One of the most crucial roles of a small business owner is trying to minimize costs. Any unnecessary bills can quickly eat into revenue and reduce the gain of all that hard work. Whether it is the cost of employment costs, advertising or renting space, the list of ways you can spend money adds up.
Getting control of all costs doesn’t feel easy, so we thought some handy hints and tips on saving the money you spend on energy could help. Energy has become the most expensive outlay for most businesses in recent years and the most unpredictable as prices rise and fall at frustrating levels. Let’s explore the small actions you can take to make efficiencies in your energy use.
Make your own energy
A way to avoid reliance on energy suppliers is to generate your own. Solar panels will require an upfront outlay but can often pay for themselves over five years. Using the energy from the sun, you power your appliances without needing to buy power. Plus, if you create more than you need, you can sell the surplus back to your supplier and earn money.
There are other considerable benefits to installing solar panels. You will reduce your carbon footprint, reducing your business’s environmental impact. Consequently, your social responsibility reputation is improved, which is becoming an increasingly important part of your business credentials.
Change tariff
The Guardian newspaper reported that more than a million small businesses were caught in a high tariff in 2023. The consequences, they noted, were existential for some of these companies. Being on top of your deal with your supplier is the single most important step you can take to save money, and shopping around for the best deal is essential.
If you fear you are stuck in a high-tariff deal draining your resources, then compare energy rates to get the best deal for your business.
Complete an energy audit
Working out where you are most using energy is essential. Step one in this audit is listing all the ways you use energy in your business. You will quickly see where you have opportunities to switch things off that are not needed or to turn off heating in unused rooms.
If you use an energy monitor or smart meter, it is possible to assess how much energy each appliance uses. While holding the meter, switch the appliance off and see how much the usage drops. It might be that you are holding on to equipment costing you more to run that money it is making. No item that requires power is delivering its revenue-generating capacity for free, so balancing the cost to run against the money made is business 101.
Train your staff to care
You can make all the efforts you want to switch off lights and close doors, and it won’t matter if your employees don’t feel the same level of responsibility. Using the off switch is the single most effective way to save energy. You don’t pay for what you don’t use. Therefore, spending time with your team and making it clear why this is important is crucial to your money-saving efforts. It might also be as simple as putting up signs to remind them.
Stop those draughts
Getting rid of draughts and places of heat loss can prevent that feeling that money is literally seeping out your windows. Buying window film, which acts as temporary secondary glazing, is possible. This will stop heat loss through glass and is available at hardware shops. It is likely you can fit this yourself, which means a high-cost reglazing of windows and doors can be put off until a better year. This is especially effective in rental units where you don’t want to spend money on large projects for a building that is not yours.
Turning revenue into profits
The actions you take to save money on a large expenditure like energy is a crucial part of a successful business. While your revenues could be stellar if the cost of doing business is too high, it will feel like trudging through quicksand. Take the time to make small efficiencies in lots of ways and turn that revenue into profits.
Laura McLoughlin is a Digital PR based in Armagh, Northern Ireland. She has previous experience as a website editor and journalist, and currently works with Power to Switch.
Solar energy stock image by Kitreel/Shutterstock
