One of the more difficult things about business continuity is proof of concept and instant gratification. Do you get a shiny, bright, new thing you can press a button and see work with a business continuity plan? No. What do you get? Instant return on investment, you just need to see it.
The first thing you get is increased security. Increased security leads to confidence and time. Time? Yes, time you get to keep when a disaster or disruption happens and you're not down and out. You save the time you would lose having to dedicate resources to updating and implementing new procedures and operations after discovering the ones you had actually failed in the moment. With time, you get to keep calm and carry on.
Part of confidence is the confidence to grow. I had a client who learned a lot about business continuity from me and declared that she wouldn't be able to use business continuity until she grows her business. Inaccurate. You can (and should!) do business continuity at any stage. After going through her business with her, giving her changes to implement, her tune had changed: she recognized she could not grow until she did business continuity because of the sense of security she didn't have before...nor would she get that security without having an outsider dissect the processes of her business she was too close to see.
Emotional benefits of business continuity make it a money-making practice: a business can experience growth and keep the doors open with the cash flowing. Do you need more than that? More than the promise of things going well? How about the part of business continuity that makes it a cash-saving program?
Whatever money is invested in the asset of a business continuity plan starts to come back almost instantly. First is your business insurance premiums will decrease up to 20%. Insurance companies like it when you are proactive and do things to reduce the expense of a claim (or even the chance of you having to file one). Think about car insurance. You get discounts for day-running lights, an alarm system, or having taken a defensive driving course. Second is you qualify for special grants you would not have otherwise. There is a grant for small businesses that will give them $5,000 after a disaster has hit their community but 1) you need to register for it in advance of the disaster, and 2) show you have a business continuity plan. You will be handed $5,000 (remember, grants do not need to be paid back) to assist with recovery efforts.
See, it's not just clients who want a reliable business to work with: your business will be rewarded with actual monetary assistance and discounts because you proved you cared about keeping your business alive AND did something about it.
Show you care and they will show you the money. Everyone will.
