Which Small Business Shortcuts are Actually Worth Taking?

Starting a small business has a way of making everything feel urgent and expensive at the exact same time. No, really, it’s not even an exaggeration here because one minute it’s just an idea, then the next minute it’s like, apparently this business now “needs” branding, packaging, labels, software, templates, social media graphics, printed materials, a website, a decent looking invoice, and probably seventeen subscriptions to a whole bunch of different things. 

Just go ahead and go on LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, anywhere online, and it’s most people trying to sell you something so they can get their affiliate commission. But at the same time, you know you can’t be stingy with your budget and not spend anything, yet there’s so much you need to spend on. It’s clearly a big issue here. 

That’s why shortcuts matter so much in the beginning. Not dodgy shortcuts, obviously, and not the kind that make a business look sloppy. The useful kind. The kind that saves time, saves money, and stops a new business owner from spending four hours doing something badly just because technically it can be done at home.

Stop Romanticising Doing Everything Yourself

Seriously, there’s a giant reason for this, and it’s mainly because this is such a trap. Sure, new business owners love the idea of being scrappy, hands-on, resourceful, all of that. Yes, it’s totally lovely in theory. But in practice, it often means spending a ridiculous amount of time doing tiny jobs badly just to avoid paying for help. And yeah, that might sound harsh, but some things really do need saying.

Just go ahead and take printing, for example. So many people convince themselves they’re saving money by printing their own flyers, inserts, menus, or promo bits at home. But printers are well, printers, there’s always an issue. And so wouldn’t it be better to look into online printing services? Usually, you’re saving time and money (and printer ink for whatever reason is unreasonably expensive, but since they buy it in bulk, printing is super cheap).

Free Tools Can Carry A Business Pretty Far

Your average person tends to overlook this one because they assume free means bad. Sometimes? Sure, but not always. Sometimes free means good enough for now, and good enough for now is exactly what a new business needs. Plus, not every single thing has to be premium from day one. That mindset empties the bank account fast. 

Canva is a really good example of this. People act like a business needs a full design team before it’s allowed to post a graphic online, and it really doesn’t. Canva’s free version can do a lot. And it helps to know that Creative Market is giving away free fonts, templates, stock images, and mockups every week, which honestly feels like one of those things more people should be shouting about, but no, these weekly freebies are basically a secret.

Just Reuse Things

Really, what’s the harm there? But think about it; new business owners sometimes act like every caption, email, promo, and product description has to be created from scratch every single time. One good bit of writing can get reused all over the place. It depends on what you’re writing, of course. For example, a customer question can become a website FAQ, or an email can become three posts and a sales graphic. And of course, nobody’s handing out awards for making everything harder than it needs to be.