Cutting the Cost of Running your Business is Now Easier than Ever

September 10, 2018

Operating a business isn’t a walk in the park. After all, you have to think about how you are going to pay for your supplies, how you are going to find the money to pay for your employees and even how you are going to serve your customers as well. The problem is that if you do not try and keep your business efficient at all times then you will run into problems in the future and you will also be spending way more money than you actually need to as well. If you want to find out more then you can find out whatever you need to know below.
Staffing Costs
If your business happens to have slow periods then try and find some ways to reduce your staffing costs. A lot of employees would be happy to take some unpaid time off if it meant not losing their holidays. For this reason, you shouldn’t be afraid to chat with your team about it. If possible you should also talk with your family members about your business as well to see if they could help you out in an attempt to reduce the costs that you are experiencing. If you have children of an appropriate age then you may even want to get them involved. It will keep the money in the family and it will also help them to learn about life and hard-working professionals.
Always Barter
Bartering has been used for generations now. It gives you the chance to exchange whatever goods and services they want. If your business has a lot of extra capacity then you should try and put this to good use. Try and make a deal with the rental company that you have, to let another company stay in the neighbouring rooms or even offer to paint or decorate the space in exchange for that month’s rent. By doing this, you can save and your landlord also gets extra benefits as well so everyone can save. If you are moving office premises and you know that the new location is just above your budget then don’t be afraid to barter here either. It could work wonders for your finances.
Business Costs
Think about it, how much water do you waste every single day? Probably quite a lot. To get around this, consider installing slimline water tanks, or even cut down on your water costs by getting a low-flow tap installed instead. You also need to think about your heating costs as well. Could you save money by having thicker windows installed? Probably, and this is a fantastic way for you to really reduce the cost of running your business in winter. Of course, if you are wanting to try and reduce the cost even more then consider looking into renewable energy. When you do this, you can easily run your business for free after your initial investment and this is a fantastic way for you to make the most out of the finances you have.
Review All of your Expenses
When times are tough, you may forget about all of the little expenses that you have. You may feel as though cutting down on those expenses won’t make a difference and you may even feel as though it’s not worth the effort. This is not the case at all and these little expenses really can add up. Small cuts can make a huge difference in the long-term and if you know that something is not providing you with a good ROI then you really need to get this sorted out as soon as possible. One way for you to do this would be for you to analyse your entire business budget and find out if you have any expenses that just aren’t doing much for your company. If you know that this is the case then go over everything and make the right cuts to save your business.
Buy Everything in Bulk
It is more than possible for you to save a ton of money if you are able to buy in bulk. You can get some super cheap deals on your office supplies by doing this and you can also save money in the long-run as well. Of course, so many businesses focus on right now and that means that they end up compromising their own company without even knowing it. If you want to get around this then you need to take the time to talk to your suppliers and even find out if they can help you with your supplies as well. It may be that they can offer you a deal because you are a long-standing customer and this can really work in your favour.
Always Use Open-Source
Software is always essential to your business, on some level. Before you go out and spend hundreds on software, try and find out if there are any free or even any open source alternatives. When you do this, you can then try and find out if you can save money and you may even find that you can reduce your business expenses. Nothing can quite compare to this and you would be surprised at how much this can help you in the future. If you aren’t quite sure what software is out there then there are so many resources on the internet.
Simplify the Distribution Process
It is a good idea for you to look at the distribution process that you have so that you can build your business and so that you can also simplify and even eliminate the process involved. For example, if you would benefit more by having shipments on set days then consider doing this. When you do give this a go, you can easily rocket the potential of your business and you can also give your customers a much better experience as well. This is just one example of how you could simplify the process that you have right now but with a little work you can be sure to get results that will pay off.

Mark Asquith

That British podcast guy, Mark is co-founder of Captivate.fm, the world's only growth-oriented podcast host. A Harvard, TEDx, Podcast Movement and Podfest speaker (amongst many more!), he's a wildly approachable Brit and Star Wars/DC Comics geek.

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