According to SpiceWorks, companies planned to spend 44% of their IT budget on hardware alone this year. Now that we’ve officially entered the second half of 2014, those dollars may have already been spent or the cut off is looming, but there’s no need to worry. There are ways to stretch your
IT budget further and get the most bang for your buck. We’ve come up with four tips to maximize your IT Hardware Budget:
- Buy refurbished hardware
Buying refurbished can help save your IT budget. Instead of turning old electronics into e-waste, products go through rigorous processes and inspections in order to return them to conditions that meet or exceed the manufacturer’s standards. By choosing refurbished, you can get high quality products at a lower cost; with the best price to performance ratio. Not only are you still receiving high quality products, but they almost always come with a standard warranty. Deal Newsstates that customers can typically save between 10% and 30% on refurbished goods, but sometimes electronics are discounted by as much as 50%. A bonus? Buying refurbished is the greener option.
- Repurpose parts
Give your old IT equipment new life! There are plenty of ways to repurpose old hardware. HP alone has recovered for reuse or recycling 2.8 billion pounds of computer hardware and supplies. Say you need a computer to test and tinker on or to serve and store files, or maybe simpler tasks like playing music in the warehouse. Instead of buying a new computer, you can use an old one that’s sitting in the corner collecting dust. Another viable option for that old computer sitting around could be to scrap it for parts and build a new machine or server.
- Sell old equipment
By selling old equipment, you can help build funds for future IT purchases. There is a huge market for used and refurbished hardware. Here at ServerMonkey, we purchase old equipment for renewed use through our Buy Back Program. Selling your obsolete equipment can help maximize the return on the initial cost of the equipment while decreasing the total cost of ownership. According to the IDC, the market for used equipment in the U.S. is about $70 billion.
- Buy online
Choosing to purchase IT equipment online can help you save instead of splurge. You can save time and gas money instead of driving store to store looking for the IT equipment you need by choosing to shop online. Online stores are consistently offering lower price tags than traditional brick and mortar stores. According to about.com, many companies online provide excellent values because they do not have to pay the overhead of owning a physical business. Also, if you’re lucky, you can find promo codes to apply when checking out and save additional money on shipping or the overall price. According to about.com, with online shopping, you have the ability to compare prices from hundreds of different vendors.
There are plenty of ways to maximize your IT hardware budget. The key is to do your research and look to different avenues that offer the best options to save.
Let us know how you successfully balance your IT budget in the comments!