In pandemic times, many companies have seen their business shaken. With a large part of businesses having to close doors, many saw the need to give up a lot to avoid bankruptcy.
But what if we tell you that it is possible to reduce costs in the company without giving up essential items or resorting to layoffs? Reducing company costs and optimizing earnings is always a good idea. But in times of crisis like Covid-19, this becomes not only interesting, but essential!
In today’s article we will give you some tips to reduce costs in your company in this time of pandemic, so that you can find easy ways to maintain your company’s profit margin, reducing common expenses, without jeopardizing critical activities or the capacity for growth. your business.
In order to keep the company’s operations moving and avoid layoffs or other essential cuts, it is necessary to create an action plan with very well planned strategies. While you cannot control the market and “force” your customers to spend more, the truth is that you can cut unnecessary or less needed costs right now. The trick is to know what costs are safe to cut, by how much and for how long.
Office Contract Flexibility
The vast majority of workers have been working on the teleworking model in recent weeks. But some may continue to pay for office rentals, even without using the space, while others have given up using the rented offices for fear of expenses. An alternative, if this is your case, is to seek a contract renegotiation with your tenant. We know that everyone is experiencing difficulties right now and the ideal is to find a solution that is interesting for both parties .
Change your employees according to needs
In times of crisis, it is natural that certain areas have a drop in demand, while others need a task force to operate more efficiently. In these situations, you do not need to resort to layoffs before then relocate some of your salespeople temporarily so that they can help you with whatever is necessary.
Evaluate your employees’ profiles, how they work and talk to them to understand what they would like to do. Thus, it will be possible to act quickly and effectively , creating an integrated team, capable of resolving the most urgent situations. This strategy is also very good for teams that are in need of new ideas, as people from different areas bring innovative perspectives .
Invest in new marketing strategies
There are several forms of organic advertising that can generate brand awareness and, even in times of crisis, attract new customers . Some of them are:
- Email marketing;
- Rich posts on the website and / or blog;
- Social media posts;
- Production of ebooks;
- Online Workshops
All of these strategies are able to engage your audience and disseminate your content. The tip here is: make sure that the material is really interesting for those who are going to “consume” and be useful at this time. Texts, videos and images must have quality and convey transparency and credibility.
Use free online tools
Many tools currently work with a model that we call “freemium”. This means that there is a free version in which professionals have access to a number of resources.
In times of crisis it is worth reevaluating your company’s needs in relation to the tools used. It is possible to make some concessions and opt for the free version of several programs, even if on a temporary basis. For example, you can spend thousands buying office applications and database entry software when you can use Google Docs . It is equally good and is free for online use.
Expand your list of partners and suppliers
If you work with the same supply chain, you may be missing out on good bargains . You may think that searching for new suppliers and partners takes time, but the cost savings can be huge. Especially if your market or niche has grown in recent years, you can find many more options than those that existed when you opened your doors.
In addition, if you are a long-time customer, you can also approach your current suppliers by talking about renegotiating your contract. They certainly don’t want to lose a customer, and may be willing to offer discounts or add-ons that save you significant investment .
Rethink your options to recover from the crisis
After the quarantine and post pandemic period, everything indicates that we will live in a hybrid model of work. That is, we will vary between offices, telework and coworking spaces . Migrating your business to offices in coworking spaces is also a very effective way to reduce company costs by 70%.
The whole crisis generates opportunities to review our processes and encourage the emergence of new ideas. As much as we are going through a difficult time, all of this can be overcome.