Where Online Companies are Cutting Costs to Grow Faster
Running an online business provides a lot of benefits, but there are still costs associated with running any business, and when you are able to cut them, you can then use that saved money toward things that contribute to growth.
Every business is going to have different expenses, different creditor, different costs, etc. – but there are some things with a universal application and almost every business can find ways to use the tips I have outlined below.
Partnering with Agencies for
Marketing
By handling your marketing outside of your business operations you not only save a lot of money, as you don’t have to employ full time employees, you also benefit from the agency’s experience and constant learning.
If an agency is running the marketing for hundreds of businesses they will see trends and opportunities that you can then benefit from. Having a small team in your office would never provide you with the same level of education and experience you can get from an agency.
Relying More on Pre-Built
Technology
Rather than having to hire a developer, website designer and server administrator just use a pre-built technology stack. An e-commerce website could build something totally custom and constantly have to make updates and changes, or they can use something that will be updated automatically and that requires zero man-hours in terms of internal work.
E-commerce platforms like Shopify allow you to use a proven and tested platform and if/when updates are needed they are automatically rolled out. It’s easier and more affordable.
Going Remote with Co-Working
Offices
Having a big cool office is nice, but it’s also usually not needed and it can cost a lot of money. Go remote if you can and at the most get a co-working small office space or some common area memberships for your employees to use if they just need a creative space to work from. Look into WeWork – they have locations in almost every city, and in larger cities they have multiple locations to use.
Outsourcing Administrative Tasks
Don’t let the little things cost you a lot of money. Do you really need to hire a full-time secretary if you don’t have the phone ringing off the hook? Do you need a billing manager to simply pay bills online?
The concept of outsourcing is more widely accepted now than it was in the past. There are plenty of outsource operations that will provide you with a full-time virtual assistant for a few hundred dollars a month
Drop Shipping Over Fulfillment
If you sell physical products online and currently handle the shipping and order processing you might want to look into sending your inventory straight to a drop shipping facility so they can handle it all for you.
Or you can look for a manufacturer that will drop ship. There are many benefits of drop shipping. You get to cut back on the manpower and hours required to process the orders. Allowing someone else to handle that allows you to focus more time on marketing. Sell more and stress less.
Pay Off Debt ASAP
If you have debt you should put every effort into paying that off right away. If you are paying monthly interest charges it’s wasting operating capital that could be better used towards growing your business.
Even if you have to pause other business activities to push more money to debt payoff, consider it. You will be in a much better position to grow without that debt (and stress) hanging over your head.
