Ways to stop wasting time and money in your business

Hopefully we all agree that in business, time is money. Every minute you are running your business is an opportunity to make and save money in some way.

Wasting time and money is not something most business owners like to do. And if you are a small business with limited resources, then you want to maximize every aspect of those resources to ensure your business is operating as efficiently as possible.

As a collection agency that works with small business and larger types of business, we know a few things about losing money. We are that safety net for many to make sure they are not in fact losing money. You and your team worked hard for that money, gained the confidence of your customers and you should enjoy a profitable business in turn.

When we dig in with our customers, sometimes we find ways that they could improve their profits, and stop wasting money and time in the process. And it’s not just when it comes to debt collections. There are several other ways as you might imagine that a business can lose sight of their profits.

Let’s discuss a few:

Training:

One of the most effective ways you can reduce the waste of time and money in your business, of any size is to make sure you have a proper training program in all areas of your business. Having a properly trained staff saves your organization an untold amount of wasted resources in a number of ways.

Let’s face it, poorly trained employees will waste time and ultimately money. Is is their fault? In many cases no. Because they did not receive the proper training. If they do the incorrect thing for a client, give the wrong advice or they have to go around the office to get the right answer to help solve a customer’s issue, then you are wasting money. The time they waste doing their job when they are not trained is costing you money. And, if your staff is not trained correctly, you could lose hard-earned customers as well.

When you think about training, also think about time and money because they go hand in hand.

Outsourcing:

Most businesses outsource something in their operation. Even if it’s the cleaning of the office. But are you outsourcing the right aspects of your business? And does the size and nature of your business allow you to outsource?

Some of the more common services that are outsourced at a business are IT, bookkeeping and payroll and many forms of content marketing. Many of these can be time consuming and require certain expertise that you may not have in-house.

And some of these outsourced tasks can be part of the larger picture of your business. Having an expert come in when your server crashes will certainly help get you up and running faster and allow you to save money in the long run. Unless of course you have that expertise in-house.

And if you are constantly chasing down late and non-paying customers, you’ll want to make sure you have a reputable collection agency ready to assist you with your accounts receivables. If your team is working these late accounts internally with little success, it makes perfect sense to outsource your collections for a few reasons. One, it can be time consuming for your staff. And two, outsourcing brings in expertise you might not have. And to add a third reason, it takes your staff out of what could be an uncomfortable situation.

Customer Support:

This is a shout out to all of those professionals in the trades and others that struggle with communicating with their clients or potential clients.

One way to stop wasting money is to outsource some of the communications you might have with your customers. If you are running lean on staff or you have a seasonal business that requires all hands on deck, returning calls and some emails can be a challenge. Outsourcing some of these tasks can not only save you money and time, but it can save your reputation. Not returning phone calls can place a black eye on your business.

Find a reputable company that can maintain communications with your customers and preserve your reputation. That can be in the form of phone calls and social media. If you have a social media profile such as a Facebook page, you are going to have customers reach out to you in that manner. It’s just a sign of the times. If you are too busy, at least someone communicated with your customer.

Purchasing:

But it was on sale!! Have you ever heard that? Buying more than you need unless you get a huge deal can be a waste of money. You don’t need five years’ worth of paper clips and you don’t need to purchase items that you do not use in the hopes that you might someday. Keep a close eye on your purchasing and only buy what you need. In the case of a real deal and it’s something that you are positive you’ll use, you’ll need to make that individual decision. But in most cases, buying what you need is a smart strategy to stop wasting money.

If you look hard enough, you’ll find even more ways your business can stop wasting time and money. We feel there is always a way to trim somewhere.

Tell us and others in the comments where you found ways to cut waste in your business!