Having the correct pieces of equipment, whether that be machinery, software, or even office furniture, within your business is certainly can increase productivity (and therefore profits). This is why it is so important to take the time to think about every purchase you make for your business. Not only is it going to cost money that you don’t want to waste or lose, but you need to determine whether or not the purchase is going to add value to what you are doing. Answering both the budget question and the value question will give you the answers you are looking for.
This might lead you to think about buying used equipment. Rather than being a last resort, buying used can actually boost your business both financially and ethically, giving your customers a better idea of who you are and why they should buy from you. If you think that buying used might be the best way in which you can improve your business, here are some tips.
Assess Your Business Situation
Before buying anything, new or used, you need to take an objective look at where your business is. You should look at your goals and where you are now, and be entirely honest about whatever situation you find when you look more deeply.
The reason for doing this is to ensure that you are buying items that will help you. You need to know that it will:
- Increase productivity
- Make work easier for you and/or your employees
- Boost your business profile
- Put you ahead of the competition
- Fit within your budget
It might be that the item you want to buy can easily do all of that. The balers at recyclingbalers.com are a prime example. Then there will be other items that only fit some of the criteria above. At this point, you will need to make an important judgement call about what is most important to you and your business.
Get A Second Opinion
Being a business owner can be a lonely position to be in. You are the one who has to make the final decisions and sign off on ideas, whether you have a big team working for you or you are working alone. When it comes to knowing whether you are buying the right used equipment, or even if you should be buying anything at all, it can often be useful to speak to someone about your ideas and lay out your reasons to them.
Simply saying the ideas aloud and talking through each option may be enough to help you to cement the final decision in your mind. If not, have a discussion with the person you trust to help you decide about what you want to achieve, and how each item you are considering buying will help you get where you want to be.
Speak To Different Suppliers
It’s far more likely you’ll know what piece of used equipment you are going to want before you know where you want to buy it from. This is useful since it means you can then speak to a range of different suppliers and find out more information from each of them in order to help you make your buying decision.
Although it may not seem very ‘business-like’, most people do buy from people they like, so this is a consideration – do you like the person who you are intending to buy from? You will definitely need to ask about is the warranty or guarantee. This is important on a new piece of equipment, but when you are buying used it is even more crucial. What would happen if there was a problem?
