Operating your own company comes with an enormous feeling of pride and self-worth; the job also comes with a lot of responsibility and not a little stress. One of the major stressors involved with running your own business is that of keeping your expenses under control. The only way for any company- no matter how large or small- to achieve any measure of success is to generate more income than expenses. You can’t make a profit if you are spending more money on office supplies than you can make selling your widgets.
Whether you run a one-man shoe shop in the village, or you are the CEO of a major banking corporation, it is vital that you pay close attention to your budget and do everything possible to cut the costs of running your business. The biggest tip that we can give regarding your business expenditures is to pay attention to the small stuff. Every small expense that comes across your desk gets added up with the next one, and over time the smallest of figures can add up to too much money. Overlooking wasteful spending because it seems to be such an insignificant amount of money can end up costing you your profits. Here are a few tips on how to cut the costs of operating your business, whether it is a sole proprietorship, small business or major corporation:
Review Your Utilities Expenses
With the privatization of utilities in the UK, businesses are now afforded the opportunity to shop around for the best prices for their gas, electric, water and phone services. Just because you’ve always used the same telephone service provider doesn’t mean you should just keep paying that bill without going over the individual features and their costs and comparing the packages offered by your current provider with some of the competitors. Consider all of the possibilities for generating new business through the use of 0800 numbers and 0845 numbers, think about the best call management solutions for your specific needs, compare the fees for a bespoke announcement and call diverting.
Always be aware of power consumption, and take the same steps you take in your home to keep your energy bills down, such as keeping a constant, suitable temperature set on the thermostat, unplugging appliances not in use, and turning off the lights when you leave the room. Switching your light bulbs to fluorescent or LEDuses 80% less energy than old-style incandescent bulbs, plus they last for years longer. Upgrading to new appliances that are more energy efficient is another way to save on utilities. Also, be sure to properly maintain all of your building’s plumbing and water lines, because a slow dripping leak can drive up your water bill.
Rent- Don’t Buy
Auto leasing companies have inspired other equipment suppliers to tap into a new market, thus giving businesses that need specialized equipment on a temporary basis a fabulous opportunity to get what they need without paying full price. You can rent computers and top-end laptops, you can hire projection screens and AV equipment for important sales presentations, and you can even rent an international cell phone for an overseas trip instead of buying one you probably won’t need again for a long time. You don’t need to spend thousands on projection equipment if you only make important presentations once a year at the annual board meeting, so rent instead.
Avoid Unnecessary Travel
Long gone are the days when it was cool to rack up frequent flyer miles for all those business trips. With the ever increasing costs of fuel, the best way to decrease your travel expenses is simply not to go anywhere. You don’t have to pay for plane tickets, hotel rooms, business dinners and all the miscellaneous expenses that accumulate with business travel. There’s no need to fly out of town for a meeting when you can hold a high definition video conference instead, and for a lot less money.
Think Before you Print
With the advent of Cloud- based document storage, you no longer have to fill your filing cabinets with a paper copy of every email, invoice, and office memo, not to mention that printing is expensive. Save money on ink cartridges and paper by breaking the printing habit and try going as paperless as possible.
All of these tips may seem like small expenses if taken individually, but it’s the figure on the bottom line that matters in the long run. Do everything possible to keep down the small expenses and the totals look a lot better- as does your chance to turn a profit.
