Every business dreams of making money and meeting its organisational goals. However, the journey there is often a long one and it doesn’t come with a manual. This leaves you to figure out how to get your business on the straight and narrow and ensure that it is both growing and seeing a decent return on investment. One of the ways to do this is by cutting back on expenses and investing your money on the things that matter. Having said that, if you need help cutting back and ideas regarding how to do so, here is how you can save more as a growing business.
Don’t Hire Full-time Employees
One full-time employee can cost your business a significant amount of money to keep. Not only do you have to pay their salary, but you’ve also got to include them in your overhead cost for using electricity, supplies, payroll and so many other things. It can work out cheaper for your business and save you money if you’re more strategic when it comes to hiring. If you don’t need a large volume of work from certain talent every day, hire them part-time instead. You’d be surprised at how much you would save on overhead, utilities, and salaries if you simply cut employees down to a four-day week.
Negotiate with Vendors
When it comes to business, never take the first requested price for a purchase as it doesn’t have to be the last, always try to negotiate downwards as this is where you’ll likely experience most of your savings. To negotiate with vendors, decide what you need beforehand and do your homework. This means seeing what different businesses are offering and what advantage each has over the other as this can be used as a bargaining tool. Ultimately, to negotiate your way into a good deal, you need to build a good rapport, to be patient, and to know when to stop because you’ve got a competitive offer.
Buy Used Equipment
People can get trapped in the idea that everything they buy for their business has to be brand new. While this can be a nice feeling and, in some cases, necessary, it isn’t always the most economical option. Think about whether buying items secondhand could help you significantly with savings and the risks involved if the item isn’t new. There is also the option of buying refurbished or remanufactured items to reduce the chances of issues occurring with the equipment. Also, make sure it comes with a warranty in case it needs to be repaired or replaced.
Buy Reasonably Priced Supplies
Items that you need to function on a daily basis are expenses you can’t escape most times. However, what you can do is try to get them at an affordable price by shopping around. For instance, instead of buying branded ink for your printer, consider Cartridge People instead. They sell cartridge ink for a range of printing brands, and this could save you a considerable amount on expenses. Always look for cheaper alternatives when buying supplies, especially ones you’ll use regularly.
Low-cost Advertising
Advertising expenses can cost a huge amount for your business, so embrace the use of digital marketing instead. Having said that, you won’t necessarily see overnight results, but if you’re consistent, you should see progress. By advertising digitally and growing your online presence daily, you’re also putting yourself in a position to save more as your audience will do a lot of word of mouth advertising for you through engaging and sharing. You should also find that social media ads are more affordable than traditional ways of advertising.