Running a business can make a lot of money, but it can also cost you a lot. Have you ever wanted to save money? Us too! So, in this article, you will find 5 tips to help you spend less money on secondary purchases. In this way, you can directly reinvest the money saved in your business.

1 - Office optimization strategy: How to save space without having to move?

Optimizing your desks can save you space. In fact, the more your business grows, the more space you need. In order not to move to larger and therefore more expensive offices, you can choose to store your belongings. In addition to not having to move, you will also be able to move around more freely, have a better-organized space and thus increase the serenity and productivity of your employees (as explained here).

But how do you free up space? To free up space, you can either resell your unnecessary stuff or store the stuff you don't need on a daily basis. To give you some inspiration, here are 6 ideas of what you could store:

• Your customer archives

• Your unused furniture (such as your desks, your shelves, etc.)

• Your materials, before using them to make your products

• Your stocks of finished products

• Your product packaging that you have left on your hands

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To store your belongings, you can use a classic self-storage method, however be careful because you will be in charge of the trips to go to there, to put, find and recover your belongings. So, it's up to you to pack, carry and rent a vehicle to move your belongings. Otherwise, you can use a solution like Boxify. This will allow you to store by adjusting your subscription to the actual volume your business occupies and all without having to travel.

To know :

Most self-storage prices vary depending on your location, Boxify does not. Here's a recap of the benefits of using Boxify over another storage solution.

If you choose to store at Boxify, you can estimate the volume of goods to be stored directly online by clicking here.

The size of the offices can have a big impact on your budget and sometimes directly on your turnover because the prices are various but never free. So remember, having more space without having to move is possible thanks to storage!

2 - Focus on energy savings: How eco-energy can reduce your electricity bills?

As a business, your main expenses come directly from your general bills which you cannot escape (electricity, water, etc.). In addition, all these expenses add up very quickly and represent a significant budget. You must therefore maximize your efforts in order to keep your costs below a reasonable threshold. To get there, there are plenty of little things to do that save energy and support the planet at the same time. In fact, the less electricity you use, the more you contribute to reducing pollution and to the fight against global warming. These small gestures can come from the purchase of energy-efficient products, for example. In addition to being environmentally friendly, these devices are known to last longer and therefore limit your expenses.

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If you want to have a bigger impact, you can check or improve the insulation of your premises, shops and offices. The more the insulation of your walls, ceilings and basements is optimized the less you will have to use heating or air conditioning. Although isolating your offices is a budget, it is still a worthwhile investment in the long term, as you will see the impact on your electricity bills first-hand every month.

--> How to recognize energy efficient appliances?

• Energy star label which places devices 15 to 30% more energy efficient.

• EU energy label which gives a referencing from A to G according to energy consumption.

• GEEA label which indicates that a device is among the 30% most economical on the market.

• TCO label which corresponds to the validation of environmental criterias.

Energuide can also guide you through your energy reduction process with advice and instructions.

3 - Start negotiations: How and what to negotiate in your business?

The first thing to know is that anything can be negotiated! Negotiation is a specialized skill that is important to master when running a business. It allows you to reduce your costs and thus obtain better contracts and agreements with your stakeholders. Negotiation is a learned skill that calls on your ability to communicate, persuade and cooperate. Keep in mind that the main goal of negotiation is to find a compromise that is more attractive to your business while maintaining good relations with your stakeholders.

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With whom to negotiate your agreements? You can do it with your suppliers in order to lower the price of the products you buy, with your lessors to reduce the rental costs of the premises and with your partners according to the agreements you have with them. It is essential to regularly renegotiate the prices because the market changes fast therefore the prices and the competition too!

In order to be successful in your negotiations, you need to prepare yourself as much as possible. What are the different steps? The first thing to do is set your budget limits. You must define the maximum price that you are willing to spend and then the minimum price that will be for you the opening offer (this will allow you to start negotiations). Then be prepared to explain and justify these prices so the company can understand the situation. Finally, you can also have your contracts checked by a specialist.

The little extra:

Don't be afraid to look elsewhere to compare prices and contracts, this will give you a better overview of the market prices and possibly renegotiate your current contracts. If you find that your contracts are more restrictive or your prices are higher than average and that despite your negotiations there are no changes, it is time for you to go to another partner to get a deal more satisfying.

Finally, remember that the price is not the only thing you can negotiate, you can also negotiate the level of quality!

4 - Learn to manage your teams

Your employees are the heart of the functioning of your business. Their wages are a source of considerable expense, but without their work the business would not be able to function.

--> Increase employee productivity: How to motivate them to optimize their efforts?

Reward the efforts of your employees!

They don't necessarily have a great interest in seeing your business grow. So, you need to sensitize them to give them a reason to participate in the growth of the business. Give them goals to achieve, rewards for performing extremely well, or share your values.

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Increasing productivity can also go through strengthening the cohesion of your teams, you should think about reconnecting with team building and after-work. You can also use plants to promote concentration as explained in our previous blog.

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--> Avoiding Hiring Incompetent People: How Do You Hire the Right People?

It can be difficult to find the right fit (or the right employee for it), and the costs of firing employees are very high and numerous. You have to make a thoughtful decision to avoid wasting precious time, hiring costs and firing costs. So, hire the right people! This will allow you to avoid unnecessary expenses.

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There are several ways to define the skills of a person in each job, but if you want to be sure, put them to the test! You can quite simply take a person likely to suit you in FPI (individual in-company vocational training). In this way you will be able to easily assess their capacities and their correspondence with the position to be occupied.

5 - Use digital marketing: Why is digital marketing important in a business?

Digital marketing is an economical method used to promote and sell products or services. Its influence has increased with the evolution of digital, which has been strongly and positively impacted by the situation of covid-19.

Digital marketing can be divided into 4 axes: content marketing, position in search engine results, social networks and email marketing. The first is a way of informing your potential customers, particularly through blog articles. Then, thanks to SEO and SEA, it helps improve the position of your website in search engine results. Finally, with digital marketing, you can also increase traffic to your website via social networks and even use email marketing to build customer loyalty.

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Digital marketing is essential to a business for 4 reasons.

First, as explained before, this is an inexpensive method because it does not require any material purchase (flyers, poster...). Then, it is used more and more because digital uses and sales are very popular. It also allows your company to give users access to your services and information 24/7. Finally, performance analysis will be much more concrete thanks to its associated analytical tools.

In order to make the best use of digital marketing, make sure you know your target customers. You will be able to adapt your methods to the habits of your customers. This is especially true for social networks that reach very different people.

Which social networks for which target?

• Facebook - 49% of users are 25-49 years old
• Tik-Tok - 78% of daily users are 11-24 years old
• Instagram - 71% of users are under 35
• Pinterest - 26% of users are 55 and over and 24% are 46-54
• Twitter - 25% of users are between 25-34 years old and 24% between 35-44 years old
• LinkedIn - The average user is 44 years old

To know :

Although online sales have been mostly done by computer since the beginning of e-commerce, more and more consumers are now buying via their mobile. So, whatever your strategy, consider adapting it to the mobile format as well.

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