Reducing a business’ operational costs is difficult if it means adopting extreme measures that may end up doing more harm than good. Luckily, there are alternative ways that can help lessen the cost of doing business that are also sustainable. Here are a few ideas.
- Take Advantage of Freebies
Businesses often allocate a large part of their budget to purchase products and services that are needed for their operation. For example, they spend a lot of money for software licenses that are needed to compose texts and calculate their earnings. They also pay for phone services so that they can send urgent communications to business colleagues and clients. Fortunately, freebies exist and are available, even for businesses and they can avail of these free products and services to save money. Instead of buying or renewing your premium software product’s license, for example, you can use free open source software (OSS). Some of this free software may not be as popular and feature-rich as their premium counterparts but they’re often good enough and you can use them without spending money. Examples of freeware programs that you can use are GnuCash for accounting purposes and OpenOffice for your organization’s word processing needs.
- Use Cost-Effective Products and Services
Many businesses spend thousands of dollars a month to avail of phone solutions for their company. Spending this amount of money may seem logical because communication is vital for the success of any business but spending this much is not good for businesses — especially for those that are on a tight budget. The good thing is that you do not have to spend as much money for your phone needs. You can opt for cost-effective phone solutions that allow you to send free fax, place unlimited calls, conduct telephone conferencing, and get a toll-free number for less. Phone service providers such as RingCentral, for example, offers all of these features in one phone system solution that costs less than $20 a month.
You should also avoid using branded office supplies if cheaper alternatives are as good. Take the case of printer ink. The print output of generic ink is essentially the same as branded ones so why buy expensive ink cartridges if you can purchase an alternative for less?
- Find Affordable yet Creative Ways to Promote Your Products
Businesses that are tightening their belts may cut down on their advertising expenses in order to make the most of their budget. You can reduce your advertising expenses without compromising the promotion of your brand by looking for alternative ways to get people talking about your company and in turn, drum up more business. Many businesses, from home-based startups to Fortune 500 companies, are now taking advantage of social networking sites such as Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook to promote their brand online. Having a profile in popular social networking sites can give you the exposure you need so potential customers can learn about your products and share them with other potential buyers.
You should also remember that word of mouth and actual testimonies of your customers are still the best form of advertising but businesses can only get this kind of promotion if they are able to offer the best products and best service to their customers. It will not be difficult for you to ask for positive feedback from your clients if you provide the best products and services and make sure they are satisfied. Your customers’ comments about your company can help encourage — or discourage their friends and others to patronize your business.