Closed for weather: posts and Google updates that help

When weather closes your business, two things matter: your Google profile has to say you are closed, and your customers have to hear it from you before they drive over. For a closure of a few days, set special hours on Google. For a longer one, mark the profile temporarily closed. Then post the same news on every account you have, at the right moments: when the storm is announced, when you decide, and when you reopen. Hurricane season on the Atlantic starts June 1, so the end of April is a good time to write these posts once and keep them ready.

Which weather, where, and when

Which closures you plan for depends on where you are.

The hurricane dates are the National Hurricane Center's. Most Atlantic activity falls between mid-August and mid-October, which is exactly when many businesses are busy with back-to-school and fall. A plan made in spring gets used in a hurry later.

Step one: fix Google before you post

People who search "is [your shop] open" on the way over see your Google profile, not your Instagram. Google gives you two tools, and which one to use depends on how long you will be closed.

Special hours, for a short closure. Google's help page says you can set special hours when your business "remains closed for up to 6 days in a row." Go to your profile, choose Edit profile, then Hours, then Special hours, pick the date and tick Closed. Your regular hours stay as they are, and Google goes back to them on its own.

Temporarily closed, for a longer one. Google's instructions for closing a business say to use "Temporarily closed" if you are closed "for more than 7 days, closed for the off-season, or closed indefinitely." Your profile then shows Temporarily closed on Search and Maps. Google is open about the cost: "for broad queries, temporarily-closed businesses can rank after open businesses." So switch it back the day you reopen.

Google's two pages put the line at 6 days and at 7 days. For a closure of about a week, use special hours, day by day. If the closure stretches longer, switch to Temporarily closed.

Never use Permanently closed for weather, even if the damage is bad. It tells everyone you are gone for good.

If you are not sure what your profile shows or who has access to it, read What is a Google Business Profile, and is it free? first, before you need it in a hurry.

Hurricane: a post for each stage

The National Weather Service gives you a timeline to hang your posts on. A hurricane watch comes 48 hours before tropical-storm-force winds are expected. A hurricane warning comes 36 hours before them. Hours after that, people are busy with their own homes, so say what you need to say early.

At the watch, about two days out: say what you know and when you will decide.

"We are keeping an eye on the storm. We are open today and tomorrow until 6. We will post by noon tomorrow whether we close on Thursday. If you have an appointment that day, we will text you."

At the warning, or when you decide: one clear post, the same words everywhere.

"We are closed Thursday and Friday for the storm. Everyone on the team needs time to get their families ready. Appointments for those days will be moved: we will call you. Stay safe."

While you are closed: short updates beat silence, even if the news is "no news yet". A story is enough.

"We are all safe. No power at the shop yet. We will tell you here as soon as we know when we can open."

When you reopen: say what is normal and what is not.

"We are open again from Monday, 9 to 5. The card reader works, the coffee machine does not, yet. Thank you for your patience, and for checking on us."

Snow and ice: short closures, shorter notice

A snow closure is usually one or two days and decided late, often the evening before or at 6 a.m. That changes the job:

• Decide the rule ahead of time. For example: "If the schools in our county close, we open at 11" or "we close when the Weather Service issues a winter storm warning". Then you are not deciding at 5 a.m.
• Set special hours on Google first, then post. Special hours are made for exactly this.
• Pin the post or put it in a story, so it is the first thing people see on your profile.
• If you do stay open, say so. "Open today, plowed parking lot, side door" is a post that brings in the customers whose usual place is closed.

A word on prices after a storm in Florida

After a hurricane, some businesses post about stock that suddenly matters a lot: generators, ice, water, plywood, tree work. In Florida, once the Governor declares a state of emergency, section 501.160 of the Florida Statutes makes it unlawful to sell or offer essential commodities at an "unconscionable price" within the area of the declared emergency. Commodities include goods and services, among them food, water, ice, chemicals, petroleum products and lumber needed as a direct result of the emergency. A price is presumed unconscionable when there is a "gross disparity" from your average price in the 30 days before the declaration, unless the increase comes from your own higher costs or market trends. The rule lasts up to 60 days for the first declaration and can be extended. The law dates from 1992 and was last amended in 2021.

So a post that says "Generators back in stock" is fine. A post that doubles the price is a risk. This is general information, not legal advice: if you are unsure, ask the Florida Attorney General's office or a lawyer. In other states, check with your state attorney general's office before you change prices during an emergency.

Get the posts ready now

Before June, take fifteen minutes:

1. Write the four hurricane posts above in your own words, or the snow ones if winter is your risk. Keep them in the notes app on your phone.
2. Make sure two people can edit your Google profile, in case one of you has no power or signal.
3. Know where Special hours and Temporarily closed are on your profile, so it is a one-minute job on the day.
4. Agree how you will reach customers with bookings: text, call or e-mail.
5. Decide who posts when you cannot.

Someone to keep Google right

Our Reviews & Google Profile add-on ($39 a month on top of a plan) includes keeping your hours, services and photos current on Google. When you tell us you are closing for weather, we change your hours on the profile, and once you are open again we switch them back. See the monthly add-ons.