There’s a ton of software out there for your small business. You could spend a fortune on it if you let yourself.  The real question is how you can get more out of it without spending more.  Here are some ways to save money without sacrificing the extra productivity you gain from special software.

Take Advantage of Free Tools

Before you agree to purchase or subscribe to anything, find out what is on the internet for free.  Often we don’t need the whole software package. We just need a few tools. Fortunately, the bigger companies will offer you different tools for free. Maybe you can pick up one tool from the first company, another tool from a second company and so on. 

As you use these different tools, you’ll come to see what you really need and what you can live without. However, you won’t have spent anything but time on learning this. This also leaves you flexible for new software as it becomes available.

Hire Someone Who Has the Software

If you need complicated bookkeeping software, it is probably cheaper just to outsource bookkeeping to a qualified financial service.  You don’t have to pick someone far away.  In fact, if you keep it local, you can develop a relationship with the bookkeeping staff. This may help you when you have questions or want to find out what their software can do. 

Get as Much Training as Possible

One problem with software is that it is often underutilized. This is generally due to the fact that the users don’t fully understand it. Rather than leave things to chance, make sure that you and your staff take advantage of every training video you can find.  YouTube is usually a good source for these, in addition to the software company. 

Reach Out to Free Advisors

Although you may have to make an appointment well in advance, many software companies do offer advice. You should arrange to talk to them about the facets of the system.  It is possible that it can do more than you realize.  Software developers want to make their product indispensable to you. If you have already paid for it, you might as well let them!

Beware of Duplication

Before you pay another subscription fee to a software company, you need to look closely at the ones you already have. You don’t want to accidentally pay for the same services.  This requires that you get a deeper understanding of what the software can do. You may need to read the software blog. You definitely want to continue your training and reach out to those advisors already mentioned. In fact, before you buy something new, call the existing software provider and ask them if there is overlap.  If they are the sort to pay attention to the competition, they will be able to tell you. 

Utilize the Sharing Economy

If you are an entrepreneur, you may want to band together with another entrepreneur in a related business where the two enterprises can share software. There are so many subscriptions for services and software downloads that are overpriced for one microbusiness.  If you can split the cost with another business or even two other businesses, you can have the tools you need without breaking your budget.

This is like sharing work space or sharing business machines. In fact, that’s a good idea as well. The goal is to keep your expenses down as you speed up your productivity. 

There isn’t a single business today that can operate without some investment in software. The key is to keep costs down until that day where your profit matches your productivity. 

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Mr. 4HWD

I'm Mr. 4HWD, I started this site because I think everyone should be able to work at a job they enjoy and still have time to do all the fun stuff. I don't want to retire early, I want to work four hours a day on the things I love for the rest of my life.

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