For smaller businesses, start-ups and everything in between, renting a serviced office space can be a great way of establishing your reputation and upholding a professional image while helping to cut the costs of basing your business in a prime location.
As Cerys Ashley, an HR Consultant and owner of Ashley HR, says:
“There are many benefits to businesses in having serviced office space. Not only does it provide a professional work environment, but it also gives the right impression to customers, which gives your business credibility.
From a staff perspective, having a space to lay out the business’ equipment and resources allows staff to work efficiently which increases productivity. It also provides an environment which encourages team working that engages staff and motivates them to perform to the best of their abilities.”
Hannah Williams, Owner of YourVA is also in favour of the serviced office concept.
“Serviced offices are a great option if you’re looking to have a client facing, professional image, but without the huge overheads and century long contracts!”
Emma from Brayford Numbers explained how SMEs using serviced offices could benefit from Virtual Phone numbers:
“For dispersed teams, or teams that have people on the road or working from home a real challenge can be ensuring that phones are always answered and that a professional first impression is made. Using a virtual phone number means you can have your local number picked up by anyone anywhere. You can even have all the phones in a hunt group ring at once so that the first person available answers the call.”
Want to know just how serviced offices can help you? Keep reading for the top 5 ways a serviced office can boost your business…“You get your own professional business address in a prime location”
As a sole trader, it can be tempting to cut the costs of renting by simply working from home. However, one of the many advantages of renting serviced offices is that they enable your business to be tied to its own physical address.
This not only provides your business with a more professional image, enabling you to ‘hold your own’ against more established competitors, but it can also help instil a sense of trust in prospective clients.
So, while it may initially seem costly to rent your own serviced office space, it eliminates the possibility of your company losing business because potential customers can’t be entirely sure of your credibility.
Additionally, having a professional serviced office in a prime location (such as Cardiff, Bristol, Newport, Swindon or another fast-growing UK city) also provides great transport links and makes your business easy to find by visitors.
You will also have the advantage of only being just a stone’s throw away from other businesses, which gives you the chance to network, build relationships and even explore the possibility of partnerships. Plus, there’s always the convenience of being located close to everything you need!
It helps to separate your work from your home life
Working from home may be convenient and enable you to cut down on travel costs, but it could make your work and home life become one big blur. Although this may seem advantageous at first, allowing you to get more done in the day, always being in a state of work can quickly lead to stress that can be hard to ignore.
No one should work 24/7, no matter how much they may love their job. Even if you’re the only person working from your serviced office on a regular basis, it’ll still allow you to set clear boundaries between when you’re in ‘work mode’ and when you focus on yourself and family time.
Just don’t forget to switch off your email notifications and work telephone when you leave the office at the end of each day!
It provides a professional meeting space for clients and visitors
If you are hoping to grow your business by expanding your team, a serviced office also provides a great space for you to conduct interviews, as well as hold meetings with clients and business associates.
Again, having your own serviced office will help to boost your company’s credibility and project a more professional, trustworthy image, and this may make all the difference between closing a deal or losing business. Having your own office space for meetings also offers complete privacy- something you just can’t guarantee from holding it in your local coffee shop or café.
If you’re strapped for time, a private meeting in your own office space ensures you avoid queues and other unnecessary (yet often unavoidable) interruptions from other customers. With a serviced office, you can also ensure any visitors are appropriately greeted and attended to by the on-site receptionist and have a comfortable place to wait for you to arrive.
You can receive support from others in the building
One of the best things about having your own serviced office in a shared building is the ability to create a great support network. Need someone to sign for a parcel you’ve ordered? Run out of paper, staples, milk or any other supplies that are needed instantly? If your business is renting alongside other office, then there will usually be someone in the building to help with these problems.
Serviced office spaces will also have access to an IT professional who will be on hand to help with any technical issues, such as your computer not working or your internet going down. This not only ensures the problem is fixed as quickly as possible, but you will avoid incurring additional charges by calling in an external IT consultant.
If you work on your own or in a very small team, it’s perfectly normal to feel a little isolated from time to time. However, if your business rents a serviced office in a large and busy building, there’s always going to be someone around. This means there’s always a good chance of running into someone new for a quick chat when you grab a cuppa from the kitchen or supplies from the reception area!” There’s always someone to take care of the mail and call handling”
Last but not least, serviced offices can be a great way of improving your company’s basic organisation.
As serviced offices will have a dedicated receptionist already serving the building, you can arrange for any parcels and letters to be delivered to your work address with complete peace of mind that they’ll be received and signed for.
As well as providing a safe and secure place for your mail to be delivered to, the receptionist will also be responsible for greeting any visitors and handling calls to your office when your guests have arrived. This gives you some extra time to prepare for those important meetings, ensuring nothing is forgotten.
