Simple ways to keep the cost of running your small business under control

In the UK, the mum economy is huge. It does not matter where you live you will find mumpreneurs. Women who are juggling raising their kids and looking after their families with running a small business.

The latest stats show that 807,000 women are registered as self-employed, in the UK. Many of them are mums. If you are one of them, this article is for you. Below, I outline some relatively simple ways you can track, keep control of and reduce the cost of your small business.

Get a fuel card

Whether you are running just one vehicle or have expanded and now have more than one van or business car, fuel cards from somewhere like EMO makes a lot of sense. Using one enables you to keep your business fuel expenses totally separate from the petrol or diesel you use in your daily life. 

This really helps when you do your accounts. Instead, of having to sort through a pile of receipts and key them into a spreadsheet you just make a note of the single payment you made to your fuel card provider.

Also, generally speaking, you get a very good rate, when you fill-up. That helps to keep your costs down. Plus, the fact that you can pay at the end of the month helps you with cash flow.

Use an app to do your accounts

Regardless of what type of business you run doing your accounts is a real pain. It is one of those jobs that gets pushed down your list of priorities without your realizing it. 

Using an app like QuickBooks will make things a lot easier. You are far more likely to do things as you go rather than leave recording your business expenses build-up and get out of control.

You may still need to hire an accountant. But, because you are less likely to make mistakes or miss anything you are less likely to get in trouble with the taxman. The fact that you can get your accountancy tasks done quicker will be helpful too. It is time that you can better use to serve your customers and market your business.

Look for bargains

Even if in your daily life you shop around and always look for a voucher before buying something there is a fair chance you might not be doing the same for your business. This is a shame because you can save a huge amount of money when you take the time to shop around.

There are all kinds of ways to find voucher codes that relate to items you are likely to need for your business. But, one that is often overlooked is signing up to be notified of codes by business-focused blogs. They tend to get some fantastic deals. Here is an example of what I mean. So, if you have not already tapped into this way to save money on your business overheads, now is a good time to do so.

There are tons of other ways to keep the cost of maintaining your business down. But, the above are probably the simplest to implement.