The simple answer is energy. Over the past few years, companies have seen their energy costs rise by 30-40% and this has forced them to make cuts in other areas of their business, sadly often in staffing. As the Energy Information Centre (www.eic.co.uk) noted, “There can be little doubt that the cost of electrical energy will continue on its upward spiral for many years to come, so there has never been a more important time to place energy savings at the forefront of company priorities.”

The good news is that cutting your fuel bills will not only positively impact your bottom line, but will also reduce your organisation’s carbon footprint. The UK has set itself a target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 20% (compared with1990s levels) by 2010, and with government incentives such as the 'climate change levy' it makes simple economic sense for business leaders to start sourcing carbon-friendly solutions to their financial woes.

Many of the small firms I speak to are anxious to cut both energy costs and carbon emissions, but are drawing a blank when it comes to finding expert advice and the required funding. But there is help out there. What companies like Powermaster (www.power-master.co.uk) and The Carbon Trust (www.carbontrust.co.uk) try to do is provide companies with a detailed analysis of their energy consumption, make specific recommendations as to the most effective ways to cut costs, and then assist with funding the project, often with repayment made over an agreed period out of monthly energy savings.

For companies committed to saving energy, it’s a win-win situation. And the savings are impressive. Take, for example, the experience of leisure trusts which have focused on cutting energy bills at local swimming facilities. Motors that drive pumps and fans within swimming pools would normally run flat-out 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. What a waste. All that's needed is to install variable speed drives so the motors can be slowed down and speeded up according to demand. In this situation, a 20% speed reduction will give a 50% reduction in energy.

Now think about that in terms of your own working environment. Do you have ventilation systems that pump all night? Do you have machinery working at maximum capacity when less would do? Is daily office life costing you a fortune in lighting, heating, or just equipment permanently on standby? The starting point for any successful cost-saving plan is to determine just where energy can be saved.

Cutting your fuel bills and reducing carbon emissions makes sense for all of us. It helps the planet and it helps our pockets. Let's take responsibility and reap the benefits.

Powermaster is a Wakefield-based company that works to integrate energy-efficiency into the economic fabric of our society. For energy audits, or information about FundEnergy, our interest-free program to help fund energy-saving projects, please visit www.power-master.co.uk or www.fundenergy.co.uk

We live in a technology-dependent environment. Whether it is to write letters, create invoices, check email or actually manage the business, virtually every company is now dependent on a computer, irrespective of its size. Unfortunately, due to the misconception that technology is an expensive upfront cost and long-term investment, it is still considered a ‘nice to have' rather than a ‘must have' by many small businesses.

While implementing new technology and software solutions might seem like an overwhelming task, moving away from the paper trail to an electronic system delivers massive benefits to small businesses. In their simplest form, computers and software should enable you to be more efficient either by doing more or having reduced costs.

Business software should, as its aim, improve the interaction between your business, suppliers and customers. It should provide meaningful information enabling sensible decisions to be made and also to easily give data as required by regulations. Most importantly, it will free up your time, allowing you to focus on the things that matter most to your company.

Usually, standard business software is easy to use and simple to purchase. There's an array of products on the market and the increasing availability of software as a service (SaaS) means business owners and IT managers now have the opportunity to install software directly from the internet. A good software product will automate as many business processes as possible and will pay for itself in a matter of weeks.

Given that most employees know the basics of Microsoft Office, finding software that has the same look and feel will go a long way to ensure that the features are actually used and that training costs are kept to a minimum. With SaaS, more small businesses will have the opportunity to work remotely, create tailor-made applications and have more control over who, when and where people access data.

Do not allow stereotypes about the cost of IT to become an obstacle to the growth of your business. Take the time to find the right solution for your business and use it to drive your business forward. Keep IT simple and take package solutions than can be integrated where necessary, leaving you and your staff to focus on developing your company and standing out from your competitors.

For more information, visit www.mamut.co.uk

Today companies are continually looking into cost savings and this should be considered best practice and a positive step towards running an efficient business. Cost savings can be achieved in a variety of areas but this process can take up a great deal of time and energy and change management.

One area for reducing cost savings could be postage. After a 350-year monopoly, the liberalisation of the postal market has opened up opportunities for alternative operators to collect and sort mail. Royal Mail then simply performs the ‘final mile' delivery through the letterbox.

Over 40% of direct mail (DM) expenditure goes toward postage (DMIS, 2005). There's no logic in developing a highly efficient and targeted DM campaign if you then make do with a less-than-efficient means of distributing it.

Saving money on postage is a relatively simple concept. The product does not change with a change of provider. Costs are reduced, and on many occasions service levels are also improved. With a downstream access solution, there are clear benefits over Royal Mail's Mailsort 2 and 3 products. Mailsort 2 offers delivery ‘within 3 days', Mailsort 3 ‘within 7 days', downstream access means a 48 hour delivery.

Onepost was established in 2005 as a response to this very opportunity. Our unique software solution holds up-to-date pricing and routing information for all licensed operators and quite simply analyses postcode data to identify the ‘best solution'. We do not ask our clients to sign contracts, which means they can choose when to work with us to maximise the benefits of the liberalised marketplace by identifying the ‘best solution' for the profile and time of each mailing.

Simplicity and minimal disruption/risk are key for companies looking to achieve the greatest cost savings in the shortest time. We believe this starts with postage.

For more information visit www.onepost.co.uk