yet? Discover how it works, try a demo, or better yet, try Click4Assistance completely free for 21 days.