The news of the recent inflation is spreading like wildfire. Gas, electricity, food, fuel, and more… just about everything a business requires. Some of these costs are unavoidable, but there are a few things you can do to save some pennies this winter.
Look at your variable and invariable costs
With so many costs increasing, it’s worth looking at what expenses you can make to determine exactly what to expect each month.Â
IT, fortunately, is one of the costs that if you do it right, can be a fixed cost. Let’s explain how. Many IT providers charge for support when you require it, which for certain businesses that operate outside of office hours can be a lifesaver.
Astaris in particular offers mainly remote support, which gives you unlimited access to our IT helpdesk. This cuts all costs of pointless on-site visits which not only slows down your business, it also means issues can be resolved from our office, in a very short space of time. This differs massively from having to schedule an IT engineer to get to your venue to resolve the issue (not to mention the downtime for your business) all in all, it’s a win for everyone.
Costs like this can dramatically improve the amount your business is spending on unnecessary things, especially when the cost of everything is going up and not down!
Think about your office space
So many businesses switched to remote and hybrid style working through the pandemic, and many of those businesses have carried on this way post-pandemic. Working from home used to mean less productivity and more of a challenge to keep up with your work colleagues, but modern-day technology has changed this.
With costs like gas and electricity (heating as well as running your office) and rent particularly in certain areas of the UK increasing dramatically, your business could be saving a tonne of money by minimising your office space or switching to remote work. Let’s take a look at some of the stats on how these working styles have finally benefited businesses in the UK.
- Businesses can save up to 30% annually on non-rent costs including utilities, food, cleaning, and even taxes.
- Many companies based in larger cities for example London are most likely spending tens of millions each year in renting a commercial space, this cost could be significantly reduced by simply downsizing (still allowing for employees to hybrid work between the office and home) but not having every employee in every day.
- It also benefits your employees a lot of money (reports suggest employees could be saving thousands each year by remote work), as well as other benefits such as better employee retention, an easier recruitment process, and more.
Solving the challenges of working from home
Now we have taken a look at some of the benefits, let’s take a look at some of the challenges that come with working from home (hint hint, nothing technology can’t solve).
The biggest and one of the most critical challenges is security. Security should be a top priority whether it’s customer data or customer card details it should all stay confidential, not to mention your business’s own data that needs to be kept safe and secure.
There is IT software in place to secure all data running through your business. From VPNs that will encrypt everything your computer processes over the internet (very important for those devices connected to the home and possible free public WiFi connections that may not be as secure as the professional WiFi in your business). All the way to spam and ransomware protection to help keep you and your employees safe against malicious emails and content.
My employees deal with lots of phone calls… That’s where VoIP phone systems come in handy. VoIP phone systems, like any other handset, can be taken home if your employees want to and have space. However, the phones can be set up to take calls from their own personal device, or any other device they use. This means they can switch seamlessly between home and the office (no more moving equipment around!).Â
If you’d like to know more about setting up your IT to support remote workers, read our last blog post here.
The bottom line
There are so many ways to save money in business in 2022, and technology has made it easier than ever! Take a look at some of the ideas in this blog and see where you could apply them in your business. For any other questions about improving your IT, get in touch with us here.
