Home
>
Top Quick Tips
>
10 Budgeting Tips for Business People and Small Companies

10 Budgeting Tips for Business People and Small Companies

It is possible for small companies and individual business people to cut costs without sacrificing quality. Keep these 10 budgeting tips in mind when purchasing goods and services.

1.) Buy in bulk, but compare prices.

Sam's Club and Costco cater to small businesses and have good deals on bulk-packaged items. Know the sale prices at discount retailers and grocers, though. Sometimes you can do better there.

2.) Travel Frugally.

With some flexibility you could save up to 75% or more when traveling. 50% is common. Search for air fair and hotels on discount sites such as Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, Hotels.com, and Priceline.com. At Priceline you can submit your own price. Don't be intimidated if you get a message saying your bid is likely to be rejected because it is too low. Give it a shot anyway. Lowball bids are often accepted ($35 for a $139 room, for example).

3.) Look for closeouts / clearances.

Shop big retailer's regional warehouse or clearance store, where they ship rejected or overstocked merchandise. The items are primary large-ticket, such as furniture and appliances, that have been damaged in shipping. Keep your break room/kitchen configuration in mind when shopping. Look for items dinged and dented on sides that will be against the wall or hidden by cabinets.

4.) Buy used vehicles.

As soon as a new car leaves the lot, it drops in value. Look for dealers that need to move inventory, individuals with cars coming off lease, and other unusual situations. If there is high demand for the vehicle you are looking for, try shopping outside of your immediate area, where demand may be lower.

5.) Purchase business wear from consignment and non-profit stores.

Shop at the better consignment stores that carry only new looking, brand name items. Also, try non-profit stores, such as Goodwill, for business casual attire. You not only get a good deal, you support charity as well.

6.) Shop around for the best price.

Combine Internet and "real world" shopping to save money. Before purchasing an item, research current sales and rebates in three ways: 1) Research local sales at ShoppingList.com, 2) Compare online prices at MySimon.com, and 3) Search individual Web sites such as Sam's Club, Costco, and Wal-Mart. If you are purchasing items to resell, don't forget to use your tax ID.

7.) Recycle and refill.

Come up with creative ways to save on office supplies. Purchase ink refill kits. You can refill an ink cartridge for a fraction of the cost to buy new. Look for refill kits at your local office supply store or search for "Ink refill kits" in an online search engine. Use both sides of the paper. Instead of throwing away paper, print drafts on both sides. When printing out drafts to proofread, chose "draft quality" printing. It not only saves ink, but prints faster as well.

8.) Buy refurbished or previously used furniture and fixtures.

You can often get used and/or refurbished items at a price less than new. Search local online portals and business directories for companies that refurbish and sell business furniture. Also, if you know you are going to need replacements, keep an eye out for liquidations, auctions, and going out of business sales. Fixtures are often sold along with other inventory.

9.) Barter.

Look for bartering networks, where members help each other by trading goods or services. You can also approach businesses and freelancers on your own with a win-win proposition.

10.) Save on marketing costs.

Rather than outsource all your marketing to an agency, learn to complete some tasks in-house. Join marketing newsletters, purchase how-to guides, and read articles written especially for small businesses.

Bobette Kyle draws upon 12+ years of Marketing/Executive experience, Marketing MBA, and online marketing research in her writing. Bobette is proprietor of the Web Site Marketing Plan Network, http://www.websitemarketingplan.com, and author of the marketing plan and Web promotion book "How Much For Just the Spider? Strategic Website Marketing For Small Budget Business": http://www.websitemarketingplan.com

best cleaning company Highland Park ..

In The News:

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

10 Budgeting Tips for Business People and Small Companies

Top Quick Tips