Don’t be afraid to get the tools you need in your business. They are an investment, not an expense, and will help you grow your business faster while building in efficiency and automation right from the get-go.
And before I start hearing from the folks who somehow think going into business shouldn’t cost them anything, let me say that I understand not everyone opens their business adequately funded. When that is the case, my advice is to take that same drive and determination that set you to open your business in the first place, and use it to get the things you NEED in your business for it to succeed, come hell or high water.
Now, when it comes to subscription-based tools–those things that are billed on a monthly basis, I highly recommend opting to pay annually instead. There is usually a great savings when you go this route, and if you are on a tight budget and often don’t know when your next dollar is coming in, you won’t have to worry about having enough money in your account each month to cover the installment.
The problem that many poorly-funded new business owners have is that this can mean a significant initial outlay of funds that they often just don’t have all at once. But here’s a little trick you can do to make it easier and spread the cost out over a period of time: Stagger your annual subscription purchases over several months.
Say some of the subscription-based tools you need in your business include LogMeIn, Aweber, Typepad and SendThisFile. In the first month, pay the annual subcription cost for just one (or two) of those services. The following month, pay another annual subscription. And so on for each subsequent month until all your annual tools are paid for.
The cool thing about doing this is not only will you be saving a ton of money while alleviating your monthly budgeting woes, but then when those bills come around again the following year, they won’t all be due at the same time.
If you’re wondering what month is best to start doing this, I recommend May because it’s after the first of the year reporting crunches of January and April.
Thanks for commenting. Yeah, the virtual assistant term is really completely idiotic to...
