2010 is upon us and with the start of the new year, family owned businesses and small businesses are looking for a way to save on business expenses. In this series on cutting business expenses, we are going to pinpoint various ways for you to lower business expenses in the new year. During part one we are going to focus on negotiation.
Businesses and business owners worldwide have felt the effects of the down economy, thus the need to reduce business expenses is non-negotiable. The expense-cutting trend has forced the marketplace of providers catering to businesses to become more competitive. From commercial leases to telecommunications contracts, it has become a buyer’s market.
As a business owner, if you have not revisited expenses in your company in the past 12 months, there is no better time than now.
Your Negotiation Advantage for Business Services
The economy hasn’t just affected you, but it’s affected your business provider. As a result, service providers have had to come up with creative packages in order to continue to drive their business. If your contracts are approaching expiration and it’s time to sign a new agreement, than it may be time for you to make some changes and take advantage of more aggressive pricing available in the marketplace. In many cases, you will not have to change providers to see the benefit.
With the changes in the economy the “best deal” that you found 3 years ago, or even a year ago, may no longer be as competitive. Consider how much time you are willing to have an employee invest in researching key services and start shopping around service providers to make sure that you are still getting the best value for your money. Prior to your search, solicit referrals from business associates, so that you have a solid set of businesses to quote. And, don’t be afraid to have them compete against each other for your business.
From your electric bill to your web hosting provider, review the rates that you are currently paying and what the competitors are offering. If you don’t want to lose your provider, you’ll have negotiation room on your current rates if you shop around to find out what you can get elsewhere.
Negotiate your rates, negotiate your services, negotiate everything.
