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5 hidden fees costing your small business money
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Starting your own business can be exciting, but it often comes with a rocky road ahead. Those rocks will cut into your wallet through several expenses. Miscalculating the daily costs of running a company can hurt you in the long run.
Although some fees are hard to miss, others can slip through the cracks. Those can cost you a ton of cash over time. Here are five hidden fees that may have slipped past your radar.
1. Too many accounts for the same program
Let’s say you need to use an expensive program that charges per user. If you have five login accounts but only three people need them, you’re paying for two subscriptions you don’t use. Take stock of the resources you pay for and analyze how many workers use them.
Maybe you’re paying for a team to use expensive accounting software, for example. But if only one person uses it, you should demote your subscription to a single-person plan.
This is an easy mistake, especially when you have a high turnover. One employee may have set up a paid account before leaving the company. Since they’re gone, you should delete their accounts. There’s no sense in paying for an account that’s no longer in use.
2. Using an expensive subscription when a cheaper one will do
It’s tempting to pay for the highest tier. Maybe you found cutting-edge accounting software with a ton of features. Unless you’re using all of those features, you’re probably paying for more than you need.
You can save money by ensuring you aren’t automatically signing up for a top-of-the-line subscription when you’d be fine down a tier or two. Sometimes, the cheapest subscription will serve all your needs — and put extra money in your pocket.
3. Tricky phone bills
Unexpected fees can pop up, making your phone bill hard to comprehend. There are many parts to understand, from calling plans and services to taxes, surcharges and miscellaneous fees.
That’s why we recommend auditing your phone service. It’s common for business leaders to buy phone service and cross it off their mental list forever. That’s not a good idea, though — the market changes, prices go up and you can overpay if you don’t check in now and then.
Small-biz tip: Don't overlook this digital danger
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Are you the type of business owner who forgets about ex-employees as soon as they’re gone? Failing to remove former employees’ access to your systems and data could lead to security breaches. Don’t let poor offboarding practices be the weak link in your cybersecurity chain.
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Free online financial calculators to get debt under control, plan for retirement and see your net worth
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If you need help managing your money, you’ve come to the right place. We have tons of financial tips for investors and small business owners. Case in point: Here are 10 free spreadsheet templates to help you get a handle on your money.
TikTok on the clock: The latest plan to save TikTok by April 5 comes with a big catch (paywall link). Oracle is the front-runner, but it will only take a small stake to look after your data. The app’s algorithm? Surprise, surprise, China will still control it. The algorithm is what makes TikTok tick.
“A lot of people want it”: That’s what President Trump says about TikTok. ByteDance has until April 5 to sell the app. Rumored U.S. buyers in the running include Oracle, Perplexity AI, a group led by real estate mogul Frank McCourt and Reddit’s cofounder Alexis Ohanian, and maybe MrBeast. The price? Over $400 billion and definitely out of my budget.
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