5 Ways High-Tech Telecommuting Saves You Money
It's tough for a small businesses to compete; even moreso if you're trying to take off on a shoestring budget. The web can make your life easier and lower the cost of doing business. By relying on technology to fill in the gaps, even tiny startups can operate like big businesses.
1. Broaden your hiring pool
Big companies attract top talent by searching all over the country, using third party recruiters to vet candidates, and flying in prospects for face-to-face meetings. Then they pay moving expenses for the people they hire.
Small businesses are usually limited to people who live in the immediate area. Even if you hire the most qualified person in your local area, have you hired the best possible person?
Working from home is a perk, and many people will choose that in lieu of higher salary. A small company can attract top talent by offering options big companies won't compromise on. For them, working from home means flexibility, greater choice of employment, no commuting time, no work-related expenses (like wardrobe, commuting, and lunching out). They can save hundreds of dollars every month, spend more time with their families, and less time dealing with office politics. For some, working from home is an invaluable perk.
2. Lower Your Communications Costs
Telephony used to be tremendously expensive. Multiple phone lines, long distance charges, and incoming tool-free calls took a huge chunk out of a small business budget. When VoIP first hit the market, it wasn't viable for business. Calls were plagued by dropped calls and poor transmission.
Fortunately, the technology has come a long way. Today, you can have stable, clear connections over the internet. By combining VoIP service with Skype, you can cut your telephone bill to a fraction of landline costs, expand your communications capability to forward calls to the appropriate person, hold video or audio meetings (you can even share your screen), and talk to people anywhere in the world in real-time. So you can hire a programmer in Peoria, and a web designer in Peru. And they can talk to you and to each other. For free.
3. Reduce sick time
Global Workplace Analytics found that 78% of employees who call in sick aren't sick. They need time off to deal with family issues, personal needs, and stress. Sick days cost employers a staggering $1,800 per employee per year. That's $300 billion per year in the U.S. alone. You'll save 63% of lost work time, and studies even show that people who work from home actually increases productivity.
4. Invest in less real estate
Bodies take up space and workers need stuff. Each employee in your office needs and office, furniture, and equipment. While you may be on the hook for a laptop and a smart phone, people from home provide their own desk, chair, and space. You can invest in a smaller workspace, and maybe work from home yourself. If people aren't likely to walk in to your business, a storefront is an unnecessary expense.
5. Keep your business intact during a disaster
No matter what's going on at your office – fire, hurricane, zombie apocalypse - data and business systems in the cloud are safe and secure. Telecommuting is often included in emergency response plans. Remote employees can continue to work as long as they have electricity, and what are the odds that geographically separated employees will all have power outages?
Telecommuting ensure continuity, regardless of whatever crazy thing is going on today.
Today's technology makes telecommuting attractive from every angle. While some businesses still need expensive brick-and-mortar buildings, many don't, and a lot of small businesses are opting for new solutions. To save even more money, you can outsource some tasks and automate others.
Smart use of technology and personnel does more than save you money. It makes your small business look like a big, reliable business. A business consumers can trust.
