Hands up if you find it easy running a new business or an old one, even?! No? We thought as much… We’re not going to try and wave a magic wand to suddenly reduce your costs and save you money, but we do hope that the tips in this blog go some way to inspiring you to be creative with your spending.
1. Go go eco – Utilise green energy
Things are looking up for those of us who want to save money whilst saving the planet. Switching your utilities to a more earth-friendly option, even in business has never been so easy and economical. You could research many green energy companies to compare the cost of your business’ gas and electricity, you can switch your light bulbs to low-energy and you could even consider generating your own power. However, there are no ‘Meerkats’ for commercial customers, so we’d recommend finding a broker who can do the leg-work for you
2. Make friends – Get to know your neighbours
There’s no better way to make friends than by offering and asking for help. You may not make immediate savings or generate instant income, but by collaborating with your independent contemporaries, you will generate instant rapport, trust and support. Trustful relationships are key in business and if you come through for someone, they will come through for you in return
3. Look under the bonnet – Compare providers
The simplest and quickest way to save money is to make sure you’re not paying over the odds for your utilities/insurance/card machines and everything else you shell out for. You can spend the time on comparison websites, or ask someone to do it for you. Most companies that do this for you offer free, no obligation quotes and there’s definitely one near you, hint hint
4. Choose willing, rather than able – Work ethic can’t be taught
This might seem like false economy, since you’ll need to train an inexperienced person when you could pay a little more for someone who knows the ropes. However, we would always advise that you recruit with a holistic approach, taking into account the whole person and what they have to offer you, your business AND the role itself. An eager and willing person is easy to train, whereas someone who has experience may not be willing to diversify. Just a suggestion, but maybe look at choosing someone with a varied CV and a vibrant attitude over the person who’s been in a single role their life
5. Stop being a ‘busy fool’ – Delegate
This one’s simple. How much is your time worth? How much is your staff’s time worth? Do you work on anything at all that could be passed on to your team or outsourced to an external provider to free up your time? Have a think about how much these jobs are actually costing you; blogging, social media content, customer emails, networking… You don’t have to stop having final say on these things, but neither do you have to see them through from beginning to end.
We hope this blog has helped you to think of ways you can save money in your business, give away some responsibility and/or claw back some of your precious time. If you want more tailored advice on reducing business costs, get in touch with UK Business Buddy founder, Nic Rutherford on 0800 0461804 or hello@ukbusinessbuddy.com, for a bespoke solution which encompasses card payment costs, utilities and even your business funding options. UK Business Buddy has access to suppliers that only deal with brokers, offering better rates than you’d find online, and with no obligation to sign up, you can think of it as a purely fact finding mission.
Thanks for reading.
PS: If you do find it easy running a business – tell us your secret!
