A long weekend – either spent at home, on a trip to visit family, or by the seaside – can often be the perfect antidote to a busy schedule, or finding that ever elusive work-life balance, leading to a more productive mindset. Bank holidays can benefit everyone, but what about businesses? The extra day off may bring extra challenges, or provide opportunities for those companies that will still be open. Either way, it’s advisable to plan appropriately and reap the rewards.
Access
It’s common for staff to be entitled to leave over a bank holiday – although this will depend on the nature of your business. If you need some cover over this time, make sure that employees working from home have access to a VPN network and can get onto work servers. Also make sure that they have a reliable internet connection and phone reception – the last thing you need is not being able to contact someone in an emergency.
Pay
Bars, restaurants and many other businesses in the hospitality industry don’t get the luxury of a bank holiday. When it comes to making sure you have adequate staff, you may want to consider offering extra incentives. This could come in the form of extra pay, a day in lieu or another form of remuneration. Although you do not legally have to provide this, it’s good for staff morale to do so. A happy, motivated team will shine through to customers and guests, and make for better takings throughout the weekend.
Deals
For those businesses that are open, there will undoubtedly be a lot of competition for customers during the three-day break. Think about how to attract passing trade, and encourage consumers to pay a visit. Perhaps there’s a special offer you can launch, promoted by a social media campaign? If you run a car hire fleet business, think of deals that will be attractive to families looking to drive somewhere nice for the day. If you own a bar, think about what kind of special event you could put on for Sunday evening, when there are likely to be far more customers than usual.
Timings
If you are taking the bank holiday off, make sure you remind staff to set their automatic out of office replies to let customers and clients know. This is particularly important for those working internationally, with countries who do not have the same bank holidays. If you have arranged for emergency cover, that person’s details should be listed in the auto-reply with their hours of availability clearly stated. Key clients should be informed and deadlines met before the break so there isn’t any adverse consequences. Plan your timeline in advance so that you can enjoy the long weekend in peace.
Content on this page is paid for and provided by Kia Fleet sponsor of the Guardian Small Business Network Accessing Expertise hub.
