Money Saving Tips for Small Businesses: Stretch Your Budget Further

money saving tips for small businesses

Whether you’re a solopreneur or running a small business with employees, it often means walking a tightrope between ambition and limitation. As a small business owner, it’s essential to actively seek out ways to save. Every dollar counts, which is why mastering these money saving tips for small businesses is crucial for maximizing your already spending. And when it comes to the higher costs of business expenses, the potential for rewarding purchases is heightened. We’re exploring practical tips on how to save business money, tailored specifically for small businesses. From cash back sites to deal stacking and everything in between, let’s dive into strategies that will stretch your budget further, amass rewards, and boost your bottom line.

Leveraging Cash Back Sites

Imagine getting rewarded every time you make a purchase for your business. That’s the beauty of cash back sites and apps. These platforms offer businesses a percentage of their purchase back in the form of cash rewards. You can learn more about how cash back platforms work. By choosing the right cash back platform and strategically aligning your purchases, business owners can earn significant savings without much extra effort.

Rakuten cash back logo

In our opinion–the best overall reward program to save you money. Great brand selection, cash back rates, coupons, reliability, and customer service.

Sign-up

Capital One Shopping logo

Nope, you don’t need a Capital One credit card to save money shopping online. It’s a separate rewards program where you can save with cash back and coupons.

Sign-up

Top Cashback Logo

Unlike others, TopCashback passes on all of their commission to you, which means they sometimes have the best cash back rates to help you save money.

Sign-up

These platforms offer categories and services featuring thousands of brands that are relevant to small business spending. Here are some of the most popular brands where you get cash back on business purchases:

Ace HardwareLowe’sSam’s Club
AT&T BusinessMailchimpShutterstock
Best BuyNeweggStaples
DellOffice DepotUDemy
GoDaddyQuickbooksVista Print
HostingerQuickenWalmart
InstacartQuillzoro.com
LenovoRocket Lawyer…many more

Save with Promo Codes and Coupons

While it may seem like a hassle to some, promo codes and coupons are the unsung heroes of frugal spending. And this is no different for businesses. They offer instant discounts on business purchases, from office supplies to software subscriptions. However, not all codes are created equal. Many coupon sites contain bogus codes that don’t work, wasting your time in the process.

Our preferred methods of using promo codes and coupons are as follows:

  • Use any public discount codes available on the vendor website. Make sure to activate or not forget to add them at checkout.
  • Subscribe to email for the vendors where we make purchases (whether it’s once or recurring expenses). You can often get discount codes directly from the vendor, and you might also be able to time purchases around sale events.
  • Using cash back sites and apps where we are already activating cash back for our shopping trip. These cash back platforms commonly provide valid discount codes for the vendor you’re shopping (either from the cash back site or browser extension).

Using Small Business Rewards Credit Cards

Small business credit cards can be powerful tools for managing cash flow and expenses while you earn rewards for normal spending. Every card is different—with benefits such as generous welcome bonuses, high cash back or points on business spending categories, travel perks, purchase insurance, and 0% intro APR offers (which can be extremely beneficial for a small business owner). Some pay simple cash back as statement credits, and others tap into rewards ecosystems to give you more redemption options—where you could redeem them for business class flights, luxury hotels, and more.

Many of these cards will also not affect your personal FICO score once opened, because many aren’t reported to the credit bureaus like personal cards are. Of course, you should always approach credit card usage responsibly and avoid falling into debt traps, while paying off statement balances monthly.

chase portal offers e1707540514723

Tip! On most cards, you can also take advantage of rotating shopping deals that you can activate directly from your card account on site or in app. These offers can add significant savings in the form of additional cash back directly as a statement credit.

Best business credit cards for transferrable points

Chase Ink Business Preferred®

chase business ink preferred card

Logo Moola Stamp FlatMag rank: 4.0

Get up to 3x Ultimate Rewards points on your spend, plus other value added perks.
Apply now

American Express® Business Gold

amex business gold card

Logo Moola Stamp FlatMag rank: 4.0

Get up to 4x Membership Rewards points on eligible categories, plus up to $20 monthly credits.
Apply now

Best business credit cards for cash back

Chase Ink Business Unlimited®

chase business ink unlimited card

Logo Moola Stamp FlatMag rank: 4.0

Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase. 0% intro APR for 12 months. No annual fee.
Apply now

American Express Blue Business® Cash

amex blue business cash card

Logo Moola Stamp FlatMag rank: 3.5

Get 2% cash back on all purchases (up to $50k per year). 0% intro APR for 12 months. No annual fee.
Apply now

Terms apply. Offers subject to change. Refer to card issuer for full details.

Mastering Deal Stacking

Deal stacking (what we sometimes refer to as the deal sandwich) helps you get bigger and more optimized savings. By combining a cash back platform when you start your shopping trip, activating any related credit card offers, adding promo code or coupon discounts at checkout, and using the most rewarding credit card for payment—small businesses can maximize their purchasing power by unlocking substantial savings over time.

The deal sandwich:

  • Check the credit card you’re going to use for any rotating offers that could get you up to 10% or more as a statement credit and activate the offer.
  • Find out which cash back platform is offering the best rate (either through their site, app, or browser extension) and activate the cash back so your order is tracked for cash back.
  • Take notice of any discount codes on the vendor site, in your email, or cash back platform. Be sure to add those to the cart or checkout.
  • Use the right credit card for the transaction. Either a card that offers elevated rewards for the purchase category, or a catch-all card that offers a solid return above 1%.

This may seem like a lot at first, but once you’ve done it (and seen the savings and rewards that add up), it will become an easy routine to repeat when shopping for your business.

Exploring Other Money-Saving Tips

Beyond all the money saving tips for small businesses that we’ve discussed, there are various other tactics to explore for spending less on your business expenses. Here are a few ideas to get you started that cover a broad range of businesses. Start to think about other ways you could save on recurring or bulk expenses in your niche.

Subscribe & save

If you are ordering the same item frequently, consider buying it with a recurring subscription (like what Amazon offers). If it’s software, opt for the yearly plan instead of monthly. You can save a lot.

Get lifetime deals

If you are buying software, you can get a low-cost lifetime deal when using a site like appsumo.com. You can find innovative technology that solves real business challenges and automates workflows.

Buy in bulk

It might seem obvious for some, but if you are buying materials or office supplies throughout the year, bulk or volume buying will significantly decrease the cost you pay per unit.

Wrap-Up: Elevate Your Small Biz Rewards Strategy

Saving money isn’t just about cutting costs; it’s about maximizing and unlocking more value from your everyday spending. By leveraging everything we’ve covered here, you can stretch your budget further one purchase at a time. So, roll up your sleeves, implement these strategies, and make more of the money you’re already spending.

These are our recommendations but it isn’t financial advice. We may receive a commission if you click through any of the links in this article.

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