As a startup or a small business, the costs of having a physical office can be too much. You have to rent a place, buy furniture, pay bills, pay for electronics, hire a receptionist, and sometimes, get kitchen supplies!
Small businesses are much better off saving all this cash for something more valuable, like hiring better-qualified employees. So, how can you save money?
The answer is by using a Virtual Office.
What is a Virtual Office?
A Virtual Office is the modern solution to the startup office problem. It is a collaborative work environment that provides you with a professional address and complete access to a physical office’s benefits without having a traditional office.
This virtual environment means you get your desired professional image without expenses. In addition, they allow employees to work wherever they want; this cuts down on commute time (or eliminates it), increases productivity, cuts down on costs such as technology and overhead costs, and produces a lower turnover rate.
A virtual office benefits everyone involved, and it just makes life easier. Sure, having a traditional office looks appealing. Still, the benefits of a virtual office make it an excellent choice for small businesses and startups still struggling to find their place in today’s super-competitive market.
What Are the Benefits of Virtual Offices?
1- Corporate Mailing Address
One of the main benefits of a physical office is having a mailing address, but you can still have that with a virtual office.
You will still have a physical business address for your correspondence, and most virtual office companies also offer mail collection and forwarding.
2- Add Legitimacy
Virtual offices’ main benefits are that they add legitimacy to your business.
While it’s true that home-based businesses are becoming more and more acceptable, and virtual businesses are a thing now, some old-fashioned individuals still trust a business with a traditional office more.
Having the physical address with the virtual office adds a layer of legitimacy since your clients will be privy to a professional location and not one of home.
3- Robust Phone Services
A traditional office has the benefits of having a phone number, fax services, and a professional receptionist answering the phone. Still, again, you don’t have to sacrifice any of that with a virtual office.
You can still have a local business phone number, fax, voicemail, and even a professional receptionist to do all the call answering and handling you need to be done – just like a physical office.
4- Expand Your Presence in Other Locations
Without a doubt, a virtual office address is just what you need when you want to expand your reach without spending much. For example, you might be located in New York but desire to provide services to California and Florida residents. The solution? Virtual offices!
By purchasing virtual offices in various locations, you stamp your commercial presence and win more customers without setting up any physical business center.
This is most beneficial to businesses that offer digital services without distance limitations. And knowing that most customers prefer looking for services that operate in certain areas, you want to be where the
5- Get the Services You Need Instantly
When you get a traditional office, managing the space is a never-ending struggle. Then, as your business expands, you must do your best to find rooms for new employees, meeting rooms, a receptionist, and maybe even new teams altogether.
This doesn’t happen with a virtual office since you can always get what you want with a click of a button, like PA services, phone call management, meeting rooms, and more.
6- Customized Voice Mail Boxes
Not only can you get voicemail, but you can get various customized voicemail boxes with individual pre-recorded introductions. This can help the company improve its interactions with its consumers, even during off-hours.
7- Save Tons of Money
As mentioned in the introduction, having a physical office is not cheap. You must lease or buy a commercial space or pay rent for utilities, equipment, furniture, and technology. You must also pay for insurance and live with the threat of natural disasters and break-ins.
Having a virtual office cuts those costs to a minimum. Isn’t this one of the best ways to save some cash? I thought so, too! Can’t this cash be better spent on something else?
8- Better Work-Life Balance for Employees
Virtual office services offer business owners and managers significant benefits, but it provides employees even more.
No longer working hours in the office environment means much less stress for your employees. Also, since your employees will transition from work to social and family life more quickly, they will have more time to spend with their friends.
9- Save Time
Working from home comes with some benefits for both the employer and the employee!
Working from home means not spending hours on the train or on busy roads. It also means not having to pay for commuting. Many employees are now looking to work from home and will be happy to take a lower salary or get paid by the hour in exchange for the convenience of working from the comfort of their homes. It’s a win-win situation if you think about it.
10- Privacy for Home-Based Entrepreneurs
If you are a home-based entrepreneur, you might be concerned about displaying your home address on your website. Unfortunately, in addition to hurting your credibility, this opens you up to criminal or cyber-attacks.
Consider subscribing to a virtual office rather than renting a physical or shared office space you do not need. This keeps your home address away from the public.
11- Unmatched Flexibility
Speaking of perks and benefits, what about the unparalleled flexibility that a virtual office offers?
Employees will be able to get their work done when it’s best suitable for both of you. For example, they can be available during crucial times, work a certain number of hours, or choose when to work.
Closed offices and fixed hours are not for everyone. A Virtual office makes it possible to work from anywhere at any time, which means they can work while waiting for the kids to return from school, work while traveling, work from a co-workspace, or work from a café.
Choosing where and when to work makes life just so much easier.
12- More Productivity
Your employees no longer have to work while tired because they didn’t sleep enough or suffered terrible traffic on the way to work. Instead, they can accomplish this when they’re ready to work, which means you will see a higher level of productivity and a leap in the quality of the work produced.
Virtual office space can also increase productivity by saving time on commuting and unnecessary chatter.
13- Get More Employees at Any Time
Your business is growing, and you need to hire more employees. Unfortunately, you are trapped between two choices: Everyone gets cramped in the office, or you move to a new office space, which means a considerable cost.
This scenario doesn’t happen with a virtual office as many employees can work. You are not limited to office space or location. You can add employees to your company whenever you need it without going through hoops.
14- Don’t Forget About the Environment
Let’s face it. Physical workspaces are not very kind to the environment. Your commute to work, using a car, bus, train, or taxi, means you are just adding to the carbon footprint (if you’re commuting via bike, then good for you! It sure is more excellent to bike to places other than work, though)
You are using paper, and we know you are ordering fast food at least a couple of times a month at work because you couldn’t find time to prepare a healthy meal or even forgot to take it to work.
Virtual offices are much kinder to the environment, which could be a high selling point that can appeal to investors and customers alike.
Saving money while benefiting the environment has never been easier!
15- Get the Talent You Need
You need someone with a particular set of skills to make him a dream for a business like yours (yes, I’m paraphrasing the famous quote from TAKEN), but this person lives a city apart? You will have to pay for accommodation or offer some very seductive benefits to convince him to move to your town. But, of course, that is if you are using physical office space.
On the other hand, it doesn’t matter where the talent you need lives if you’re using virtual office space. Do they live an hour away? Does he live in another city? Another country? On the other side of the world? It doesn’t matter, and you can still hire him.
This is also great for employees who need to work with individual companies but can’t afford to move to a new city or country. If this business uses virtual office space, they can still work from home.
Final words
Of course, some operational costs are necessary for every business, but if working in a traditional office space doesn’t improve your efficiency, there’s no reason to spend on it.
Innovative, cost-effective solutions like virtual offices are designed to help you save costs and become more productive. So why waste time and money setting up offices and furnishing them?
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