Why Business Owners Should Never Overlook Insurance
It’s important to network as a new business owner. By talking to others in your industry, you can gain all the most valuable insights, helping you to uncover opportunities and, perhaps most importantly, avoid common pitfalls. One of those pitfalls that you’re going to hear about a lot is the failure to attain insurance. According to a recent report, nearly 45% of small businesses in the US don’t have insurance, with even more being underinsured. Overlooking insurance, however, can be incredibly damaging, especially for newcomers without access to a lot of capital.
Protecting Your Budget
Let’s start by looking at a business owner’s policy. For those unaware, this is a bundled insurance package designed specifically for small to mid-sized businesses, typically combining two key types of coverage: general liability insurance and commercial property insurance, often at a lower premium than if the policies were purchased separately.
One of the reasons you need to get a business owners policy is that it provides protection against the most common and costly risks that your business might face. From customer injuries to property damage caused by fire or theft, a single unexpected event can derail your operations and push your business into a downward spiral. Without insurance, the financial burden will fall entirely on you. This isn’t a significant problem if you’re running a large brand with the financial resources to handle issues like this. But as a new business owner, your budget is everything. The last thing you want is to spend years building your company and developing your reputation, only to see it wiped out by one incident that you couldn’t control.
Giving Yourself Peace of Mind
By attaining a business owner’s policy, you’re being given the peace of mind to focus on growth, knowing that you’re protected if things go wrong – and that’s another point that is important to linger on. When starting out in the business world, even the strongest-minded entrepreneurs can struggle mentally. There are numerous moving parts, constant decisions to make, and pressure to succeed, which can quickly make the mental load overwhelming.
This can then damage the business itself, as – even on a subconscious level – these entrepreneurs are tip-toeing around potentially beneficial moves in the business space, simply because they’re not confident enough to take risks. Sometimes, taking risks is necessary, and with insurance on your side, you’re given the peace of mind, clarity, and confidence required to take them, without the fear that everything will come crashing down if things go wrong. Pair your insurance strategy with expert business plan help for comprehensive risk management.
Protecting Your Reputation
We mentioned before, too, that business owners spend years building their reputations. This much is true, and it’s another reason why insurance should not be overlooked. When you’re attracting new customers and trying to develop a loyal relationship with existing ones, insurance will be the key to demonstrating your professionalism, responsibility, and long-term commitment. Customers and even investors want to work with businesses that take themselves and their safety seriously. Having insurance shows that you’re prepared and that you value what you’re building. Not every business is invincible, of course.
Sometimes things go wrong, and, as we mentioned before, these eventualities are often beyond your control. Customers and investors know this, and so if you’re transparent and open about the insurance policies you have in place – either by sharing the information on your website, or including it in your marketing materials – and how you plan to respond to potential setbacks, this is going to build trust. This trust will then be a differentiator in the marketplace. It’s likely, of course, that you’re operating in a space with numerous competitors, but you’d be surprised to learn how many of those competitors don’t have adequate insurance. By reassuring customers and investors that they won’t be left in the lurch if something unexpected happens, you’re providing a point of difference that could lead them to your door, rather than heading to your competitors instead.