Running your own business brings with it a host of expenses including: office space, phone bills, bookkeeping expenses, business travel, graphic design, and more. Though overhead is expected, research reveals that these expenses can be slashed by using broadband Internet services.
According to an April 2012 study, Start-Up Savings: Boosting Entrepreneurship through Broadband Internet, conducted by the Internet Innovation Alliance and the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, the potential savings broadband brings to start-ups reach $16,550.52. The study reveals the following ten areas where savings can be significant:
- Online accounting services – With a potential annual savings of $1833.70, it may make sense to consider using online accounting and tax services such as QuickBooks SimpleStart and TurboTax or H & R Block over traditional bookkeepers and accountants.
- Do-it-yourself marketing and printing services – Save roughly $378 each year by choosing a low-cost online printing service over a brick-and-mortar printer.
- VoIP phone service – With traditional business phone lines averaging $58 per month and VoIP business lines averaging just $22 per month, the savings quickly add up to $432 per year.
- Do-it-yourself websites – Traditional website designers charge an average of $2340 for a website design – and hosting will cost you roughly $58 each year. In contrast, template-based websites and hosting packages cost just under $300 per year for an upfront savings of $2098.20.
- Mobile apps – A separate report by the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council found that apps saved entrepreneurs an average of 4 hours each week. Using average hourly figures for self-employed individuals, the report concludes that using mobile apps results in an annual labor savings of $3502.72.
- Online logo services – Traditional logo designers charge an average of about $500 while online logo services average just $42 for a potential upfront savings of $458.
- Work from home – Broadband Internet has made the home office a reality for many self-employed individuals and business start-ups. Instead of renting 300 square feet of office space at an average of $6180 per year, work from home and save over $6,000 each year on office space.
- Online business incorporation services – Incorporating a business can be costly if using a traditional lawyer to draw up the documents. In contrast, online business incorporation services such as LegalZoom and Nolo charge dramatically less for a potential upfront savings of $296.
- Business travel – Airfare, rental cars, hotel rooms, and meals out quickly add up when traveling for business. However, online videoconferencing services are cheap and allow for face-to-face meetings with partners, investors, clients, vendors, and other business professionals for an estimated annual savings of $1023.12.
- Online newspaper subscriptions – Instead of subscribing to paper-based business journals and newspapers, save an average of $348.71each year by getting your news delivered online.
In addition to the over $16,000 worth of savings outlined above, the study suggests that other potential savings exist for broadband users including using broadband to purchase equipment and furniture and utilize cloud and marketing services. Whether you’re just starting up or already running your business, broadband Internet can save your business significant amounts of money each year.
