Bottom Line Profit

[coultog]

Many businesses focus on growing their sales, but do not consider their ongoing costs for running their business.

In my experience, most businesses owners do not consider that their costs have a direct relationshp with their bottom line profit and their own dividends.

Out of interest, how often do you consider your costs, ask suppliers to offer additional discounts etc?

Savings can be made by looking at your costs, internal processes and the number of people you employ and what their roles are.

Do you think about your costs about its effect on your bottom line?

 

[Write My Site]

Really? I can't think of any business owners who are not cost-conscious.

 

[coultog]

There's a distinct difference between being cost conscious and actively looking at costs. That's what I'm asking.

 

[KidsBeeHappy]

Really? I can't think of any business owners who are not cost-conscious.

Have you met my husband - 1000% sales orientated!!! Totally blinkered towards costs in the past, but i'm working him around!

He used to count the sales very specifically and individually, yet lump the costs all together and completely ignore overheads.

Interestly, I did some special project work a few years back with traders, and this is exactly how they work, the profit or the margin on that particular "deal", with absolutely no regard for overheads, and more importantly in their situation where they were making margins of 2%-4% on foreign currency exchange rates gains/losses and costs.

 

[ChrisR]

We work a lot in IT. IT can increase revenue by two means : "internal cost reduction (for example with Business Process Optimisation/improvement/Reengineering)" or "new opportunities (for example E-Commerce/B2B/B2C/...)". Most often we find ourselves spending much time trying to convince people (clients) that we can reduce their internal costs, thus increase their revenue.

In conclusion, I somewhat agree, I'm not sure how aware SMEs are about the potential of cost reduction, or at least, it's not easy to convince them that IT can increase their revenue (by reducing their costs).

 

Really? I can't think of any business owners who are not cost-conscious.

It is truly amazing the amount of business' that are complacent about costs, sometimes an unbelievable amount of money.

 

[Jezclayton]

It is truly amazing the amount of business' that are complacent about costs, sometimes an unbelievable amount of money.

..........and hence concentrate on turnover without watching profits.

 

[wevet]

SALES ARE VANITY = PROFITS ARE SANITY

The higher the costs the harder you have to work just to stand still.

 

[maxine]

Personally I review costs constantly and always seek better discounts. (even if that means I am now known in the office as "the woman who stops the bacon rolls!")

 

[ChrisR]

You seek discouts, but for example, do you seek optimising your internal business processes (better use of IT, ...). Of course, this depends what your activity is, but for example do you use any ERP type software to manage your business?