The cost of living is again on the rise and inflation is rearing its ugly head and as we move out of a global pandemic, every business owner is looking for ways to cut running costs. We asked a business coach for cost-cutting tips and here’s what he advised.
- Energy conservation – Talk to an industrial painter in Perth about insulating paint and protective coating and you might find a way to reduce your energy bills. A warehouse, for example, can be treated in such a way that it keeps the interior cool in the summer and retains the heat in the cold winter months.
- VoIP business communication – Voice over Internet Protocol technology enables video and audio data to be transmitted via the Internet; real-time video calls are a game-changer and there are no by-the-minute charges with Internet telephony. Some companies save as much as 40% on communication costs when switching to VoIP and that is some saving!
- Outsourcing – There are many business processes that can be outsourced and that usually leads to a saving when compared to in-house solutions. If you outsource your printing to a local printshop, you are likely to save and you no longer need to lease that colour laser printer. Logistics is another thing you should consider outsourcing to a local 3PL provider, who has the resources to get the job done.
- Employee collaboration – If you hold a staff meeting and asked your team to brainstorm ways to save on running costs, you might be pleasantly surprised at the outcome. This will let your employees know that things are tight and they will make sure they turn off appliances and lights when not in use. When your employees are consulted, this automatically makes them feel important and part of a large family.
- Migrate to the cloud – If you have yet to store your business data on a secure remote server, you are definitely in the minority. This saves you money because employees can access data from any location and time is money. Your office computers won’t have to work as hard to process data, as it is stored remotely, while cyber-security keeps your data safe from hackers. Of course, to see any saving, you need to measure over at least 12 months and you should notice a boost in productivity.
Every business has running costs, of course, and with some careful planning, you can reduce costs and boost productivity at the same time.
