By ; Nahla Muqalad
Facebook announced the creation of the Business Resource Hub to support businesses being affected, whether directly or indirectly, by the recent outbreak of COVID-19.
The Hub features recommendations as well as courses to help businesses and brands stay connected to customers and keep their business on track.
As part of these recommendations, Facebook encouraged businesses to take these five steps to navigate the impacts and effectively maintain their operations:
· Keep yourself safe and informed.
Stay up to date by following credible, official sources such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and your local government health department so you can respond quickly to changes that could affect you or your customers.
· Stay in touch with your customers.
Proactively share important information with your customers using email, your website, Facebook Page, Instagram business profile or however you typically connect.
· Try hosting online events.
In case you need to postpone or cancel any planned events as a result of the outbreak, connect with your customers directly on their phone with an online webinar, or organise live sessions using social channels such as Facebook or Instagram.
· Prepare a customer service plan.
In order to be responsive and transparent with your customers during this challenging moment, prepare for incoming questions and requests.
· Provide a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs).
Prepare a list of responses for questions your customers are likely to ask and provide as much detail and reassurance as possible in your answers.
The Business Resource Hub also includes quick and easy access to credible and accurate information about COVID-19 and other resources to help businesses and the communities they serve, stay informed.
These resources include the Resilience Toolkit that provides best practices, tools and a self-assessment to help protect businesses from interruptions. Also available on the hub is the Quick-Action Guide that helps businesses plan their emergency response and develop plans to minimise downtime.
To learn more about how Facebook is keeping people safe and informed, see here.
