10 Ways To Save Money At The Office

Guest post by Tom Walker

Given the current economy, everyone’s looking to save money these days. But are you afraid that cutting corners will turn you into the office scrooge?

Not to worry. Here are 10 simple suggestions that are easy to implement and that won’t make you too unpopular. Choose the ones that seem best for your business, and then add more as you go along.

• 1. Use open source software: Programs such as Microsoft Office, which often costs hundreds of dollars per license, can easily be replaced with free alternatives like OpenOffice. Don’t worry, OpenOffice can open and save files created with MS Office, and vice versa.
• 2. Turn off computers at night: Switching off computers can, by some estimates, reduce your electric bill by 50%. Doing so may also lengthen the life of your computers, thus delaying the need to buy new ones.
• 3. Use laptops: Since laptop computers must often run on battery power, they’re designed to be energy efficient. So even when you plug them in, you can save up to 90% in energy bills!
• 4. Upgrade your monitor: LCD flat-panel monitors are much more energy-efficient than their CRT predecessors. Flat-panel displays also improve your professional image, sending the message that you’re a progressive, up-to-date company.
• 5. Go virtual: Conduct meetings over the Internet (with the help of tools such as Skype and GoToMeeting), instead of meeting in person, which can cost thousands of dollars annually in travel expenses.
• 6. Refill ink cartridges: Ever wonder why printers are so cheap these days? It’s because the manufacturers make most of their money from “residuals”, that is, from replacement cartridges. But you can bypass their cash cow by refilling your own cartridges. Or as an alternative, buy generic (compatible) cartridges, which are much less expensive than their genuine alternatives.
• 7. Never buy new: Why pay full-price for your office equipment when you can get nearly-new equipment for a fraction of the cost? Check out sites such as eBay and Capasset for great deals on used equipment.
• 8. Opt for E-marketing: Companies such as JangoMail can help you to send mass e-mails to your existing clients for pennies per email, thus drastically reducing your marketing costs.
• 9. Read books instead of buying them: Rather than buying books from Web sites like Amazon, simply head to your local bookstore and read them in person. Books that have been in print for a while may also be available for loan at the local library. And many books can be previewed with Google Books.
• 10. Work from home: The more employees you can turn into remote workers, the less office space you’ll need and the less you’ll have to pay in overheads such as heating, lighting and electricity. Working from home also allows your employees more freedom and flexibility, which results in happier (read: more productive) employees.

As you can see from these ten suggestions, saving money at the office doesn’t require pinching every penny. It just means evaluating your business decisions in light of what you really need, and finding creative ways to meet your needs with fewer resources.

So rather than begrudging the lean times, view them as a healthy challenge. See how many ways you can come up with to be just as productive (or more) on a smaller budget. In the end, you and your business will come out stronger and better for it! And when the economy finally improves, you’ll turn a profit that’s even greater.

This guest post was brought to you by a UK-based writer called Tom Walker who is the lead editor of the CreativeCloud blog run by a leading online supplier of printer ink and other media supplies.

Technorati Tags: Microsoft Office, Open source, OpenOffice.org, Peripherals, save money at the office

Tagged as: Microsoft Office, Open source, OpenOffice.org, Peripherals, save money at the office