It sounds contradictory to say that splurges for a small business can be justified. Aren’t luxury purchases at the top of the “no” list? The truth is, every small business needs a little luxury or tasks will get boring and employees will lose motivation.
Splurges For Small Businesses
To keep your business out of a rut, here’s a list of 6 splurges for small businesses:
1. Branding
Small businesses struggle to be known within the sea of competition. If that sounds familiar, branding can help you stand out. However, don’t think of branding as a logo and a name. Branding also includes how you operate, including your customer interactions and your business reputation.
For most businesses, branding can wait. If you’ve established yourself in the market and are experiencing moderate success, branding can take you to the next level.
2. High-end Laptops (or desktops) for Employees
Before starting your business, you probably worked for at least one company that provided you with a laptop that barely functioned. Most business owners don’t have time to thoroughly research every computer model before deciding what to buy. When they’ve got fifty employees to equip with a computer, a $400 model looks like a good deal.
Many of today’s laptops aren’t built with quality components like they used to be. It’s no secret that laptops are designed to die. It’s called planned obsolescence. Computer components are so cheap, companies can get away with producing low-quality machines that break every 2 years because they only cost a couple hundred bucks to replace.
Don’t make your employees suffer with malfunctioning or slow laptops. When employees struggle to use basic tools, they’re not as productive as they could be, which means your business suffers. You don’t need to buy top-of-the-line loaded Macbook Pros, but you should consider investing in high-quality laptops.
3. High-quality Air Filtration
Filtered air has become a luxury due to the high amount of toxins and chemicals circulating around. Indoor air pollution can be up to ten times worse than outdoor air pollution. Unlike open spaces, contained areas collect pollutants and those pollutants get recirculated.
The chemicals you and your team members are breathing in cause harm to the body in many ways. For example, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are essentially the soot created when burning wood and cooking, and it’s also found in exhaust. PAHs damage the lungs and heart and cause oxidative stress to the skin.
The best thing you can do for your staff is get the highest quality, high MERV rated filter for the central HVAC unit, and supplement targeted areas with free standing air filtration units. The best places to put freestanding filtration units would be in areas that don’t get much air circulation, rooms without operable windows, and areas that seem to swirl dust around.
4. High-end Coffee Makers
Next to the refrigerator, the most important appliance in your office kitchen is the coffee maker. You probably noticed this item says “high end coffee makers” in the plural. That’s because one coffee maker isn’t enough.
Not all of your employees will be coffee drinkers, but the ones who are won’t survive without access to coffee throughout the day. With one coffee maker, everyone is subject to one person’s coffee-making skills, which may not be acceptable to the picker folks.
Two coffee makers ensure that if the first pot is too weak, they don’t have to dump it out or wait to brew a stronger pot of coffee. Or, those who drink decaf can brew a cup without having to wait for everyone else to finish the pot.
5. A Comfortable Couch for the Break Room
Your employees are your biggest assets. They deserve to feel comfortable on their breaks. Splurge on the most comfortable couch you can find. Your team will be grateful.
6. Pneumatic Desks for Standing and Sitting
Standing desks are promoted as a way to combat the ill effects of sitting for too long, but they’ve also been proven to increase productivity. The irony is, standing for too long can also have a detrimental effect on health. The optimal way to work is a combination of sitting and standing throughout the day.
Instead of investing in manually adjustable standing desks, provide employees with a pneumatic desk that can be adjusted to any height for standing or sitting.
Be careful not to go too far with luxuries
While many luxuries can double as business necessities, don’t go too far. For example, you don’t need to decorate the office with the original works of Picasso. If a luxury item won’t contribute to the efficiency of your team, like the 6 splurges for small businesses above do, it’s probably not a smart buy.
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