Benefits of Being Prepared for the Next Big Storm - More Disaster Preparedness Tips For Small Business

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We covered disaster preparedness tips in a recent piece. With the coming of the 2012 hurricane season, Joe Perko’s additional insights give us some food for thought. – Art

You don’t have to live in southern Florida or the Gulf Coast to experience the devastating consequences of a storm. Storms come in many forms: blizzards, torrential rains, tornadoes, ice storms, snowstorms, firestorms, wind storms, thunderstorms and tropical storms. If a storm doesn’t damage your home or business, the after-effects can. Take Hurricane Katrina, for example: The failure of the levees to contain the storm surge did more damage to the city than Katrina’s rains and wind.

If the unthinkable were to happen in your community tomorrow, would you be prepared? While storm preparedness takes time and effort, it’s nothing compared to the hardship of putting your life back together without a backup plan.

The Benefits of Being Prepared

Eliminate panic.

When you prepare your home or business for a disaster, you know exactly what to do if a storm strikes. By mapping out emergency routes, you know how to get to the local emergency shelters. By having a stash of emergency food and water, you don’t have to worry about your family going hungry. By scanning and digitally storing your critical documents, you won’t have worry about trying to retrieve them in the heat of a crisis. When you prepare for a storm, it’s simpler to keep a level head so you can act appropriately instead of react with fear.

Avoid last-minute long lines at the grocery and hardware stores.

Whenever there is a rumor about a big storm, the first thing people do is go to the grocery and hardware stores to stock up on supplies. Then, after the storm, individuals end up right back at these stores to purchase items they should have already had on hand. By being prepared, you can avoid the frenzy and focus on protecting your family, home and business.

Pick up the pieces faster.

According to the American Red Cross, up to 40 percent of small businesses don’t reopen after a disaster because they were unprepared and didn’t have a disaster plan. Similarly, the lack of preparedness can cause homeowners stress, headaches and grief, especially when they don’t have vital information, resources or documents at their fingertips. One of the simplest, most critical ways a home or business owner can move forward after a storm is to already have backup copies of important documents stored at a remote location.

Why Document Scanning Matters

No inch of a home or office is safe from the potential aftermath of a storm, particularly when water or fire damage is involved. While most people think of stockpiling food, water and other supplies in their emergency kits, they often neglect to make copies of important documents they’ll need to get their lives back in order after the storm ends.

Document scanning is the latest high-tech way to protect your essential documents – birth certificates, insurance policies, etc. – in the event of a storm. By storing these digital copies offsite or on a remote server, you can ensure you’ll be able to retrieve them later with minimal effort. Among the many benefits of document scanning:

Easy access.

Document scanning allows you to instantly save and access your documents in one place – like on a company server or hard drive. Plus, when you make a virtual backup of your documents, such as on a cloud server, you can access them from any computer or mobile device that has an internet connection. This process allows you to keep all the information and documents you need at your fingertips, without having to worry about the originals after a storm.

Save invaluable items.

Papers with private client or patient information; the deed to your home; family photographs; birth certificates; business contracts and more can fall victim to a storm. And there is no guarantee that a storm will leave precious documents in good enough condition for professional document restoration. However, you can easily retrieve digital files from secure storage so your disaster recovery is expedited.

No one has ever regretted being prepared for a storm. Start getting ready today.

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