During these unprecedented times, a lot of businesses are seeking refuge. Many weddings vendors including wedding photographers and videographers are getting postponement after postponement. Here are a few tips you can do to both get a head of - and weather the storm.
Be proactive - not reactive.
Don’t wait for your clients to contact you. Have a plan, write it down and get in touch with your clients and let them know what your plan is, your availability, how you are handling postponements, and what your policies are, etc.
For us, we have been offering available dates to clients while also encouraging less popular dates, such as Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays (as Saturdays are quite full).
Know your contractual agreement - this is a time to lean on your agreement, but don’t be inflexible. Your clients are your first priority but remember you yourself/business need to remain sustainable in order to continue to serve them, others, your employees (if you have them), and yourself!
Do your best to accommodate all your clients. You may need to think outside the box and do things you have never done before, like - hire an associate! This inconvenience could be creating a great opportunity for you to make new connections and scale! Stopping thinking you’re the only one that can do it like you.
Be resourceful - not fearful
This is no time to panic, life happens, let’s have a plan and look for opportunity. Right now the government is helping in every possible way to sustain the economy. I am not going to pretend to be an expert on this stuff but here goes…These are the current programs you can take advantage of.
Economic Injury Disaster
First and foremost, if you are a subcontractor, business owner or are self employed in any way, you can apply for the Economic Injury Disaster, https://covid19relief.sba.gov/#/ - you will be considered for a $10,000 federal loan that does not need to be paid back.
SBA Paycheck Protection Program
For business owners that carry payroll - the SBA Paycheck Protection Program provides small business access to low interest rate loans (.05%), with payments deferred 6 months. You only need two things to qualify; fewer than 500 employees and have been in business before Feb, 15th 2020.
How much you will qualify for depends on your average payroll over the last twelve months - your monthly payroll multiplied by 2.5 (this can include independent contractors, commissions, etc).
The best part of this loan is that if the money goes towards payroll, rent, and/or utilities, it is 100% forgivable, meaning you don’t have to pay it back. This incentive is to avoid having to layoff stay during this trying time. If you have already laid off some or all of your staff this would allow you to bring them back on. There are some stipulations to this so please do your research.
https://www.sba.gov/document/sba-form--paycheck-protection-program-ppp-sample-application-form
Unemployment,… for the self employed?
This varies from state to state but for perhaps the first time in history you can now collect self employment during this time even if you are a subcontractor!
(Visit your state website)
Make the most of this season
This is a great time to revisit your processes, explore new systems/tools to improve your workflow and client experience and a time to engage more with your clients and potential future clients via social media. We have the opportunity to come out of this better but that will be based on what we do with our time right now.
Remember - We are all in this together, feel free to reach out if you need help or have questions!