While there’s hesitancy to say the “R” word, it’s not difficult to figure out that there’s something drastic happening in our economic world. Today oil prices soared toward $140.00 a barrel as Americans, already pushed to the brim at the pumps looked on. For business owners, this means we have to find new ways to get things done and help our customers do the same. The good news is that in times like this communities become stronger, relationships deepen and creative ways to work together are born.

Here are a few things you can do to make your resources go further:

Look For Lower Priced Services

I recently switched to Vonage for my phone service. I put it off for a long time; I enjoyed the idea of having a traditional phone line. However, as the price of my hardly used land line continued to soar, I made the choice to try this alternative service. I’m happy with the service and it was very easy to set up. I’m aware that my phone is now connected to my cable line and if the cable goes out so does the service. The good news is you have a call forward option that will send your phone calls to an alternate number, a nice feature. This change has turned out to be a very cost effective move for my business.


Use Web Basis Project Management program
Try Basecamp.com to manage your projects. Everyone on your team can check into your project and give progress reports, leave messages for each other, start a forum thread and more. This is a great program, it’s easy to use and gives the moderator of the group constant contact and an over view of what’s going on with the whole team. This is especially good if you and your team work in different locations.


Start a Ride Share Program
Visit Rideshare.511.org for complete details and benefits of starting or joining a rideshare program. Did you know that there are tax benefits to ridesharing? Under Section 132F of federal tax code, an employer can offer its employees up to $110 per month for transit and vanpool costs and up to $215 in qualified parking costs, now that’s good news. You can find facts like this and others on this informative site.


Telecommute!
Work from home at least two days a week. Or give your employees designated days to work from home instead of having them come into the office. Some employers are concerned that if they do this they will not have control over the productivity of the employee. If you have your staff check in during designated times and give a progress report you can easily manage the work out put.


These are just a few suggestions to save on travel cost during a time of rising fuel prices. The important thing to remember is that we have options. They may not be the ones we’ve always had and that’s o.k. It’s time to thinks of news ways to get things done. And, who knows, maybe you’ll discover an untapped market or find a service your can provide that will make your business stronger and more valuable to you employees.