Midsection of young businessman sheltering piggybank and coin stacks at office desk
As a business owner, you spend a lot of time thinking about the products and services you offer, as well as how best you can serve your customers. Those are great things to focus on, but if you want to continue to grow and succeed, you have to focus on some other details too.
Money in and money out are two things you and your team definitely have to think about. Especially because there are so many ways you can make and save a little money that don’t directly involve your main business, and some of them may surprise you!
Sell Things You Don’t Use Anymore
You may have products to sell, but what you advertise in your store and on your website aren’t the only things you can sell. You should always be looking for ways to sell things you don’t use anymore.
Selling old network equipment is one thing many businesses don’t think about, but you can recoup a lot of your costs when you do. “One of the great things about pre-owned network hardware is that it retains a resale value, which makes it easy to sell used network equipment,” especially when you go through a vendor who regularly buys back equipment, like BrightStar.
It isn’t just networking equipment and electronics you can sell. If you have outgrown the furniture in your office, you can try selling it. Office liquidators will likely be willing to take it off your hands, but you can also try selling it on websites, like Craigslist.
Share Clients with Other Businesses
Networking is important for your business, but just making connections isn’t enough. You have to put those connections to work, which means figuring out how to use them to make more money for your business.
Although it may seem unwise at first to share clients with other businesses, you can actually make some money this way without doing any work. For example, a web design company that doesn’t have the time to take on a new client can outsource their project to another company, keeping a portion of the payment for finding the client.
Referring customers and clients to other businesses can be helpful too. If the other company knows you’re sending business their way, they’ll send customers to you in return.
Cut Back on Traditional Advertising
Advertising is an important way to find customers and clients, but it can take a huge chunk out of your budget. It doesn’t have to if you ditch traditional advertising strategies in lieu of more creative ways to market your business.
Inexpensive, creative advertising ideas include:
- Revamping your website content with a focus on SEO.
- Creating compelling content on your blog.
- Writing guest articles for other blogs.
- Getting a Google My Business account.
- Hosting webinars on your website.
- Uploading videos on YouTube.
Hire Employees Who Will Telecommute
The world of work is changing, and if you change right along with it, you can save your business some serious money.
Telecommuting is gaining in popularity, not only because it is more convenient for employees, but also because telecommuting can save businesses money.
When employees work at home, you don’t have to have a large office to house them all, which means reduced operating costs. They also have more control over their environment, enabling them to focus, which means most employees who telecommute are more productive.
Another benefit of telecommuting is the fact that it makes it easy to hire freelancers who don’t require benefits, saving your business even more money.
Go Green
A lot of people are talking about going green. Although it can be a bit of a hassle upfront, it can have long-lasting, positive consequences for your business.
Not only does it look good to customers and clients when you share your efforts to go green, it can also save you money.
Going green includes doing things you’ve probably heard about before, like switching to LED light bulbs and using a programmable thermostat in the office, but it also includes things like going paperless and conserving water with motion sensor faucets and energy saving appliances. Some updates, like solar panels, can have a high upfront cost, but they will save you in the long run.
Offering more services and increasing the prices on your products are great ways to increase your company’s cash flow, but you can save even more if you get a little creative with the ideas on this list!
