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Marginal gains: 5 ways to reduce business expenses

7th Dec 2016
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In 2010, David Brailsford, General Manager and Performance Director for Great Britain’s Team Sky, pioneered an approach based, in his words, on “the aggregation of marginal gains”. In doing so, he was able to implement a series of small, strategic improvements and kick-start a chain of events leading to the team’s unprecedented Tour de France triumph three years later.

So, what does this mean for small businesses? Today, the IFRS training experts at IASeminars are looking at how the concept of marginal gains can be applied when it comes to cutting company expenses. That way, you can find out how to trade ergonomic bike seat alterations and tyre weight reductions for the sort of small, strategic improvements that could mean big savings for your business in the long run.

Working at computers

Encouraging employees to telecommute

If you’re looking to reduce overheads in your business, encouraging your team to telecommute some of the time could offer one simple and highly effective solution. The opportunity to reduce what you’re spending on utilities, office equipment, any coffee and water expenses and much more is one worth seizing. Better yet, encouraging employees to work from home can mean higher employee retention rates and fewer sick days - so it’s a no-brainer.

Outsourcing

From relinquishing responsibility for your marketing to hiring external IT professionals on an as-needed basis, outsourcing certain tasks and projects can prove highly economical. Bringing in contractors for short-term work is another possibility, allowing you to have jobs completed for a lower rate by trained professionals - and who knows? You may just find a freelance worker you’d like to invite onto your team full-time.

Cancelling any unused services

In the pursuit of marginal gains, you’ll be surprised to learn how much money you could be saving by identifying and cancelling any paid services of which you aren’t making proper use. Many companies continue to spend on software and subscriptions long after they’ve stopped using them altogether - and depending on the fees associated with each, you could end up significantly reducing your monthly expenses by saying goodbye to the services that are no longer serving your business.

Reducing paper consumption

While the costs associated with paper and ink supplies may seem negligible at first, you’ll be surprised how much can be saved in the long term by making a conscious effort to go paperless whenever you can. Digital invoices and online filing offer just two welcome paper-saving alternatives to the traditional way of handling admin - and on top of the expenses spared here, you can also consider yourself a more environmentally friendly business once you’ve made the transition.

Negotiating lower prices with your suppliers

Nothing ventured, nothing gained - and if you’re spending a significant amount with various professional suppliers, now is the time to test the waters with regards to getting a better deal. Trusted, long-term suppliers will likely be open to the idea of negotiating a lower price with you if the alternative means losing your valuable custom. One effective negotiation strategy is to seek out another, cheaper provider and find out whether your current supplier is able and willing to match or even improve on their price.

When it comes to the concept of marginal gains, the key is to think small. Look after the pennies and, as they say, the pounds will look after themselves.

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