Some of the highest prices before the cost of living crisis…
When it comes to the cost of living, Ireland is reckoned to be more expensive than 95% of countries in the world. It is also calculated that across the 27-member European Union, prices in Ireland are jointly the highest, alongside Denmark.
The deepening cost of living crisis and the uncertainty as to where things might bottom out, when the situation may begin to stabilise and we see costs come down, continue to dominate the conversation.
Prices in Ireland are 40 percent higher than the average across the European Union. When compared with the UK, shoppers in Ireland are paying up to 70% more than they would in the UK for some goods, according to a ‘Sunday Times’ survey.
This is heightening fears that the social and economic impact felt across Ireland may be more severe than that experienced by other similarly developed economies.
Consumers we may all well be, but many of us are also involved in running businesses. More than three-quarters of businesses in Ireland plan to increase prices this year as companies are unable to absorb increased costs, including those for energy and labour.
A survey carried out by professional services firm Grant Thornton for its latest International Business Report found that 77% of businesses in Ireland plan to increase prices in the next 12 months.
Many have held off, in the hope that the initial round of sharp cost increases would quickly stabilise and then we’d see a return to more normal prices. However, with the crisis now deeply entrenched, that position is untenable.
But what to do next? Simply following the inflationary merry-go-round is no cure; a bit like poker where you keep raising the stakes to stay in the game, eventually, the money runs out!
The bottom line about the bottom line… cut costs!
The short answer is that businesses need to cut costs. If you’ve heard this all before, this has been an enduring business mantra since the 2008 credit crunch and the ensuing Great Recession. Business leaders may feel that there is little left to be found by way of cost savings.
That said, it is still well worth conducting a cost review across your operations. To help you identify specific areas of focus where money can be saved, our white paper, ‘7 Smart Ideas to Uncover Cost Saving Efficiencies in Your Business’, helps provide some ideas that may help you to uncover further cost savings in your business. In the paper, we discuss areas such as:
- Cost reductions related to business technology, hardware and software
- Exploiting hybrid working and a no-bricks business model
- Outsourcing and renegotiating specialist skills and professional services
Cut business telephone costs and more too with Goldfish
Goldfish’s VoIP business services help you cut your costs. Whether you are already using VoIP or have yet to move over from legacy copper lines and a PBX telephone system, switching to Goldfish provides an opportunity to cut your fixed costs almost immediately.
If you want to get started right away with Goldfish, simply sign up here and we’ll get the wheels moving. If you’d like some proof first and want to find out how much you save with Goldfish, simply contact us today on 01 554 7888 with your most recent bills for your telephone system, lines and calls. We’ll be only too happy to do a like-for-like comparison to actually show you how much you reduce your costs.
