Lunch is for Wimps! Plus Four Other Shocking Recession Busters

Everyone is talking about how to save those extra pennies during the recession, so it got me thinking… what would Scrooge do in today’s recession in order to keep his business from going under?

Here are five modern-day recession-busting tips that Scrooge would be proud of. Please note, not all of them are to be taken too seriously!

1. Get People to Phone YOU

If Scrooge was around during these modern times he would cut down on expensive phone bills by forcing the people he did business with to call HIM to discuss work matters.

Make sure you ring suppliers, sub contractors, colleagues and even employees when you know they are not going to be around and leave a message on their answer phone requesting them to call you back. Before they begin work and early evening when they have left is best.

2. Use a Reseller Hosting Account

Scrooge would not support wasting money on duplication, so if your business involves several websites then you should be using a reseller hosting package rather than separate hosting for each website.

A reseller hosting package enables you to host as many websites as you want on the same server for one annual fee. Plus, you can also host websites for friends, colleagues etc and what you charge them should be more than enough to cover the cost of the reseller account.

3. Use Shorter Domain Names

As the government looks to find ever more cunning ways to tax the population, it will only be a matter of time before online businesses are clobbered with the same disregard as regular “bricks and mortar” ventures.

You need to think like Scrooge down to the very last detail so do not rule out a punitive “domain name tax” which could see the name of your website taxed on the basis of how many letters and characters it has. Scrooge would avoid this possible tax liability by going “underground” so make sure you register all your domain names privately, using a service such as Domains by Proxy and of course, do not register a government-trackable .co.uk extension!

4. Switch Your PC for a Laptop

Scrooge is well aware that in times of economic crisis, it’s all about downsizing. Your suped-up PC is the gas-guzzler of the online business world and needs to be replaced… sharpish!

If your house gets repossessed and you lose your plush home office / study area, at least with a laptop you will be able to work comfortably in the cupboard under the stairs when you are forced to move back home to mum and dad’s. If it’s good enough for Harry Potter…

5. Skip Lunch

Scrooge wouldn’t waste his hard-earned money on lunch. Indeed, lunch is for wimps! The reason our shopping bills have soared is not because the cost of staples such as bread, milk and eggs have risen by around 20% since Christmas, but because we are wasting money on unneccessary purchases, according to our esteemed Prime Minster, Gordon Brown.

If you don’t have the luxury of a £23,000 per annum expense account, then tow the Government line and become one of Brown’s “Generation Malnourished”. Scrooge would support the notion that reducing your food intake by one square meal per day would put more money in your pocket and of course work wonders in battling the country’s growing obesity problem.

Got any other hot tips for your recession proof business opportunities? Share them below!