Small Business Cost Saving Methods
I work for a very small company where I wear way too many hats. I’m the IT person, the accountant, the admin assistant, the depart agent, the shopper, the go-to for the partners, etc, etc.
I take my job very seriously and conduct myself as if it were my own business. As a result my boss trusts my decisions for the most part. I have a great deal of leeway at my job which I appreciate. My monetary compensation is another story but I take pride in my job and try to do the best I can. In these dangerous economic times where the small businesses are the first to go, its an absolute MUST for business owners to sever costs.
Over the past 4-5 years I have taken little steps to increase productivity and reduce cost and time.
Here’s some examples:
Our company does not have a dedicated email system. Before me, my 2 coworkers used AOL for their business email. As a result there were too many issues with SPAM, lost emails, limited serviceability, etc. I’m not knocking the AOL guys but I do believe their service leaves a great deal to be desired. I switched us all to Gmail and created a generic GMail add for our business. In the past we had co workers impress up for business services and mailings using their personal business email. When they left, no correspondence was forwarded and we lost out on valuable reporting.
Cost savings by changing the system $1,000 a year. (Hard to gauge since investment decisions are made on information available.)
Utilities
The accountant before me never bothered to inquire of any charges on our phone or Internet bills. She paid them without ever checking. As a result we paid in excess of $25 per month on line savers that did zilch for us. I design it a habit of calling up our utility providers to renegotiate our packages on a quarterly basis. A rough estimate of savings, $300 a year.
Checking the Charges
We use Open from American Express. They are a ample service with great customer service. Previously AOL (another reason why I really don’t like them) was billing us on this card for utility services at $25 a pop. Each month from the inception of the business we were getting billed. When AOL started providing free service, they detached billed us. The previous accountant didn’t check this. She never got that charge waived and reversed. Needless to say, the moment I saw the bill, I got that fixed using Dial-A-Human since AOL service and billing support is non-existent. That’s $300 a year.
Transcription Services
We were paying $175 on average for conference call services. I tried talking my boss out of this and told him that we can gather free transcripts through Google Finance and Seeking Alpha. He was wearisome to switch but finally agreed. That’s a cost saving of $2,100 a year!
Calendar and Scheduling
We are a mac based office. Previously we traditional Up to Date and Now Contact. As a result we would have to consume the packaged software each time there was an update since the older versions were not supported. By taking some time (4 hours or so) to switch everything over to iCal and mac’s address book we saved on the software seize fees. By coordinating iCal with Google calendar we have access to all scheduling from the web. Cost savings? I would estimate $160 for the software and $100 for not missing important appointments. $260 a year.
Misc. Fees
Banks charge fees. Whether its corporate activity fees, maintenance or wire fees…its all there. A simple phone call to your derive saves you the hassle. Savings of $500 per year on average.
Office Supplies
It sounds silly but I never ordered office supplies without checking novel inventories. I also shopped around. Unprejudiced because staples mails me OOOODLES of coupons doesn’t mean they are the best deal by any means. I use ebates for all orders to get some cash back. I acquire generic. I don’t waste my time buying high quality paper for boring work printouts. That all costs moola. I shop around ink refills or bulk cartridge. By putting in a little research I found that buying a printer that has individual cartridges instead of the all in ones saves ink. Savings? Oh, I would say about $2,500.00 per year.
Time and Space
My boss is anti-technology to a great extent. He likes having stuff on paper. He never uses PowerPoint (I don’t blame him) and prefers something he can hold. However, I am a paperless kinda person. I save us both time (and money) by having a hard copy for him and an e-copy for backup and reference purposes. Another fantastic use? By implementing simple PDF technology I’ve made it easier for the partners to get emailed PDFs of all relevant meeting material. As a result there is more flexible scheduling for meeting. The partners can own meetings over a free conference call instead of actually meeting. Cost savings on the actual meeting amount to $1,000 per year. Over the years I’ve also looked into donating traditional hardware. The write offs aren’t broad enough to list here but it is relevant.
Points
We secure points through Amex. I now charge everything that’s free to do so. All our phone, other utility, transportation and maintenance expenses rep charged. As a result we have increased points for the partners to redeem for gift cards, office supplies, etc. Ballpark savings per year – about $500 on the low demolish.
Total savings per year: A whopping $8,460.
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Filed under Small Business Voip Phone Systems by on Feb 15th, 2011. 
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