For start-ups and small businesses, finding an effective way to curb your overheads is key to making your business profitable. Office rental costs, insurance, staff salaries and maintenance are but a few of the bills you can expect to deal with whilst trying to grow your business.
Here, we’ll discuss 5 ways your office can save money day to day…
1. Fine tooth comb your expenses
When things begin to go well for your business, it’s easy to become complacent – particularly about boring old expenses. If you’ve been in business a while, ask yourself: Have we checked our outgoings lately? If the answer’s no, it’s time to lock yourself away, reach for the coffee and pick your way through your expenses history. Look for any extraneous costs that impact your overall ROI, and make a note to eliminate them. This article from Enterprise Nation is a worthwhile read.
2. Maintain your own space
If you have a small office a mere handful of faithful employees, is a cleaner, caretaker or maintenance man really necessary? On paper, a cleaner may sound useful, perhaps cheap, but in reality, it’s just another superfluous service cost ramping up your monthly outgoings and costing you hard-earned money. Instead, ask staff to treat the office with a little extra respect and dig out your marigolds from time to time to give the place a spruce up.
3. Cut Pricey Printing Costs
From start-ups to multinationals, printing costs are a drain on any company’s take home profits. On average, companies spend around three thousand dollars a year on printer ink – which is a lot, considering half the documents printed probably end up in a recycling bin. To save on printing costs, switch to compatible ink cartridges. Available online from printing specialists such as Printhead, these third party cartridges produce high-quality print-outs for a fraction of the cost of standard manufacturer ink.
4. Get help from interns
Need new staff but can’t afford the overheads? Consider hiring an intern. Many businesses offer internships as part of their regular recruitment drive, and there are a number of reasons why you should follow suit. Firstly, interns are often well educated, with the key skills to perform a particular role. Secondly, they’re highly motivated, and will be happy to work for you provided they’re gaining practical skills. And lastly, they’re cheap, with many interns happy to work for a minimal salary in exchange for development and training.
5. Have your head in the cloud
In days of old, an office wasn’t an office without a sweaty server room rumbling and grumbling somewhere near the loos. In modern offices however, it pays to live in the cloud. That’s right: cloud-based data hosting can not only save you space in your compact office, it can save your pennies, too. How? By eliminating the need for expensive, unreliable servers, you can save money on maintenance costs whilst enjoying seamless connectivity to your company’s digital infrastructure. To find out more about cloud-based services, check out PC magazine’s handy guide here to cloud services for small businesses.
So there you have it: five simple (ish) ways your office save you money everyday – don’t say we never give you anything.