What Does Building a 'Business Buffer' Really Mean?

Building a strong business is a lot like cheating at Jenga. During a game of Jenga, of course, the aim is to remove blocks without the tower falling down. The more blocks are removed, the higher the chance of the tower falling – unless you cheat and use your other hand to keep everything steady! 

We’ve all wanted to do it, and in business, you can do it. It’s called building a business buffer – an all-encompassing safety net that works to protect your business from unforeseen challenges, disruptions, or risks – and it’s used by a lot of competent business owners who are aware their future isn’t secure. 

Even if you have the strongest business right now, if you don’t have the necessary buffers in place, there’s every chance the business you have built can topple in the future. With this in mind, the key thing for you to do is understand what those buffers really are and how you can apply them before the worst happens. Let’s take a look.

The Financial Buffer

Every so often, something is going to happen that will create unexpected expenses. In the US, this is typically a lawsuit that occurs due to employee injury, a contractual dispute, or a customer claim. 

According to a recent study, 90% of all companies experience a lawsuit at some point in their lifespan, so it’s your job to give yourself a financial buffer by both setting aside funds and making sure you have the right protections in place.

The Legal Buffer

This brings us to our next point: the protections themselves. Knowing that a lawsuit is highly likely – no matter what you do to prevent it – it’s important to have the right insurance in place to deal with it. Whether it’s commercial property insurance or general liability insurance, in 2025, there are more ways than ever to find the best coverage for you at a great price. 

For instance, you could use a commercial property insurance calculator to accurately determine the amount of coverage you need based on the value of your assets, or you could tailor your general liability insurance to fit your specific industry. The important thing, however, is that you do it now and make sure you’re adequately protected.

The Employee Buffer

Another key buffer is known as the ‘employee buffer’, which can help your business stay afloat when it comes to staffing challenges. 

Essentially, this refers to strategies and resources that ensure you can handle turnover, maintain a positive work environment with strong and successful teams, and weather any storms that come your way. Whether that’s through employee retention programs or an emphasis on cross-training, the emphasis is on being adaptable and resilient, reducing any negative impact that can come with workplace challenges. 

The Stock Buffer

If you want your business to be really strong, you should also have a stock buffer – a strategic reserve of stock or inventory that ensures your business can continue to meet customer demands, even in the face of disruptions. 

Let’s say there’s a supply chain delay or an unexpected shortage in certain stock. If you don’t have a stock buffer, there’s every chance your customers can get frustrated and look elsewhere, so this is all about building a safety net that allows your business to keep running smoothly and ensure the relationship with customers remains strong.

The Reputational Buffer

That brings us to our last buffer: the reputational buffer. Just like a lawsuit or an accident in the workplace, sometimes things can happen that are outside of your control, and result in your reputation being damaged. The reputational buffer, however, is a useful strategy to protect your brand and ensure your image is going to be maintained even when something goes wrong. 

The way in which it’s achieved is through proactive reputation management – actively managing your company’s public image through social media, customer service, and community engagement – clear communication and transparency – communicating any issues clearly with customers or employees – and a crisis management plan that can be turned to quickly and effectively. 

By having this buffer in place – and all the above buffers, for that matter – you’ll be working to keep the tower blocks of your business stable and steady, with the ability to stay upright no matter how many pieces are taken out of it!