Cutting Cost

Who doesn’t want to save money? At the end of the day, we all want to cut cost where we can, but don’t always know of all the ways that we can save money or at least get the most bang-for-our-buck. Thus, in my "spare” time, I’ve been looking for ways to cut cost. Now I’d like to share a few of those ideas that I’ve stumbled across. This list will by no means be all the ideas that I found (I’ll share those later), but this is merely a starting point to get the cogs turning.

The big idea behind this list is Multi-tasking.

• Multi-purpose Mailing – Are you still sending out paper invoices? Well, you should be pushing for paperless invoicing, but that’s a topic for a different article. For those customers that still prefer to be sent a paper copy of their invoice, start sending promotional material with the invoice. Therefore, instead of sending two different mailings, one mailing can play double duty. This will save on postage, envelopes, and labor cost.
• Pay Online – This is a multi part section. First of all, paying online is quick and immediate. It saves time, by not having to stuff envelopes, and money on postage, envelopes, checks, ink, etc. The next point would be that, by paying online, you’ll be able to set up auto-pay (where possible). I know auto-pay doesn’t work in every scenario and that some people still don’t like the idea of auto-pay, but it saves time, and in turn money, and can free up accounting to perform more important task. Lastly, by paying online and early, you may be able to get a discount. Ask your suppliers and distributors if they’ll give a discount for paying early and don’t be afraid to start negotiating (this is more common than you may think).
• Buying in Bulk – How is this multi-tasking? Well, we all have to sign something at some point or maybe make notes the old fashioned way and we also have to market our company. You don’t have to look very far to find a company that is trying to sell you something with your logo on it. Many times these companies are selling pens at or around the price that you can buy them in the store. So, why not buy some pens with the company logo on them that team members can use and that can be passed around to potential clients. Two birds with one stone.

While some of these ideas may seem like small changes, over time they can make a big impact. Having normal daily task pull double duty or, in the case of auto-pay, perform the duty for you, is simply a mind set of cutting cost and saving money wherever possible. As I said in the intro, this list is simply meant to get the cogs turning and hopefully spark an idea that will keep more money in your bank account and less going out on checks.