Use the apps you're already paying for

Here's a question I ask every business before suggesting they spend a cent on new software: what are you already paying for that you're not using?

When we upgraded my mum's business to Microsoft 365, the goal was just to stop Outlook crashing. But 365 isn't only email — it quietly comes with a whole toolbox: shared file storage, video calls, forms, task boards, even automation. She was already paying for all of it and barely touching any of it.

Most small businesses don't need more apps. They need to use the ones they've already got.

So before reaching for anything new, we took stock: what's already in the subscription, what could replace a manual habit, and what's genuinely missing. A surprising amount of 'we need a tool for that' turned into 'we already have a tool for that.'

New software is exciting. But every new app is another login, another bill, another thing to learn. The cheapest, fastest win is almost always hiding inside something you already own.

Audit before you buy.