11 Cost Saving Ideas for Your Business

If you are running your small business on a shoestring budget every little helps. The following 11 cost saving ideas for your business will help you save a few pounds without taking long to implement and without costing you money.

1.       Stop Buying; Use the Cloud

The single best thing you probably can do to reduce your business costs is using Software as a Service to your advantage, from software to cloud-hosting instead of owning your own servers. Most basic business functions, from accounting and payroll to project management or email, have an alternative in the cloud. This means you don’t need to fork large amounts of money for licenses that may go unused or upgrades. It also frees you from having an IT team in-house in charge of keeping everything running, and improves your security by leaving it in the hands of experts.

2.       Consider Freelancers

Hiring people is expensive and can be a risk, but if you don’t have enough personnel you may have to turn away clients and that is always bad business. Freelancers are a great way of plugging a temporary hole in your company’s available skillsets, minus the associated payroll expenses. Build a team of reliable freelancers you can call on when required and you will never need to hire somebody just to discover that you don’t have work for them after all.

3.       Go Green

Establishing green policies on your business is not only helpful for the environment, but it’s often cheaper as well. Educate people on the benefits of not printing emails or leaving the lights on, and you’ll save both money and the environment. A few posters around the office and on top of the printer are often enough for people to get the idea.

4.       Learn all About Business Expenses and Deductions

By not claiming back the money you spend on legitimate self-employed expenses you are paying tax that you don’t have to. Make sure you are familiar with the rules and regulations around small business and self-employed expenses, and use them to your advantage. If you have a good accountant, he should be able to advice you on how to best keep track of allowable expenses and other ways of saving money on your tax bill.

5.       Avoid Cash Advances

Interest can accumulate quickly and become a significant cost at the end of the year. Try to avoid getting cash advances from your card, as they change a fee right away, and if you know you’ll need money consider talking with your bank about a fixed-term credit at a lower interest rate.

6.       Join Up With Other Businesses When Buying

If you are a microbusiness working from a shared office you can get better prices on print services and stationery by joining up with other entrepreneurs on the same situation to be able to make larger purchases. Many B2B vendors will give you higher discounts the more you spend over a year.

7.       Reduce Shipping Costs

Whenever possible, group your purchases and place as large an order as you can. This requires more organization, but will reduce your overall shipping costs and keep you from paying premium prices at your local corner shop because you ran out of printing ink. Whenever possible, pick up the items yourself for even greater discounts.

8.       Learn To Negotiate Quotes

Many business services, from business insurance to mobile phone operators, are willing to haggle if you don’t accept their quote right away or look like you are leaving them for the competition. You will not know until you try, but accepting a quote right away means you are often leaving money on the table.

9.       Encourage Working From Home

While this may not always be possible, allowing your employees to work from home means that you won’t need so much in terms of office space or supplies. It can also be a great way of getting part-time staff at more competitive salaries, such as work at home mothers unwilling to leave their babies alone but happy to work from home part-time. Not to mention your employees will love you for the chance at having a better work-life balance. Renting office space for 20 people when you only have 10 full-time staff is a big waste of money.

10.   Join Trade Associations

Many trade associations have really reasonable fees, and will give you access to discounted prices on things from accountants to networking events. In some cases you can even get free marketing by being listed on their directory, or increase your business trust by displaying their logo as a member.

11.   Shop Around

Accepting a quote without looking for at least a couple other alternatives often means losing money. Even if you are satisfied with a supplier, quoting a lower price given to you by a competitor can get you better terms or a discount. It’s more time-consuming, and can feel a bit strange if you are not used to it if you haven’t been on the B2B world for long, but it is a very common business practice.