Workspace comes in every imaginable shape and size these days. With options spanning everything from virtual offices to a standard commercial lease, it can be tricky to know what type of workspace would work best for your business. If you’re in need of a little guidance, these three workspace options will help you find the ideal office space for your needs.
Leased Office
If you’re running a fully-fledged business, you may have unique space and facilities requirements that a standard serviced office can’t provide. You should start your commercial property search if you like the sound of creating your own workspace from scratch. With your own lease, you get to decide how the space should be used, which is useful if your team works best with an unconventional office layout. If you believe that the typically unbranded space that characterises coworking spaces will hold you back, getting your own lease on a commercial property means you can display your brand where and when you please. Leased workspace is a fantastic choice if your business is stable enough to allow you to sign a long-term lease, and you’re happy to do the work of arranging your own IT infrastructure. You’ll also need to take care of things like cleaning, maintenance, and office security.
Virtual Office
In essence, a virtual office lets you work from home while pretending to have an office in a sought-after business location. A great choice for startups and freelancers, you get many of the outward effects of an established business, without having to leave your living room. You get a professional-sounding work address, thanks to mail handling services that will forward you the correspondence your business receives. You can also include phone answering, which means people can phone a landline, which is answered by an external company who will pose as your administrative team. They then forward the call to your mobile. So from the point of view of most of your customers, you’ll seem to have all the bells and whistles of a seriously professional outfit. This can help you get a foot in the door in those early stages, when credibility is everything.
Coworking
Nowadays, the traditional ‘nine to five’ is only one choice among many when it comes to starting and ending the workday. As flexible or unusual working hours become normalised, many people are flocking to coworking spaces that offer 24/7 access as standard. With your membership (which will usually be flexible and fairly cost-effective) you generally have all your essentials covered, like wifi access, maintenance, security and cleaning. Optional add-ons like call answering and mail handling offer that extra bit of professionalism and time-saving potential, if that’s what your business needs. The coworking demographic is fairly young and motivated, making the coworking environment generally quite competitive. This works for some companies and not others. Startups tend to thrive in this collaborative environment, but if your business would function better in a distraction-free space, coworking may not be for you.
Whether you’re a small-scale startup or an established company, this list will help you find the right workspace for your business.
