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All business owners wish they could lower their business’s expenses and maximize their profits. Reaching those goals, however, isn’t easy. If you want a chance to lower your business expenses quickly, start by following these five tips. They could give your business the chance it needs to thrive.
Bring in Some Interns
Instead of hiring a new full-time employee, coordinate with a local high school, college, or university to find interns willing to gain experience by working at your business. Unlike employees, you often don’t have to pay interns, which could easily save you thousands of dollars over a few months.
Taking on an intern may not cost you money, but you do have responsibilities to the student’s education. Most interns are getting class credit and preparing for careers, so you have to make sure they do the following:
- Work a certain number of hours each week
- Engage in projects that will teach them useful skills
- Have time to get regular guidance and feedback from a manager
Depending on the school’s program, you may also need to file internship reports showing how the student has progressed. While these things take time, you can still save a lot of money by hiring interns.
Hire Freelancers for Short-Term Projects
You will likely run into projects that your employees don’t have the right skills or the time to complete. Instead of hiring a new person, look for a freelancer who has the skills you need for the project. You may hire a writer with experience in creating social media content, an engineer who can help you work kinks out of new products, or a graphic designer to develop your new logo.
By using a freelancer, you can avoid expenses related to training, equipment, and employment taxes. If you’ve never used a freelancer before, you may feel more comfortable by following these tips.
Use Accounting Software That Tracks Expenses
Do you know how much money your business has spent this month? How much revenue has come in so far this week? If you can’t answer these questions, then you probably aren’t using the right accounting software.
Accounting software like Sage 50 makes it easy to track all incoming and outgoing money. With a few clicks, you can know exactly how much money your business is spending. You need that information because it’s the first step in identifying places where you spend too much money. Some of the Sage 50 products are even cloud-accessible, so your software can grow with your business easily. If more people need to access the software or you need more features, you can change your plan at any time.
Shorten Your Supply Chain
This idea could lower your expenses in several ways. With a shorter supply chain, you often pay less when shipping products from factories to stores. You can also use the latest technology to track consumer trends. If the system notices that your store needs a new shipment of sunscreen because so many people wear it during summer, then it can alert you to order more, or even do so on its own.
By shortening your supply chain, you can not only save money but also make more by having fast access to in-demand products for your shelves.
Research Your Insurance Options
With so many different types of business insurance, it’s difficult for companies to decide what options they need. The problem gets even more confusing when insurance agents try to convince you to buy policies you don’t need. Unfortunately, there are some insurance providers who are more concerned about making money than meeting their clients’ needs.
Doing some research will help you avoid high-priced policies that aren’t suitable for your business. Talking to a lawyer who’s familiar with your industry should help you understand what types of policies you need. After that, contact several insurance companies and request quotes for these. The price differences may shock you.
Speaking with a lawyer will cost you a small amount of money, and researching insurance options will take some time. In the end, though, you will save money every month through lower premiums.
Lowering expenses won’t come easily to many businesses. With some effort, though, you can find ways to improve your budget without cutting corners.