If you’re reading this then congratulations: you’re about to start your first business!
Now, your first concern will be how much cash you’re starting with and how to extend it.
Or at least it should be!
That’s because cash will be the lifeblood of your business. This is especially so in your early days.
The fact of the matter is: it determines how long you can continue running & getting closer to making your dream a reality.
So here’s four ways you can extend the life of your brand new business by cutting unnecessary start-up costs.
Death By A Thousand Subscriptions
After money, you’ll likely be thinking about how to get as many clients or customers as you can.
It’s good to focus on, but many new business owners can go overboard on offering too many services or products.
They’ll offer everything under the sun because they think it will net them more clients.
Of course, the more you offer, the more tools, resources and software you need to support your wide range of products / services.
This can include:
- Needing a calendar booking system
- Requiring a complex website to be built
- Video editing software
- A manufacturer
- A legal team
- An email marketing system
- A social media manager
- A company vehicle
- Using the most up-to-date invoice software to impress big clients when there’s a free version
And the list goes on and on…
As you’d expect, this quickly eats into your capital and shrinks your near-future budgets.
When you’re just starting out, you need to be focused on doing one to three-ish things well, and only doing those.
It’s the quickest way to gain loyal customers or clients who respect your work, not to mention save on cash!
Substitute An Expensive Website For A Free LinkedIn Profile
It’s not uncommon to feel like you need to go straight to making a website for your business.
But the reality is that a website takes time & money to set-up – and it’s only one part of the equation.
You still need to pay to get your website in front of people. This cost rises significantly as you are just starting out and likely have little to no audience.
Instead, consider a linkedIn profile:
- It’s free
- Can be set up in an hour
- Way more flexible than a website (aka you can change details on the fly, instead of taking weeks to push an update.)
- You can message your ideal clients directly, instead of waiting for them to come to you
- LinkedIn lets you display your work experience & skills in a more organic way that websites simply don’t allow
Plus, you don’t have to spend weeks learning about web design – win-win!
Choose Wisely: WFH vs Hotdesk vs Office
All three of these options have their own benefits. But you’ll want to focus on which one saves you the most money at the start.
Office Space
When you’re starting out as a one-person business, it’s very unlikely that you will need a full office space for yourself.
The rent will eat into your budget and you’ll be paying for plenty of space that you don’t need.
Hotdesk
A hotdesk is an affordable alternative, giving you the space of an office for a very small fee.
You also get to immerse yourself in the start-up world: you’ll be sharing the space with people you could learn from and work with.
Working From Home
Working from home is the obvious option for many new business owners.
After all, it’s totally free so you can save almost all your money for reinvesting in your business.
Another advantage of working from home is that you may be able to claim your phone bill and internet bill as a tax deduction come End Of Financial Year.
Remember: in the early days, every cent saved counts.
Onto The Next Step
So now you know how to save money: but when building a business, you also need to know how to grow money.
That’s where The A Firm comes in!
Our outstanding bookkeepers and accountants can show you how to improve your revenue stream whilst growing your business.
So call us today for your free meet and greet – P.S. It’s with our CEO!