Creative Ways to Save Money for Your Business

It’s money scraping time for most of us and businesses are no different. Budgets are being cut in almost every company to deal with lack of consumer demand and credit flow. If you have a start up or a small business, you might be a big victim of the present economy. Here are some great ways to save some money for your business:

1) Increase the flexibility of your budget by bartering
Does your business offer a unique type of service or product? If so, you might be able to barter for other professional services by offering your expertise or your goods in exchange for someone else’s. This is a great way to keep your inventory flowing and let others knows about your business while at the same time benefiting by cutting costs.

2) Buying something for your business? Get a few qualified quotes.
If you’re going to make larger purchases for your business, you might be seen as a valuable potential customer for other businesses. Use this to your advantage and always get a few qualified quotes before making a purchase. This can save you tons of money as competitors try to outbid each other!

3) Avoid lawsuits and professional arbitration
Many companies have gone bankrupt in the face of lawsuits and lawyer costs. If you get a customer complaint, do not act as if nothing happened. Look into it, find a solution, and you might turn an angry customer into a returning client. It’s a win-win.

4) Learn how to do what you pay others to do
If you’re paying someone on an hourly or “per-diem” basis to do something that you do occasionally, you might as well pay them one time to teach you or one of your workers. This will save you tons of money if you do it for a few job skills. For example, if you need a staffing company to hire a worker, you can hire a professional staffer to teach you where to find potential candidates.

5) Pick up things yourself, don’t pay extra for shipping.
If you are constantly ordering things online, you will see that the money spent on shipping can add up. Imagine buying things online every other day, at an average cost of say, 25 dollars shipping each time. That’s about 400 dollars a month. You can spend that 400 in marketing or promotions.

6) Join other similar businesses to get bulk discounts
Bulk discounts can save you big! Imagine saving 25% and forming a good friendship with another business.

7) Save on Credit Cards by comparing providers
If you tend to have built up balances on your business credit cards, call up your credit provider and tell them that you have had better rates offered to you from other companies and that you will switch if they don’t lower their interests. Play the game right and you will see a great reduction in your credit bills!

8 ) Lower your taxes by taking heed of good deductions
Keep your receipts! At the end of the year, a great tax accountant will save you tons of money by finding deductions, like mileage, lunches, cell phone bills, and more. Let’s say you pay for entertainment costs for a future clients… use that as a tax deductible!

9) Keep track of the smaller expenses
Just like those junk food binges cut a big hole in your allowance, those petty expenses can dent your business budget. Make sure you keep track of smaller expenses to avoid wasteful practice. You might save hundreds or thousands a month by switching to a better lunch location, cutting transportation costs, reducing electric bills and more.

10) Handle surges in business with temporary workers
If you have increases in sales at specific months or seasons, hire temporary workers to help you with business. You won’t have to pay for benefits and you can let them go after the season ends.