Cutting Costs To Improve Customer Experience

Cutting costs to improve customer experience sounds like an oxymoron. The reality for some businesses is that many of the expenses they incur through day-to-day operations can be slashed or even eliminated. The real trick to cutting costs is determining which expenses can be cut without negatively impacting the customers’ experience. Just as important is knowing which costs are essential to an excellent customer experience.

Cutting Costs – Areas To Address

Believe it or not, there are expenses incurred in everyday operations that you need not incur. And while finding them can be tricky, Complete Care Maintenance is here to help. We have put together a list of five areas of your business where you should look to start cutting costs.

Energy Usage

Energy costs represent a major expense for any business. Luckily, energy costs are also one of the easiest to reduce. While we understand that you need to keep the lights on, there are some fairly simple changes that you can make that will help reduce your energy costs and your environmental footprint.

• Turn off the lights. Encourage your staff and customers to flip off the light switch when leaving an empty office, restroom, or breakroom. You’ll be surprised how much this simple measure can reduce your energy costs.
• Shut down computers and other office equipment at night. Making a habit of shutting down office machines before leaving the office for the night can have a significant effect on your energy expenditures and can reduce wear and tear on your office machinery.
• Switch to energy-efficient L.E.D. lightbulbs. L.E.D. lightbulbs are far more efficient than traditional bulbs. While they may cost more upfront, they last longer than traditional lightbulbs and represent one of the easiest ways of cutting costs.

Going Paperless

For many businesses, the idea of going ‘paperless’ is a little beyond their grasp. After all, there are some situations where paper is a necessary commodity but there are still ways that you can reduce your use of paper. Modern software is available that can manage payroll, customer relations, and other traditionally documented tasks. In addition to cutting costs, switching to computer-based processes can save time and improve productivity – not to mention reducing your environmental impact.

Purchasing Supplies

If you find yourself running to Office Depot every time your ink pen goes dry, you can probably do a better job of purchasing supplies. Consider buying office supplies, cleaning supplies, and restroom and breakroom supplies in bulk. Bulk purchasing reduces the cost per unit and eliminates the time expended making trips to the store. Of course, buying in bulk also requires storage space and available cash flow, but it can be a valuable cost-cutting tool.

Areas To Avoid When Cutting Costs

When putting in place your cost-cutting strategy it is important to recognize that some areas of operation are just too important to your bottom line. In fact, as opposed to cutting costs in these areas, you may want to consider investing more in their optimization. Some areas to avoid when cutting costs are listed below.

Staffing and Training

Customer service is an essential ingredient for any successful business and cutting costs in staffing and employee training is a bad idea. In fact, it may make more sense to invest some of your cost-cutting savings in improved training programs for your staff. A well-trained and motivated staff can improve efficiency, customer relations, and your bottom line.

Cleaning and Sanitizing

At a time when the world is in year two of an ongoing pandemic protecting the health of your staff and customers is paramount. Today’s customers are hyper-vigilant about the cleanliness of businesses that they patronize. In fact, a whopping 92% of consumers surveyed said that the cleanliness of a business is a major factor in their decision to return. No business can afford to lose customers due to a lack of cleaning and sanitizing. Rather than cutting costs in this area, we believe you should invest in commercial cleaning services that will help protect you, your staff, and your clientele.