15 Ways for your Small Business to Save

Penny pinching for your business? It can be painful. Instead of getting frustrated, why not get frugal? Start by balancing your budget, separating your personal banking and business expense accounts and cleaning up your debt. There are many techniques for saving your business’s bottom line. Here are 15 ways you can implement simple changes and save.

Network (It)

• Attend free and/or affordable workshops and events run by organizations like General Assembly to network with other small businesses and/or participate in ongoing education.
• Host and/or co-host events with like-minded partners to deflect cost and get double the exposure for your brand and/or initiative.
• Connect with your alma mater(s). Attend networking events that are often free for alumni. Offer to speak in front of alums and/or soon-to-be graduates on a topic in an area of your expertise.
• Join or register your business with local organizations like the Chamber of Commerce, applicable trade associations and Better Business Bureau.

Reward Yourself

• When applying for credit or gas cards, cash back or point-collecting programs will prove thrifty. Take annual fees into consideration but more often than not, these cards act like a VIP pass. Same holds true for hotel and airline loyalty programs. These accounts will not only present amenities but enable you to track spending activity and evaluate where your business spends the most.
• Join a wholesale shopping club like Costco or BJ’s. Necessities like paper supplies and printer cartridges can be more affordable when purchased in bulk. If you do buy a membership, always request a business account. Remember, keep it separate from your personal one so you can track spending and how long supplies last in the office.

Staff and Space

• Growing and established businesses alike struggle with the hiring process. Save money, management sweat equity and time by employing a temp agency or hiring independent contractors.
• Take advantage of universities in your surrounding community. College and Graduate students are often eager to apply their newly-acquired skills with businesses who support their education endeavors and offer opportunities in their area of study.
• Embrace the telecommuter. Avoid office space headaches, like shifting of employees desks and/or the need to expand physical space all together by allowing staff to go "virtual."
• For younger small businesses and/or businesses without a physical office space, consider utilizing community workspaces like WeWork and WorkBar. A business can rent coworking space by the day and/or maintain a dedicated space as well as access conference rooms.
• On the road 24/7? Plan out your trip for the most direct route AND one based on where you can find free wifi. Cafes, sandwich shops, etc. are pretty commonplace for offering wifi to its customers free of charge.

Tackle Tech

• Could your business benefit from streamlining your technology needs? Like small businesses, Better Business Bureau Serving E. Massachusetts, ME, RI & VT (BBB) is consistently faced with finding ways to be financially efficient. In 2014, BBB merged hardware and software applications onto one platform. This decision to streamline with Google proved to be a profitable venture. Converting the staff to universal devices eliminated the need for full-time IT support and improved confidence regarding security. BBB's technology guru, Lisa Ventura, said:

Not only are we greatly reducing IT issues, we have saved roughly $900 per seat by purchasing Chromeboxes versus computers with added software. With a staff of approximately 50 people, that savings really adds up.

• Be willing to invest your time in free online tools as part of your business plan. The art of engaging with your customers and customers-to-be online - if executed well - can be very rewarding for lead generation, customer retention, and more. Keep in mind, online tools don’t run themselves. Carving out time to participate in forums on topics you can add value to as well as having an active presence on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn, not only increase your Internet footprint but won’t cost much (if anything) to incorporate into your marketing efforts. Sound like a lot? Find out and evaluate how and where your customers interact and spend your online-time accordingly.
• YouTube can be a gateway to new customers as well as an effective branding tool. Content and quality are key there (as is keeping most videos under 90 seconds). Everyday devices like an iPhone can be used as a legitimate recording tool. A focused YouTube account allows you to effortlessly cross-promote video content via your website and/or social media accounts and can serve as a 'priceless' component of your marketing budget. Cue the Mastercard commercials.
• Make a habit of periodically circling back to service providers like Internet, cable and cell phone. There are often promotions available at the start of a new quarter or a credit you might qualify for, especially if you are a loyal client.

Let the saving begin!

Did you know that 7 out of 10 consumers prefer to do business with an Accredited Business? Learn how to become part of a community of trustworthy businesses. If your business is already Accredited, find out how you can update your business online for free with Google and BBB and make it easier for people to find you online. For more information you can trust, visit us at bbb.org/boston, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Written by Stephanie Benz, Senior Social Media Associate for Better Business Bureau Serving E. Massachusetts, ME, RI & VT.

Protecting Your Online Reputation

Rapidly developing tech trends have made it increasingly more important for business owners to maintain a presence online. From engaging with customers on Facebook to rewarding your most loyal patrons with specials on Foursquare; your online reputation can often make or break your business. Engaging with customers online requires the same calculated planning execution as every other part of managing your business. Corporations often hire communications firms often look at case studies and develop strategies for crisis management, but it can be somewhat expensive and is often not an option for small business. 

 Here are some tips for managing the online presence for your small business:

1. Planning- It is very important to have very clear goals for engagement with your customers.  Look over your mission statement and make sure all media messages fall in line with it. Remember to always have the customer in mind when present on any social media outlet!
2. Use listening tools- Most major social media outlets have made it very easy to monitor what your customers are saying online. This is a critical part of protecting your online reputation because it gives you the opportunity to address comments and concerns before they are no longer relevant. It can also helps you identify the most valuable parts of your brand for each potential customer. If you are opening a bakery in a new neighborhood, it might be beneficial to know that the local food blogger is gluten-free before you send her a dozen of your new triple chocolate cupcakes.
3. Engage with all feedback (even the negative stuff)- taking control of your online reputation means highlighting the positive comments and reviews, and taking responsibility for every negative experience a customer may have with your business. This can be a daunting task, but there are ways to make resolving these kinds of issues without it being a major blow to your reputation. Working ahead of time to have a few prepared responses can be a tremendous help to engaging with customers in a timely manner.

What suggestions do you have to protect your small business online?

Boosting your Productivity with iCloud

If you are one of the 85 million people in the US who owns an iPhone, then you know that iCloud is great for syncing between devices and storing backups of records kept on your device. If your office uses apple products for business, the cloud can do much more than hang on to that important presentation. Check out these ways the cloud can make your office more productive:

1. Share documents and files across Macs with iClouDrive
Apple has made it even more simple for you to get share files with its free iClouDrive app. This application makes it easy by creating a folder that syncs with the iCloud in your office. It then makes a copy of this folder on your desktop and continuously pushes information to that folder. As long as you are signed into the iCloud account, the data shows up in both places.

2. Integrate with compatible iOS and Mac apps

It can be somewhat time consuming to try and access information from a work desktop when you're on the go. Some applications solve this problem by allowing you to store your projects on the cloud to make it accessible from multiple devices. In some applications you can even stop working a specific spot and move to a different device and it will pick up right where you left off!

3. Collaborate using iWork and iCloud 

iWork for iCloud makes it possible to collaborate on a project by allowing its users to create, edit and save updates by simply logging in to their iCloud accounts. Apple is now offering their iWork suite for free, making it even easier to collaborate with multiple employees or at multiple locations.

Do you use iCloud for your office? Leave your tips in the comments section!

iOS 7 Quick Tips

Apple unveiled their newest operating system on Tuesday, and already it has been adopted on more the 30% of their consumers. With the mad rush of downloads that followed the release, many users experienced some forms of frustration ranging from crashes and download times to the inability to clear the required space due to their favorite photos. With so many changes drastic and subtle changes from the previous iOS it can be hard to recognize the truly great ones.

Here is a list of some of the new and improved changes.

The compass stills exists with a nice new look, but Apple added a handy new

feature. Once the compass is open, all you have to do is swipe the screen to the left and you now have a level. Laying your Apple device back down on a surface shows the angle and putting it on its side acts similarly to a contracting level.

A new search feature was developed allowing users to search through texts,

emails, apps, songs and contacts in one easy place. All you have to do is swipe down on the main screen.

If constantly needing to update your apps bothers you the wait is over. By going to Settings > iTunes & App Store you can switch updates to automatic.

One of the most convenient new features is the control panel. By swiping the screen up from the bottom the control panel will appear. From this interface you can control screen brightness, WiFi connections, song choice, flashlight, camera and more.

iOS tracks your browsing history when using the internet. This makes it easier for companies to develop ads aimed towards you. This can be switched off by going to Settings > Privacy > Advertising and flipping the Limit Ad Tracking to green.

And last but not least with the change in font the whole iOS has a brand new look, but for some people it might make the text harder to read. Going to Settings > General > Text Size you can drag the slider at the bottom to increase the size of the text.

Sources and Related Articles:

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Guest Blog: IT Problems? Virtual Desktops May Be the Answer [Infographic]

One major challenge most growing businesses face is keeping pace with IT expansion. As more workstations, servers, and devices are needed, infrastructure expenses and management costs may balloon out of control.

The key to IT flexibility is simplification, and one way to achieve this is by implementing virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). This technology allows you to shift your business away from a device-centered workspace (where your employees are tied to one machine to do their work) to a user-centered one (where employees can see and access the same digital environment regardless of the machine they’re using). 

Here’s a look at how virtual desktops work and how they may work for you:

VDI Technology

The VDI concept is fairly easy to understand—rather than having a workstation or device with a native 

operating system and applications, these things, along with user preferences, and files are stored remotely on a server. When users log in to any PC, tablet, or other device, they see the same “virtual machine” regardless of where they’re working from. 

You may have used virtual desktops at a library, university, or other organization that handles a large number of users. No matter which computer you use at a VDI-enabled institution, you have access to the same operating system, applications, and files.

How It Can Help Small Businesses

VDI tackles a number of common small business IT problems:

• Management complexity – Rather than having to take the time to update and patch each computer individually, IT managers can push changes through all at once.
• Bring your own device – Employees can log in to the device they choose without losing access to important files and programs.
• Mobile productivity – Virtual desktops make it easier for employees to work at home or on the go.
• Security – Data is easier to secure since it is centralized. You won’t need to worry if employees lose a laptop, for instance, since no information was ever directly stored on that machine.
• Disaster recovery – VDI can help your company get up-and-running again quickly after an emergency since employees still have access to their workstation environments and files.
• Infrastructure costs – Virtual, or “thin,” clients are generally less expensive to purchase and maintain than full workstations.

Companies that have implemented VDI report the following results:

• 11% reduction in desktop support spending
• 20% reduction in time spent on routine maintenance
• 23% reduction in desktop downtime
• 73% reduction in average recovery time

Cautions

Virtual desktop infrastructure is not right for every small business. There are some upfront costs to this  technology, and you may not see an immediate return on investment. Where most companies see a benefit is in reduced administration time and costs.

Are you using VDI or a similar technology in your small business? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Matt Smith works for Dell, a BBB Accredited Business since 1989, and has a passion for learning and writing about technology. Outside of work he enjoys entrepreneurship, being with his family, and the outdoors.