When revenue drops, the instinct is to cut whatever is easiest to stop paying for, which is usually marketing, training and anything improving the product. Those are the cuts that convert a slow quarter into a declining business, because they reduce future revenue to protect current cash. The cuts that work are the ones that do not touch what brings customers in.
Work through them in this order.
Fix collection before cutting anything
Most small businesses under pressure are owed money. Chasing overdue invoices, tightening payment terms and taking deposits produces cash without reducing anything the business does.
Track the average days customers take to pay every week. Reducing that number is the fastest cash improvement available and costs nothing but persistence.
Cut what does not bring customers or deliver the product
Subscriptions nobody opens, unused space, duplicated software, low-value stock sitting on shelves, and services renewed out of habit. Audit every recurring payment and ask what stops if it ends.
Renegotiate before cancelling. Suppliers and landlords generally prefer a reduced rate to losing you entirely, and many will agree to a temporary adjustment if asked before you fall behind.
Protect marketing and quality
Stopping marketing reduces enquiries in a few months, which arrives exactly when you need them most. If the budget must fall, shift it towards the cheapest channels that convert rather than stopping.
The free ones do real work: a complete local business listing with reviews, and email to customers who already gave you their address. Cutting quality is worse still, because the customers you lose to it do not come back when conditions improve.
Handle staff decisions properly if it comes to that
Reduced hours, deferred increases or short time may be preferable to retrenchment for everyone, but any change to terms requires agreement rather than imposition.
Retrenchment for operational reasons carries consultation requirements that must be completed before a decision is final, set out by the Department of Employment and Labour. Free business support including turnaround advice is available through the Small Enterprise Development and Finance Agency.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do before cutting costs?
Collect what you are owed. Chasing overdue invoices and tightening terms produces cash without reducing what the business does.
What should be cut first?
Unused subscriptions, excess space, duplicated software and slow-moving stock. Renegotiate before cancelling.
Why not cut marketing?
Because enquiries fall a few months later, arriving exactly when you need them most. Shift spend to cheaper converting channels instead.
What are the cheapest marketing options?
A complete local business listing with reviews, and email to customers who already gave you their details.
What applies if staff changes are needed?
Changes to terms require agreement, and retrenchment carries consultation obligations that must be completed before any decision is final.
Further reading
Originally published in December 2018. Updated September 2026 into guidance on what to cut and what to protect when revenue falls.
