Black Friday is a whirlwind at the best of times; now, during a global pandemic, it might just be the most chaotic day of the year. Yes, that includes Election Day.
As a business owner, you might be feeling a mix of emotions in the run up to Black Friday. What is bound to be a high-profit-margin few days is also bound to be chaotic when social distancing, warehouse restrictions and shipping delays all come into play. In this article you will find three key things to prioritize for surviving Black Friday during the pandemic.
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Preparation
Preparation is essential for the holiday season in general, but on Black Friday, your preparation game needs to be at its strongest. If you run a business that will be shipping out orders from a warehouse, it is crucial that you anticipate the demand placed on your company this Black Friday and therefore meet the supply far in advance. Depending on the type of products you stock, your warehouse capacity need not be overfilled for health and safety reasons – but ensure you can stock up as best you can before the day arrives.
In addition, preparing your customers for the huge heave of orders is important too. Due to social distancing regulations, you may not be able to ship orders as efficiently as you usually would; make sure to place a disclaimer on your website to avoid backlash for any delays.
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Your Workers
Your warehouse and ecommerce staff are bound to be stressed out in the lead up to Black Friday. This could be worrying about the workload, transmission of the virus or simply in anticipation of the tiredness that will ensue after the fact. As a business owner or manager, you should take responsibility for ensuring that your workers are safe. This includes:
- Providing ample PPE for all warehouse workers.
- Enforcing social distancing measures in the workplace.
- Recruiting temporary staff if your permanent labor force won’t cut it.
- Maintaining realistic expectations of your workers.
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Updating Your Site
If you are relying on ecommerce to do most of the work for you this Black Friday, now is the time to update your site and prepare it for the onslaught of customers that is about to occur. Here are a few ways you can make sure your site is ready for Black Friday:
- Update your cybersecurity. Make sure that your site will not fall prey to fraud or hackers during Black Friday by ensuring your IT support provider is fully up to date on cybersecurity.
- Make your site as user-friendly as possible. Complicated, confusing websites are not pleasant when a customer is trying to secure a sale item on Black Friday. Make sure your site is streamlined and confusion-free.
Implementing these steps will make sure your site is fully prepared for unusually high traffic on Black Friday.
In conclusion, getting your business ready for a COVID-friendly Black Friday requires meticulous planning and attention to detail. Thanksgiving is around the corner, so start making these preparations today!
