Small Business & Disaster Preparedness

A Mediaplanet Guide to Preparing for the Future

JUNE 2022 | FUTUREOFBUSINESSANDTECH.COM | MODERNWELLNESSGUIDE.COM

Small Business & Disaster Preparedness

Bethenny Frankel Learn what the BStrong founder has to say about the business of giving back

Discover what Uber Eats is doing for small businesses

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Olympic champion Missy Franklin shares her tips for better pool safety

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Expert Small Business Advice from Entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk

Small and medium businesses (SMB) are always facing challenges, but successful small business owners and entrepreneurs are innovative and keep evolving. That’s according to entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk.

“We have some really big changes going on in an SMB world,” says Vaynerchuk, who is the chairman of VaynerX (a media and communications holding company), CEO of VaynerMedia (a full-service advertising agency), and creator and CEO of the NFT project VeeFriends.

He advises SMBs to be patient and to build a business around things they like.

Challenges The past few years have been particularly challenging for SMBs, which have struggled with the pandemic, supply chain issues, inflation, and attracting and retaining talent.

Vaynerchuk encourages SMBs to innovate their way around supply chain issues, including limiting offerings or offering new items. Inflation solutions may include strategic price increases and charging for shipping. While these are tough decisions to make, “the reality is, businesses have to be profitable, otherwise they go out of business,” Vaynerchuk says.

Culture For Vaynerchuk, the most important thing SMBs can offer is a quality culture.

“Culture is a real thing,” he says. “Many human beings, especially the ones entering the workforce today, genuinely are looking for an environment where they can feel comfortable, safe, happy, and seen.”

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The Habits of Very Successful Entrepreneurs Small businesses generate 44 percent of the U.S. economy and are responsible for two-thirds of new jobs. One of the most often overlooked sectors of the small business community is the 16 million people who are self-employed.

“The state of mind of the typical self-employed person is by definition not typical,” says Keith Hall, chief operating officer and president of the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE).

“Most people have a regular steady job — almost 75 percent of Americans work for somebody else. The self-employed state of mind starts with a center of self-competence, of wanting to be in control of your own destiny.”

Faith and focus Hall points out that the fundamental requirement for success as a self-employed person is self-confidence. “It starts with asking ‘if not me, then who?’” he says. “The best thing for building self-confidence for something is doing it.”

The other keys to a successful self-employed business are consistency and curiosity. “You have to wake up every day with a consistent commitment to your business, thinking about your success, whether that’s contacting one more customer or making one more cold call,” Hall

explains. “That is universal, no matter what industry that you’re in. A second universal point is you can never stop learning, regardless of what industry you’re in.”

Connection Another crucial component of success in the self-employed world is connection. Hall points out that part of the lifelong learning that helps keep your skills and offerings current comes from interactions with peers and competitors who will clue you into new ideas, new tools, and new markets. Hall recommends looking into local chambers of commerce, networking groups, and professional associations in order to make and maintain those connections.

Hall also stresses the importance of connecting to the many resources that exist for the self-employed, including the Small Business Administration, which maintains thousands of

local centers tied to local universities where counselors are available to answer questions, and NASE, where members have access to a wide range of benefits.

“We provide one-on-one consultations with small business owners,” Hall notes. “These are conversations about specific individual business needs — we have tax experts, general business people, real estate professionals, lawyers, IT professionals, marketing specialists. Any question that a new small business owner is going to have about any area of their company, we have an expert that’s available.”

The importance of an organization like NASE goes beyond the practical benefits, though.

“When you’re self-employed it’s easy to be overwhelmed and feel like you’re in this all alone,” Hall says. “But if you have an internet connection, you’re not alone.” n Jeff Somers

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Publisher Ellie Gouvia, Lauren McGuiness, Shannon Ruggiero Business Developer Katie Konfino, Joelle Hernandez, Adrienne Macaluso Managing Director Jordan Hernandez Lead Designer Kayla Mendez Designer Tiffany Jackson Lead Editor Dustin Brennan Copy Editor Kathleen Walsh Director of Content and Production Jordan Hernandez Cover Photo Celeste Sloman All photos are credited to Getty Images unless otherwise specified. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve USA Today.

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Control and Flexibility is Key Above all, delivery platforms must be flexible. Look for those that let you customize and grow your way. Uber Eats provides a breadth of options, including: • Uber Direct, which allows you to meet customers’ needs for same-day, on-demand delivery and control the entire transactional experience under your own branding.

Small Businesses Can Boost Revenue and Increase Demand With Delivery Platforms To grow their businesses in an ever-changing on-demand world, small businesses find success with delivery platforms that offer broad choices, flexibility, and control.

For small businesses, offering delivery can be an efficient way to expand beyond brick-and-mortar to online. As consumers’ appetite for using online delivery to get almost anything effortlessly—whether their next meal, grocery, or retail item—grows, you can meet their needs through delivery platforms.

The key is to select partners that offer choice, flexibility, and control.

The right questions to ask For business owners who want to drive incremental customer demand, increase revenue, and create operational efficiencies, choosing an online delivery platform can help. For example, 84 percent of US small and medium sized businesses report that offering delivery or pickup with Uber Eats has increased revenue by an average of 15 percent.* When deciding who to partner with, ask yourself a few key questions:

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• How can this partner help me reach more customers? One of the best benefits of offering delivery is to connect with customers who may not frequent your physical location. In the case of Uber Eats, it’s the only global platform that connects you to customers across their rides and delivery network, which allows you to expand your reach locally, nationally, or even globally. They also give you the unique advantage of tapping into their loyal Uber One membership base, which spans their mobility and delivery businesses.

• How reliable is this partner? Reaching more customers is an advantage. But, it’s only a benefit if customers receive their deliveries on time. Customers who use Uber Eats, for example, experience an average delivery time of less than 30 minutes, with help from approximately 4.4 million active drivers and delivery people globally.

• What marketing tools can I access? To grow your business, look for a delivery platform that allows you to take control of your marketing funnel. The turnkey marketing tools built into the Uber Eats platform include ads, promotions,

• Self-Delivery where you supply your own drivers but can tap into Uber’s delivery network when needed.

• Webshop where customers can place delivery and pickup orders directly through your website.

and loyalty options, which allow you to market your business across the customer lifecycle.

• What type of operational support do I receive? When you need help, easy access to support is critical. Look for a partner that knows your business and is on the ground. Uber Eats has a vast network of locally-based account managers and 24/7 phone and email support in the US and Canada.

• What insights are available? The more you know about how to use a delivery platform, the more successful you can be. Uber Eats provides you with access to valuable sales, customer, and operational data.

• How does this partner support local communities? The relationship between businesses and communities is paramount. Find a partner that supports this relationship. More than half of the merchants who partner with Uber Eats are single, local, independently-owned businesses with an average of 17 employees—meaning they support over 6 million restaurant jobs in local communities worldwide.

• Traditional online ordering where your business appears on their app and you use their platform to handle all aspects of delivery. Additional options include Pickup and Contactless Ordering.

Another important aspect of flexibility is pricing and fee transparency. In the US and Canada, you can choose among several pricing plans, ranging from a Lite Plan designed to keep your costs as low as possible to a Premium Plan that helps you maximize sales.

Today, small businesses have more control, flexibility, and choice to grow their businesses their way and exceed their customers’ needs in this ever-changing on-demand, digital world. * Data obtained from an independent survey commissioned by Uber Eats between September to November 2021. Read the Uber Eats and Small Businesses: Partnering for Impact report 2021 for details. n Jeff Somers

Learn more about how you can use Uber Eats for your business at merchants.ubereats.com

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Children with autism face greater risk of drowning, which is why the Y is offering special swim classes just for these kiddos.

Drowning accounts for 46 percent of all injury deaths among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This figure translates to children with ASD having 160 times the chance of dying from drowning as other children. Individuals 14 years and younger with ASD are 40 times more likely to die from injury than the general pediatric population.

Knowing that children with autism have a higher drowning risk, YMCA of the USA has been working with local YMCAs across the United States to help grow capacity for inclusive swim lessons.

To date, nearly 400 Ys offer swimming instruction for children with special needs, including children with autism.

“The Y believes that learning to swim is a necessity, not a luxury, but we also realize that many children, including those with autism, may face barriers when it comes to learning to swim,” said Lindsay Mondick, director of aquatics and water safety at YMCA of the USA (Y-USA). “That’s why Y-USA has made it a priority to ensure that local Ys have the tools and resources they need to ensure that all children have access to the life-saving skills that come with formal swim lessons.”

Swim lessons for children with autism may include one-on-one lessons rather than group, warmer water, and lessons during quieter pool times so that children don’t feel over-stimulated.

YMCA of the USA

Missy Franklin on Why Swimming Is More Than Just a Sport The five-time Olympic gold medalist explains why it’s never too early and it’s never too late to learn how to swim, and she’s speaking from experience.

What steps did your family take when you were younger to ensure pool safety?

My parents took several steps to ensure as much of my safety as possible around the water. There is no such thing as being totally water safe at any age, but my parents wanted to make sure I was as safe as I could be. My mom signed us both up for swim lessons when I was 6 months old at the YMCA. Even though she was fearful of the water herself (never learning how to swim), she was brave enough

to protect us both. If the parents don’t know how to swim, there is only a 19% chance that any child in that household will know how to swim.

It is a generational fear and it takes courage and bravery to stop the cycle.

Whenever I was in the water, my parents were

alert and focused only on me.

In your opinion, what are the top reasons children should learn how to swim?

Swimming is the only sport that can save your life and that you can do

How did learning to swim positively impact your life?

Swimming obviously impacted my life in profound ways. My mother never thought when putting me in for lessons at 6 months that she was giving me my career.

The people I met and the places I was able to travel have all gifted me more than I could ever imagine. Not to mention the life lessons this sport has taught me. I am who I am today because of this sport. n

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Teach your children water safety and make water activities accessible.

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for life. Swimming is a life-saving skill that is crucial for any stage and age of life. It is never too early to learn, and it is never too late. Your child will be around water for the rest of your life, and you are providing them with a skill they will use forever.

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Saving Lives With Inclusive Swim Lessons

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Visit ymca.org/watersafety

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Bethenny Frankel Is on a Mission

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What did you include in the crisis kits you sent to Ukraine in the wake of the invasion?

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Entrepreneur Bethenny Frankel talks disaster relief, the crisis in Ukraine, and staying balanced in this Q&A. What inspired you to start the BStrong initiative in partnership with Global Empowerment Mission (GEM)?

It evolved. I was inspired to help after Hurricane Harvey, but had no credibility or experience in the space of disaster relief. I simply jumped in and figured

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out how to help. Then I visited other ravaged areas after natural disasters. During Hurricane Maria, I connected with GEM and embarked on a multi-year massive scale disaster relief journey all over the world.

What is the core mission of the BStrong initiative?

Immediate, efficient, organized, lean, and logical crisis aid. No one can do what we can do in a limited time period with limited resources. Our efforts are unprecedented.

We initially provided crisis kits for refugees but immediately realized the massive magnitude of this crisis. We are now executing an effort exceeding $150 million. We have massive warehouses in Poland and Ukraine that amass worldwide aid in ravaged, besieged areas and we serve as warehouses to aid other organizations.

We have relocated thousands of refugees and we extract orphans and desperate people out of areas in peril.

Why did the recent situation in Ukraine resonate with you and inspire you to help and act so quickly?

It’s a disaster, a humanitarian crisis, and we act instantly when there is a massive need for immediate aid.

How do you balance being a successful businesswoman with your efforts to help people in need of disaster relief ?

I am fiercely organized, and I create a balance between business, philanthropy, and personal life by being present in all of these areas. I always know how to prioritize and maximize time and how I spend it. It’s the most valuable commodity of all. n

Disaster Preparedness Tips From the American Red Cross The American Red Cross responds to a disaster every eight minutes. Whether a family faces a hurricane or home fire, being prepared ahead of time is essential to building a resilient household.

While preparing for the unknown may seem like a daunting task, you can navigate potential disasters by taking three simple actions: Build a kit You should have two emergency kits. You’ll create one kit for situations when you lose power or access to community resources, and the other kit as a support if an evacuation occurs.

Both kits should contain enough food, water, and other basic supplies for every family member.

Make sure to collect two weeks’ worth for sheltering in place and three days’ worth for an evacuation. Also, don’t forget to include essential medications, copies of important documents, and special items to accommodate children, pets, the elderly, and those with disabilities.

Preparation can be done to accommodate any type of budget. Slowly build your kits by buying one extra item at a time, collect supplies you may already have in your household, or purchase prepackaged kits from local or national retailers.

Make a plan Plan what to do in case you are separated from your family during an emergency and what to do if you have to evacuate. Make sure to coordinate your plan with your child’s school, your work, and your community’s emergency plans. Consider discussing plans with your extended family and neighbors, particularly those who are most vulnerable, such as the elderly or disabled, to determine if they may need assistance with transportation or gathering supplies.

Stay informed Find out how local officials will contact you during a disaster and how you will get important information. In addition to weather alerts from your local National Weather Service office, make sure you have at least two other ways to receive disaster information. Make sure that one method of communication is not reliant on power or access to Wi-Fi. For more information on how to prepare for an emergency, visit redcross.org.

Stephanie Fox, Media Relations Lead, American Red Cross

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The Role of Volunteers In the United States Fire Service When an emergency strikes, firefighters and EMS providers respond. But what most people don’t realize is that a majority of these responders are volunteers.

It could be a home fire. Perhaps it is a vehicle crash or a medical emergency. Maybe it is a natural disaster like a flood or a hurricane. Or a truck overturned on a highway carrying a hazardous material. Whatever the call that comes through to 911, firefighters and emergency medical services (EMS) providers are there to answer it and to do what they can to protect those in their communities.

It may come as a surprise to many of those community members that often the ones responding to the emergencies are volunteers. In fact, about 82% of the nation’s fire departments are staffed either entirely or mostly with volunteers. These volunteers are the first line of defense for emergencies of all kinds.

Rural, small-town, and

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suburban communities are most likely to have volunteers answering the call. Many of these communities are unable to support the costs of switching to a paid fire service staffing model, which nationally would cost an additional $46.9 billion per year. Instead, they rely on a tradition as old as the nation itself — neighbors helping neighbors in their

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time of need.

It isn’t quite as simple as it sounds. Volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers are highly trained and departments have to meet rigorous standards in order to provide the services they do in their communities. The only difference between volunteer responders and their paid counterparts is that they are

donating their time and talents to undertake this training and perform these services.

There are many reasons why people volunteer as firefighters and EMS providers.

Some are looking for a way to make a difference in their communities, while others want to learn skills that can help them in their everyday lives and in their careers.

“It’s really unlike any other volunteer opportunity you can do,” says Steve Hirsch, chair of the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) and a volunteer firefighter in rural Kansas. “The sense of purpose and pride you get in giving back to your community in this way is incredible. There is also the camaraderie of being part of an amazing team that really feels more like a family.

For many of us, once you are drawn into the volunteer fire service, you can’t imagine not being part of it.”

For those who want to give back but don’t have the time or inclination to be an emergency responder, fire departments also need non-operational volunteers. This can include fire prevention education, fundraising, public relations, administration, station and equipment maintenance, and much more. n Kimberly Quiros, Chief of Communications, National Volunteer Fire Council

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Wildfires Won’t Stop.

Here’s How to Protect Homes Against Them Disaster relief and mitigation experts offer simple, proactive steps individuals and communities can take to help protect homes and property from wildfires.

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ver the past decade, an average of 7.4 million acres of land in the United States has been impacted by wildfires each year. By early May of this year, more than 1.1 million acres had already burned. Disaster relief organizations and wildfire mitigation experts have discovered that

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taking some simple, proactive steps can help protect communities in wildfires’ paths.

The first step is to clear brush and other vegetation from the area immediately around the home. The area within five feet from any house should be the no-fuel, no-flame zone. “If you have five feet of fire-safe material, think rock for example, sur-

rounding your home, your home is much more protected against fire than it would be by a prescribed burn of a nearby forest,” explains Team Rubicon mitigation project manager Duane Poslusny.

The area between 5 and 30 feet from the home should be “lean and green.” It should consist of living vegetation only. Removing items that

can catch fire easily, such as pine needles and dead or dying trees, within 30 feet of a home reduces the risk that, should an ember land on the property, it will ignite a path to the front door.

Beyond the 30-foot perimeter, mitigation experts also encourage delimbing trees up to the 12-foot mark. That way, any tree that does catch fire is

less likely to generate enough heat to get into the canopy of the forest.

For homeowners and communities, mitigating wildfires is all about strategic fuel reduction. While wildfires can’t be stopped, reducing fuel around homes and buildings can often help protect them. n Julie H. Case, Team Rubicon

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Moms Are Fighting for Cleaner Air One Electric Vehicle at a Time

PHOTOS: ADRIANA ZEHBRAUSKAS

for the rapid electrification of cars, trucks, and buses to clean up the air for all of us.

We need air that’s safe to breathe. As a great-grandmother and Latina mother living in neighborhoods burdened by pollution, we are calling for clean air now.

From smog hanging over cities to choking wildfire smoke, air pollution poses a major threat to our health and climate. In fact, more than 40% of Americans are living

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in places where the air is unhealthy to breathe, according to the American Lung Association. That number is a staggering three times higher for people of color.

A major cause of air pollution is vehicle exhaust. The pollution that comes from cars, trucks, and buses can harm people’s lungs, hearts, and brains. This is sending tens of thousands of people to the emergency room and cut-

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ting thousands of lives short each year. The pollution from these vehicles also contributes to climate change.

We live in Phoenix, one of the most polluted cities in the country. Like many American cities experiencing rapid growth, Phoenix’s residents are especially burdened by vehicle pollution. That’s why we are working to address this pollution at its source: tailpipes. We are advocating

Zero emissions The passing of the bipartisan infrastructure bill was a major step in implementing change to improve air quality. The law allocated up to $5 billion over five years to help school districts replace existing diesel-powered school buses with zero-emission models. The infrastructure investments will help us build out electric vehicle charging stations, expanding clean energy and reducing pollution.

However, there is still a lot of work to do when it comes to transitioning our transportation sector — the nation’s largest source of climate pollution, and a major contributor to health-harming air pollution — to the zero-emission, accessible, and clean transportation sector that we need for our families. There are 284 million vehicles on

roads throughout the United States and only 1% of those vehicles are electric. That percentage is the same for the school buses that transport 25 million children daily.

Action now As parents, we can use our voices to advocate for stronger health protections and pollution standards. Working with Moms Clean Air Force, we are asking Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency, the White House, and our local leaders to take action now. Our country must rapidly transition every vehicle on every road to run on clean, zero-pollution electricity.

That includes our school bus fleets, passenger vehicles, and heavy-duty trucks. Electric vehicles will provide a better future for our children and generations to come. Let’s get rolling, America! n Hazel Chandler & Columba Sainz, Arizona State Coordinators, Moms Clean Air Force

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Protect Your Home Against Rising Flood Risk

Ninety percent of all natural disasters in the United States involve flooding, making flooding the nation’s most common and costly disaster.

And the trend is worsening.

Fueled by climate change, extreme rainfall events and sea level rise will continue at a frightening pace, putting millions of people in the path of destructive floods. And you don’t need to live near water to be at risk. Flooding can happen anywhere, and it does. Ninety-eight percent of counties in the United States have experienced a flood event.

It’s the increased severity of the problem and the growing urgency to raise public awareness of the mitigation options available that led the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to team up to create ReduceFloodRisk.org, an interactive website to help at-risk property owners make informed deci-

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sions around actions they can take to protect against flooding.

“To the average property owner, flood risk mitigation can feel like an overwhelming task. People often tell us they don’t even know where to start, so they put it off until it’s too late,” said Chad Berginnis, executive director of ASFPM, a national nonprofit working to reduce flood losses. “One of the goals of Reduce Flood Risk is to put people on a path toward understanding their flood risk and arming them with the tools they need to reduce that risk.

And for those who think they’ll never flood, keep in mind that 40% of federal flood insurance claims occur outside of high-risk areas.”

The disruptive nature of flood events can upend lives for days, weeks, months — even years. For the recently flooded property owners, it can be difficult to navigate the complex disaster recovery process, and there are many decisions to make in a short, critical amount of time; not the least of which is how to rebuild, and

to do so in a way that reduces risk of flooding in the future.

But whether someone is trying to prevent their next flood or their first flood, the good news is that for every dollar invested in flood mitigation, an estimated $6 in post-disaster recovery costs is saved. The types of mitigation options range from simple DIY projects like ensuring downspout extensions are secured and directed away from the house, to large-scale projects that require professional expertise, such as elevating the home or constructing a flood barrier.

To get started, people can go to ReduceFloodRisk.org and answer a series of five simple questions to receive a detailed list of mitigation options recommended to reduce flood risk for their specific property type. The curated results can then be filtered and sorted by key attributes, such as cost, complexity, and level of required maintenance.

In addition to its decision-support engine, ReduceFloodRisk.org, which

was launched in May, also features a variety of resources to help property owners and renters better understand flood risk, flood insurance, financial assistance options, and who to contact with any questions they may have about flood mitigation. The site is completely free and users do not need to create an account to gain access to the resources.

By curating the best mitigation resources available on the web and creating a centralized, searchable library, ReduceFloodRisk.org empowers property owners to protect themselves and their most valuable assets.

With more than 1 million houses at high risk of flooding and the rising frequency of flood events across the nation, it is vital that individuals and communities take action today to protect against flooding tomorrow. n

Genevieve Moran, Flood Science Center Co-Director and Portfolio Manager, ASFPM

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How Small Businesses Can Cope With Rising Inflation

Here are five ways small business owners can get prepared and get ahead amid economic uncertainty and rising inflation.

Inflation has continued to rise at staggering levels.

Small business owners are often disproportionally impacted by rising costs as they don’t have the same ability as larger companies to absorb them. Data from MetLife and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Small Business Index says 85% of small businesses are concerned about the impact of inflation, and 67% have raised prices to cope.

At Rhoback, we have seen

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the worldwide supply shock on raw materials raise product costs faster than we have seen in our five-year history.

With ocean freight and air freight prices increasing fouror five-fold, we are spending more and overnighting goods to secure inventory and meet demand. Meanwhile, it is becoming more expensive and more important to compete for great talent. We’re investing more in our current team and spending more to attract top talent.

Small business owners who use this time of uncertainty to evaluate their business model, plan, and forecast their financials can outpace the storm. Here are five

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ways to create opportunity in an uncertain time: 1. Invest in new products and services Use this time to innovate and separate yourself from competitors. At Rhoback, we are investing in research and development to position ourselves to compete with and challenge the biggest activewear brands over the next five years.

2. Invest in your people Grow those around you, whether that be through incentives, training, or process. No small business can be successful without empowering their team, no matter the current challenge.

3. Have a plan and pay attention to your finances Even if the old military adage holds true that no plan survives first contact with the enemy, you will be in a better position if you’ve formalized your goals and financial targets. As the price of goods rises, it’s important to monitor the health of your margins and cash flow periodically.

4. Reconsider your pricing This is always a delicate balance. With the rise of product costs, there will be more pressure on business models. Explore how you can set up your business model for long-term success while continuing to meet the needs

of your employees and customers.

5. Get involved Join your local Chamber of Commerce to stay abreast of the biggest issues facing small businesses and how you can effectively lobby for the policy changes that your business needs. Our state and federal representatives will be better equipped to make decisions when they hear directly from the job-creating small business owners that are the backbone of the American economy. n Kevin Hubbard, Co-founder, Rhoback Activewear, and Member, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Small Business Council

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Human Interest, 2022. Online survey of 2,000 US adults conducted via OnePoll on behalf of Human Interest, in accordance with the Market Research Society’s code of conduct. Data collected March 14-15.

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