Iowa business owners can get tips on how to avoid making mistakes that could cost them their hard-earned assets at a free webinar next week. The online event is being hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration and regional S-B-A spokeswoman June Teasley says it pays to prepare.

“The Midwest gets its share of disasters,” Teasley says, “and as many local businesses found in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, even distant disasters can effect local businesses because supply chains are interrupted and travel is curtailed and information from that part of the United States can be sketchy.”

How a business responds within the first few hours of an incident can either make the company a survivor or, Teasley says, it could result in the costly failure of the business. “Besides our usual tornadoes here, businesses can be prepared for disasters of all kinds,” Teasley says. “These include fire and floods, sewage floods and major road closures because of ice and storms.”

The webinar will cover all sorts of tips, well beyond simply having the right types of insurance. “Businesses can move their computer files off their site and to a place that’s fairly far away,” Teasley says. “They can do things like have a call-in number to locate employees in times of a disaster where there is a power outage, for instance.”

Presenters will share comments from business owners who experienced natural and man-made disasters and what they learned during the recovery phase. The free webinar is Tuesday December 11th at 1 P.M. Central.

Register at this link: www1.gotomeeting.com/register/258501528

Visit “www.preparemybusiness.org” to access previous webinars and for additional preparedness tips.