Every retailer knows that precaution against crises on Black Friday is important — after all, the forecast is that 66% of consumers will make purchases, and revenue will reach R$ 9.3 billion in the Brazilian e-commerce, according to reports from Opinion Box with Wake and Neotrust, respectively. But one factor that should alert entrepreneurs is the impact of any potential blackouts, like the one that occurred in São Paulo in October.
There were 72 hours without power in the city of São Paulo and the Metropolitan Region, affecting residents and business operations. In a business context, the scenario leaves companies vulnerable to attacks and fraud, loss of sales revenue, and, above all, communication breakdowns with customers. If this crisis were to happen during Black Friday, the potential for losses would be significant for businesses.
“Unfortunately, natural disasters are becoming more frequent, whether minor, like blackouts, or more serious, like floods. It is essential for companies to have contingency strategies to avoid these negative effects, especially near important commercial dates,” emphasizes Eduardo Daghum, CEO and founder of Horus Group, a leader in security services and fraud prevention.
He explains that the ideal is to have operational centers located more than 100 km apart to avoid relying on just one, which may be in a region in crisis. Decentralizing the location of our operations, for example, has been one of our strategies to prevent greater loss. It is not just a recommendation, but a necessity to ensure the continuity of services even in times of crisis, not leaving partners and customers stranded.
Therefore, companies that do not focus on organizing the modus operandi in case of crises caused by climate change may suffer significant financial losses and affect what matters most, which is a positive customer experience. Frauds are common in times of vulnerability and affect websites, e-commerce platforms, and various systems, such as credit card scams, account breaches, and chargebacks (a process used when the cardholder disputes a transaction directly with the card issuer).
Prevention and investment in trained teams and technological resources should be a priority in both B2B and B2C businesses. ‘A good anti-fraud strategy in times of crisis lies in the actions of a good team of analysts who, with their human perspective, along with technological tools, can monitor, predict, and respond to attacks,’ adds the CEO of Horus Group.
