stylized illustration showing an office sharing and printing documents from the cloud

Keep your business up and running during unplanned interruptions.

Most small business owners do not have a small business continuity plan in place and are often left scrambling when a crisis arises. Every business should have a set of recovery procedures in place so your business can run on limited resources and minimize losses during downtime. Now is the time to determine what to print and what cloud provider you will utilize.

Information access is crucial during a business disruption.

Think about how you would retrieve vital files and forms during a major business disruption. Make sure your critical data is protected and accessible on paper and in the cloud with a well-prepared business continuity plan for SMB.

Lexmark reached out to Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP), Todd S. Bardinopens in a new tab, for his list of five essentials to print AND save in the cloud for business continuity planning for small business.

A good recovery plan should include the following documents:

1. Employee emergency information contact list

Contact information for employee’s family or partner in case of an emergency

Notebook and identification card illustration

2. Important vendors and suppliers — listed in order of importance for recovery

Protect your supply chain with a list of alternate suppliers including contact information

Suppliers contact information

3. Emergency Action Plan

Evacuation, shelter-in-place, fire, medical and other urgent response plans

Emergency action plan document

4. Vital records

Important forms, HR data (current job descriptions and procedures), Past invoices , Customer data, Bank statements, Receipts, Business License

Vital records document

5. Contractual commitments

Fulfill the terms of any legally binding agreement with a system to notify customers and vendors when your business is offline

Contractual commitment documents

To get started with the business continuity planning process, begin with a business impact analysis (BIA)opens in a new tab. The BIA tool will help you identify what to recover first and refine your business continuity planning requirements. You should also check out Ready.govopens in a new tab — an official website of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a free Business Continuity Planning Suiteopens in a new tab.

Download and complete the suite and business impact analysis worksheetopens in a new tab. If you have questions about the process, watch the step-by-step training videos. Lastly, keep in mind that while business interruption insurance is an excellent investment, it does not cover damage to physical documents and data.

As PC Magazineopens in a new tab said about Lexmark Color All-in-One – (MC3426ADW) Lexmark Small Medium Business Line device:,

...supports not only convenient interaction with essential functions and tasks, but also includes integrated cloud connectors that help you save scans to and retrieve files from your favorite cloud services. (The supported services include Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive.)

Making an all-in-one Lexmark Small Medium Line printer the ideal hardware for executing on printing AND saving your small business (SMB) business continuity plan. 

See more of the top quotes, awards and printer reviews for Lexmark Small Medium Business Line.

Learn more about how Lexmark Small Medium Business Line devices can help your business stay connected with Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and more. Compare printers for your small business.

Frequently asked questions

What is small business continuity planning?

Small business continuity planning is a set of recovery procedures in place to help a business continue operations during unplanned interruptions or disasters.

What is the purpose of a business continuity plan (BCP)?

The purpose of a business continuity plan is to ensure that a business can continue to operate during and after a disaster or other interruption, with minimal impact on operations and minimal loss of data or revenue.

What is the relationship between BCP and disaster recovery?

Disaster recovery is a component of business continuity planning that focuses specifically on the technical systems and data that a business needs to recover in the event of a disaster. A BCP often includes a disaster recovery plan as a component of the overall plan.

What documents should be included in a good recovery plan for small businesses?

A good recovery plan should include documents such as an employee emergency contact list, a list of important vendors and suppliers, an emergency action plan, vital records, and contractual commitments.

What is the first step in the business continuity planning process?

The first step in the business continuity planning process is typically to conduct a business impact analysis (BIA) to identify critical functions and prioritize recovery efforts.

How can an all-in-one printer, such as the Lexmark Small Medium Business Line printer, be helpful in business continuity planning?

An all-in-one printer can be helpful in printing and saving the business continuity plan in the cloud, ensuring that critical documents are easily accessible in the event of a disaster or other interruption.