1) Depending on the nature of your business, you may be able to save money on your website. It can cost thousands of dollars to hire someone to do it for you, or you could simply spend a few hundred on a program that walks you through building your own. Sometimes this works out better because you are adding in personal touches all over the site. Just keep your brand image in mind and be willing to put in the hours.

2) Promote yourself as opposed to paying for lots of pricey advertising. In today’s day and age, you can build meaningful personal and business relationships using social networking sites online. Stay active on the sites at least weekly. Offer special promotions, contests or benefits to your fans and followers. Word of mouth will have you building your business for free in no time. Plus, you can directly target the customers and clients that you would like to have.

3) Save money on office or store décor by featuring artwork provided by local artists. Artists are generally more than willing to display their work in public places. Allow them to put business cards in your office or near the register so that people can contact them if they would like to purchase their artwork. This is an easy way to make your space unique without spending a dime.

4) Be your own accountant. There are all kinds of software on the market that will help you to track and run your business. Doing your taxes online through a program that walks you through deductions and reporting is really not that difficult. Some programs even upload your financial software and do most of the work for you. For small businesses, this type of tax reporting is generally sufficient. If you’re nervous or think that it’s getting too complicated, go to a tax advisor. This is still a lot cheaper than hiring an accountant.

5) Most small business owners end up hiring a secretary or personal assistant to help them keep up with everything. You can avoid this cost by using planners and services that help you keep track of everything, without depending on an employee. Online calendars can pop-up reminders, e-mail you when something is due, or even send a text to your phone. You can pay under $10/month to access mobile concierge services that connect you to a live assistant, 24/7, from anywhere in the world. This service is really helpful when you need phone directory information, flight statuses, restaurant recommendations, turn-by-turn directions, stock quotes and more.

About the Author: Joe Smith is a Marketing Associate of OnCall, a leading online source of mobile concierge services that goes above and beyond traditional directory assistance. Get international personalized assistance with phone direcory information, turn by turn directions, movie times, stock quotes, sports scores, and more at http://www.askoncall.com.

Trim the fat. Take a long hard look at where your money is going. Don’t concentrate only on how much money you’re making and stop analyzing when you hit goals. Getting rid of products and services that are costing you almost as much as you’re making will help you to narrow down your focus and pinpoint your most profitable areas.

Find your niche. Once you narrow down your business to include only the most profitable products and services, you can start to look at these products in different ways. Think about demand. Which of your most profitable products are in the highest demand? Do these products have anything in common? Is there a niche in which you can really focus and become a specialist? Becoming specialized in one area will help you to create customer loyalty. Customers want to go to the source or the expert for many things. If you can become an expert, you’ll create long-term customers that will help stabilize your business.

Target your most profitable customers and cut out the rest. Focus on the goals of your business and determine which customers will help you reach your goals. Some customers take up too much time or don’t bring in enough profit. Sometimes small business owners use up precious resources and time catering to people who are not bringing in the money. It can be hard to focus on your goals if you’re trying to make everyone happy.

Reduce your spending by researching ways to save money. New ways of running a business are always emerging, so if you get stuck doing things in one way, you could be missing out on some money saving ventures.

Many small business owners travel to trade shows or to meet with clients. You can save a lot of money travelling if you research hotel rates, flights and rental car deals online in advance before you travel. You can save money and time by using mobile concierge services instead of a personal assistant. They provide international phone directory information, as well as turn-by-turn directions, flight updates, restaurant recommendations and more for only a few dollars a month. Calling information for this information can cost a lot more and the information is less accurate or not available worldwide.

Keep your small business on track by being objective, preparing for challenges, and utilizing services that save you money.

About the Author: Joe Smith is a Marketing Associate of OnCall, a leading online source of mobile concierge services that goes above and beyond traditional directory assistance. Get international personalized assistance with phone direcory information, turn by turn directions, movie times, stock quotes, sports scores, and more at http://www.askoncall.com.