Margins are always tight when you start your own business. While there’s no golden rule book that guarantees success, those that keep a track of every dollar they spend are at least starting off on the right foot.

To help give you more flexibility with your budget, we’ve come up with a list of eight money-saving tips. Follow these and you’ll say goodbye to unnecessary expenditure and hello to getting more for less.

Use all your contacts

Now is the ideal time to cash in any favours that you’re owed. Ask your friends and family if they know anyone that would be willing to offer you free legal, financial, marketing, or funding advice.

Don’t be afraid to barter or haggle

It’s time to leave your modesty at the front door and to barter or haggle as though your life depended on it. Trading goods, inventory, or services with other businesses will help you to develop industry partnerships that may come in handy in the future.

Outsource

Thanks to a recent explosion in the number of online freelancing platforms, you can now find a short-term contractor for almost any kind of job. This is ideal for a startup business since you can pick and choose the services you really need.

Setup a virtual office

With global average internet speeds increasing and connecting us faster than ever before, more and more startups are choosing to work virtually.

It makes financial sense because the cost of buying or renting an office space is usually a company’s largest outlay. A recent study has even shown that those that work from home are happier, more productive, and less likely to quit than their office counterparts.

Buy second-hand items

Source: Gumtree Australia

You’ll most likely need some sort of furniture or equipment to get your startup off the ground. This can prove expensive, especially if you need to kit out office space or need items for a co-working space.

As a result, we’d advise you to shop second hand. There’s plenty of online auction or listing sites where you can pick up quality items at discounted rates.

Find free software

It’s easy to be fooled into thinking that you need to buy the latest and most expensive software, to be able to get work done. The reality is somewhat different.

Many companies offer free versions of their software, a concept known as “freemium” as a way of letting a company trial their product. For most small companies, the basic features that freemium packages provide are more than enough to get by.

Get in touch with manufacturers

Cutting out as many of the middlemen as possible is one of the easiest ways to save money, if you’re selling someone else’s product.

It’s worth getting in touch with the manufacturer and finding out what their minimum order requirements are. If they’re too high, you’ll need to work your way further down the sales chain. In most cases, wholesalers are more willing to take on smaller orders.

Consider commission based wages

Finally, if your startup involves selling, why not use a commission-based wage structure? This way, the cost of your wages will be relative to the amount you sell. Plus, you’ll have the added reassurance that your team has some sort of motivation to help you succeed.