Unlike the majority of people, you have opted for the less trodden path. Starting a venture is awesome, but the initial days can prove to be tough in most instances. Apart from coping with existing and new rivals in the niche, you may have to struggle with controlling running costs. This is irrespective of the industry the venture belongs to! Unless you have a huge fortune saved for investing into the business, cost cutting becomes a prerequisite in those early days. The good thing is you will not need to learn any rocket science to cut cost for your startup.
8 Proven Strategies That Can Be Helpful For Any Startup To Cut Down on Various Expenses:
1. Leasing Rather Than Buying
A lot of startups prefer leasing equipment than buying and thanks to the internet, getting almost anything related to a startup on a lease is possible. Instead of buying computers, office furniture, you can get them on rent. This helps in saving a lot of cost in the early days of a venture.
[ Read: How To Find The Necessary Funds For Your Business ]
2. Office Space
Of course, you have to pay rent for the office space. Now, you can search well and find out cheaper rates. If you opt for shared office spaces like many other startup owners that can be cheaper. In fact, if there is space at your own house, you may initially start a home based venture. The benefit of using shared workspaces is that you get furniture and in some cases internet connectivity bundled in. Initially, you may not need a big office space and finding a space that is a little away from main road can actually be lighter on the wallet.
3. Get Rid of Paper
A lot of companies including big ones are cutting down on cost by reducing usage of paper. If you have started a new company, you may join that bandwagon too! There is hardly any need to invest in costly Laser-jet or inkjet printer and spend after lots of paper every month. Not only you will be saving on cartridge and energy costs, your office will be easier to manage and clean. With the aid of technology, using electronic receipts and documents is the way.
4. Use Cloud Storage
You need not invest initially in physical devices like external HDD or plenty of optical discs to store data. Cloud services have become way more affordable and some of them are free. Yes, free cloud storage services are not suitable for big businesses, but startups can do with them just fine. You have plenty of options including Google Drive and Microsoft One drive. Some of them also come with encryption for data safety. They are easy to use and you can access all data using a wide range of devices, including tablets and phones any time you want.
[ Read: How Call Centers Can Utilize Cloud Technology? ]
5. Internet
Irrespective of what products and services are sold by your company, you will need an internet connection. You should compare and evaluate existing options. From landline based wired connections to wireless setups, USB sticks and Wimax, the option are numerous. It makes sense that you start with an entry level connection and based on usage experience and business needs, can opt for better packages. Thankfully, internet costs are coming down with time.
6. Employees
When you run a startup, hiring people is a necessity. However, here also you can bring down the cost. Instead of hiring an experienced professional, you may think of hiring college students with the skills or interns. You may even find some freelancers who may want to work part time in such setups.
[ Read: How To Build A Strong Company Culture ]
7. Advertising
It is necessary that you need to reach out to prospective buyers and increase client base of your startup. This cannot be done overnight and you also have to think of the budget as well. Instead of spending in printing pamphlets, posters and printouts for your startup, use social media circles. You have to use internet for operations anyways. Creating profiles in top social media sites like Facebook and Instagram does not take much time. Leverage those popular platforms to reach out to target buyers. Of course, you have to spend some time regularly in those profiles for posting relevant content and updating.
[ Read: How Social Media Improves Your Brand Image ]
8. Used Stuff
Yes, using second hand stuffs is not actually that bad as it sounds to some! With little effort and time, you can find websites where you can buy plenty of office furniture, used laptop or desktop, PC accessories and many more stuffs at rock bottom prices. Of course, you have to check their condition and get the facts clear from the seller. But it can really help you save money when beginning startup. If you are lucky and patient, it may be possible to find such stuffs in mint conditions and even with a bit of warranty.
How do you cut down your business expenses? Share with me below!