I have received several emails lately from clients and non-clients asking for ways to cut back due to the slow economy. Every situation is different, but here are a few things clients are doing that seem to work.
- Add a new service related to your current offerings.
- Entice customers with a discount or promotion.
- Ramp up customer service. Be extra attentive to existing customers, but court new ones, too.
- Advertise. If everyone else is cutting back on advertising and marketing, this is your chance to be more visible.
- Split advertising costs with neighboring, non-competitive businesses.
- Trim your mailing list.
- Set up a blog to drive traffic to your Web site.
- Reduce your inventory to only what you need.
- Hire an intern, who will work with you to earn college credit.
- Renegotiate a deal with a supplier.
- Cut back on overtime.
- Institute a hiring freeze or use more part-time workers. This will not only save money, but also help keep you from having to lay off employees.
- Trim the cost of benefits. Some decisions might be tough for employees, but it's better to scale back on benefits than to discontinue them entirely.
- Use free software through Google or other Web-based programs.
- Learn the ropes of tax deductions.
- Send reminder letters to your past-due accounts.
- Make a mistake on a letter? Flip it over and use the other side for future drafts and other documents.
- Decrease postage costs by starting an e-newsletter.
- Turn down the thermostat in the winter.
- Turn off lights when you leave a room and shut down office equipment at night.
- When not in use, turn off electronics chargers, which draw power even when not charging.
- Have everyone bring in their own coffee mugs instead of going through hundreds of disposable cups each month.
- If your business required travel, drive instead of fly. Or instead of renting a car while you're gone, take public transportation.
- Be honest with employees about how the economy is affecting your business.
- Offer low- or no-cost rewards (like an afternoon off) to employees who come up with other cost-cutting measures you can implement.
