The ultimate goal of any business is to turn a profit. One way to increase your margin is by reducing expenditures. Here are five innovative business concepts you should explore to save money.
1. Unexpected Automation
If you aren’t yet using apps to automate many of your daily practices, please take the time to learn the tech. You’ll end up saving precious minutes every day as a result — and time is money. Today, apps can do everything from cleaning up your desktop to keeping you on schedule.
You’ll find some innovations surprising, such as self-serve beer technology for restaurants and other public venues. Such devices allow staff members to devote their time to providing top-notch service, not making repeat runs to the tap for one patron determined to drink away their blues.
2. Telecommuting Beyond the Pandemic
The pandemic made telecommuting the new normal, and you should adapt if you want to save money and remain competitive when seeking new hires. Nearly 40% of recent survey respondents said they would rather quit their jobs than return to the office full-time.
Maybe it isn’t “the way you always did things,” but consider the perks. You’ll save a small fortune on office space rent and utility bills — and get rewarded in higher productivity to boot.
3. Going Green
Are you still printing out meeting agendas? Please don’t unnecessarily kill trees and throw cash away on ream after ream. Strive to make your workplace as paperless as possible to cut costs.
Likewise, taking advantage of natural light, switching to long-lasting LED bulbs and installing low-flow plumbing fixtures when upgrade time arrives can save you considerable cash on monthly utility bills. If you work in construction, selling your scrap materials instead of tossing them in the dump can put money in your pocket while being kinder to the planet.
4. Embracing a Shorter Workweek
The research that currently exists supports the anecdotal evidence that a shorter workweek boosts productivity. It only makes sense — employees who are focused on how to squeeze in that doctor’s appointment or needed oil change during regular business hours aren’t dedicating their full mental powers to the task at hand.
You also save money by keeping the lights and other utilities off or used lightly on out-of-office days. Dialing up the office thermostat to 85 degrees for three days instead of two each week can save you a small fortune in cooling during a Phoenix, AZ summertime.
5. Adopting Free or Low-Cost Marketing Strategies
Finally, improved communication systems have made marketing more affordable than ever before. Sit down with your department and discuss ways to cut costs by harnessing the power of social media and building an online presence over pricier methods like television advertising. You could conceivably shave tens of thousands of dollars each year by emphasizing those campaigns that require minimal overhead to launch and perpetuate.
Save Money With These 5 Innovative Business Concepts
Your ultimate goal as a business owner is to increase your profit margin, and cutting costs is one way to do so. Save money with the five innovative business concepts above.