moving

Expert’s Guide To Painless Business Relocation

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Moving your business to a new office is a strange mix of daunting and exciting. The grass may seem greener on the other side of the fence and indeed, relocation can offer many benefits. On the other hand, it can also have a severe disruptive influence on your operations, clients, employees,and finances.

To maximize the positives and minimize the negatives, you have to plan and schedule activities ahead of time. So, embrace a systematic,proactive, and efficient approach. Get ready to organize everything from the nitty-gritty to the smallest detail. Here are some tips that should help you get on top of tasks and finish relocating with flying colors.

Formulating a game plan

Meticulous planning and preparation hold the key to a successful relocation.  Most often,businesses kick off this process several months up to a year in advance. They start by identifying all tasks and setting a time frame for them. In other words, one of the first steps is to put together a detailed checklist for the new office. Before you can do that, though, you need to take several tours.While at it, pay special attention to key aspects such as technology, furniture, utilities, connectivity, and office equipment. You must have all the essential elements of a productive work space in place and make them fall together seamlessly.

Mind the size and layout of the new space

The crucial thing is to look beyond your present needs and factor in how your business will grow and evolve in years to come. Office size and layout are the crucial aspects you need to grasp here. Modern businesses usually aim for a multi-functional space geared toward a dynamic workforce and flexible work styles. In recent years, an open floor plan is all the rage andit does have some great advantages. But, you need to do what makes the most sense for you, not what is trendy. It is also necessary to take care of some basics and designate the main areas. We are talking about the lobby,meeting/conference rooms, workstations, the front desk, private booths,chill-out zone, etc.

Doing packing the smart way

Packing is always one of the most dreaded aspects of moving. There are many ways to go about it, but one thing is certain. You must work out a system and prevent the chaos from ensuing.Double-check the inventory and confirm that you have enough storage units. Color-code your documents and label the boxes. Furthermore, take this chance to do some de-cluttering. There is really no need to bring excess belongings to your new office. That would only require additional resources and storage space. Thus,do not hesitate to purge everything that serves no clear purpose other than collecting dust.

Rally the troops

It pays off to actively involve your team members right from the get-go. To do it right, set clear roles and responsibilities and delegate as much as you can. At the same time, you should note that your equipment,furniture, and other belongings might need to be handled professionally. This especially goes for packing and transportation. Australian businesses, for instance, tend to hire local removalists in Sydney and other major cities, since expensive office equipment requires delicate handling, from packing,transporting to disassembling and assembling furniture and disconnecting and reconnecting appliances. Conduct a research and try to get the best relocation quote you can.  Make sure everything reaches the destination on time and intact.

Getting over a rough patch

One of the main overarching priorities is to mitigate the negative impact on your profit margins. Namely, you cannot afford to lose business to your competition because of the relocation. Notify all relevant parties, including your customers, stakeholders, and clients and explain how your services or communication will change during the relocation. Along the similar lines, see to it that your online information (especially on your website and social media profiles) is up to date. Do not overlook your traditional marketing tools like business cards and flyers. Spread the word out across all touch points so that no one is left in the dark.

Changing your base of operations can set you up nicely for growth. But, there is one problem: planning and executing a smooth move is no walk in the park. There are so many different things to keep a close eye on. So,come up with a solid plan that will allow you to stay in control during the whole process. You cannot go wrong following tried-and-tested steps presented above. Just do not try to do everything yourself. Summon professionals to your aid in order to avoid stress, delays, and headaches. Get back up running as soon as possible and open a brave new chapter of success.

Tracey Clayton is a working mom of three girls, passionate about traveling, marketing and everything tech related. Her motto is: “Live the life you love; love the life you live.”

Things to Consider Before Relocating Your Company

/ nancyrubin

Moving is always hard, whether you have to relocate your home or your business, and there are so many factors you need to take into consideration. If you don’t do it right, you might face potential less when it comes to your customers, business partners or even your employees. However, there’s a way to avoid all of that,make the move smooth and continue working the same day you finish the move. In order to achieve that, you need to be organized and prepare everything in advance. That will help you spend as little time possible on the actual move and help you focus on what’s truly important – doing your job.

Do Market Research

In order to find the perfect space for your new office, you’ll have to do a thorough market research and discover the best areas. That means you have to see where the biggest companies are settled at the moment and find your spot there. Also, try to get closer to the companies you work with, because that will make organizing your meetings much easier.

On the other hand, you can move to a neighborhood where there’s no company like yours, and thus became a true leader. This will give you an opportunity to establish a new market and make your own rules, which is something many businesses are good at. You can be a leader if you research all of your options and offer something new to the clients in the area you choose.

Location Matters

The word “location” has different meanings for different businesses location, but they all have one thing in common – staying close to their clients. If your office is far from your clients, they might realize that they don’t like the commute and could eventually stop doing business with you after a while.

This will also prevent you from getting new clients –you may have the best office in the world, but if it’s far from your potential clients, they won’t have time for meeting with you. Think about the location of your competitors and try to find a space somewhere close. That will allow you to be in the center of the happenings, and bring you closer to new business opportunities.

Organize your new office

Before you start moving all your belongings, think about preparing the space and making it ready. Start by painting one wall at the time and making them look more appealing, but be sure to pick the color that’s going to suit everyone. Fix everything before you bring in the furniture because it’s always easier to work with empty space, and you’ll be able to see what needs to be fixed.

Apart from that,find a company that will help you set up an electricity connection and make everything work before you move into your new office. This is crucial because you’ll have to power all your equipment from day one, so make sure you organize this in advance.

Cost issues

Find a real estate agent who works with office spaces, can negotiate a good deal for you and make sure you get the best space on the market. Although this sounds like an expense you don’t need, think of it as an investment in the future of your company because you don’t want to move again after a while just because it turns out that the new space isn’t working for you.

When it comes to your employees, they will have to balance doing their jobs and helping you with the move. You’ll have to give them bonuses, because this is definitely not what they’ve initially signed for, so make it worth their while.

Find a Moving Company

No matter how small your business is, you won’t be able to move everything on your own. With all the computers, chairs, desks and other furniture, it’s always better to leave it to professionals instead of trying to do it on your own.By doing this, you’ll avoid accidents that could damage your sensitive equipment and thus ruin your moving budget.

Organize everything and ask your moving company to pack your entire office and label all the boxes just to make the unpacking process easier. That will allow you to let your employees unpack their personal belongings on their own, and this will fasten the entire process.

Although the moving process can be stressful and exhausting, you can organize everything in advance and it easier. Include your employees but show them that you appreciate their help and they’ll be happy to help you. Think about all the steps you need to take after the relocation and don’t waste your time in the new office. By continuing where you’ve left things off in your previous office, you’ll be able to get back on the right track and immediately start making new deals.

Emma B. Joyce is a blogger based in Australia. She is a true home decor and DIY fanatic. Emma is interested in music and also is a big reading enthusiast. Finding new designs and patterns is her daily task. She is a regular contributor on https://smoothdecorator.com.

5 Tips for Staying Productive While Relocating a Small Business

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Relocating your business, no matter how big or small, can be a somewhat tricky endeavor. If you fail to organize all of your business tasks properly during the relocation period, your business is bound to experience some downtime which may have some serious consequences later on. What’s more, your employees will be affected by the move as well, which can seriously compromise their productivity and motivation. That’s why you, as the business owner, need to make sure you do all that’s in your power to make the move go as seamless and as stress-free as possible.

Here are some ways you can achieve that and make both your business and your employees stay productive during the move.

Time it right

While timing the move precisely is not quite possible, you can at least try to minimize the gap between moving out of your old office and moving into the new one. Also, make sure you completely set up the new office before the start date, to enable your employees to start working again as soon as possible – preferably as soon as they enter the new office space. Timing the move during the holiday season is possibly the best way to go, especially if your business practices collective vacation or annual shutdown.

Shift your offer to the online realm

If you haven’t done it so far, make sure you shift your offer to the online world during the move. By making your products or services available to your customers online during the move, not only will you seriously reduce the downtime your business is bound to experience, but it will also help your business to grow in the long run. However, it’s advisable to start working on your online business endeavors well-before the move, as it can be somewhat overwhelming.

Support working from home

Picture this scenario: your employees are sitting at their desks trying to focus and complete the task at hand while the movers are trying to pack the office furniture and equipment and relocate it to your new office space. To avoid this scenario, encourage your employees to work from their homes until the new office space is set up. This way, they will have the freedom to create ideal working conditions for themselves in the comfort of their own homes instead of having to struggle to stay productive in the office. Besides, every business-related task that can be taken care of remotely – should be, as that’s another great way to reduce downtime.

Make the move fun

Team building is everyone’s favorite office activity. So, why not try to make moving fun and turn it into team building? Since you’re a small business, chances are that you don’t have a ton of resources you can afford to spend on moving. If that’s the case, know that there really is no need to hire professional movers. Instead, you can opt for a company that offers truck rentals to find the best deal and ask your employees to help you out with the move. This can include everything from equipment organizing and packing to loading the trucks and driving everything to the new location. This way, not only will you save up a significant sum, but you’ll also offer your employees a chance to get to know each other better.

Always have backup

Now, while we do live in the digital era, there are still instances where you’ll simply have to meet a client, employee or a business partner in person. In such cases, holding the meeting in either your old or your new office space is not quite the best way to go, especially if neither of those places is fully functional. So, instead of risking potential unpleasant situations – e.g. having to deny your client a meeting due to the lack of office space – you should have a backup plan in place. For instance, there area lot of temporary rental office spaces where you can relocate everyone whose job can’t be performed from home, and where you can hold important meetings until your new office space is ready.

Therefore, when moving your small business, make sure you organize all of your business-related tasks accordingly, to lower the impact a move is bound to have on your company. Additionally, show your employees that you value them by asking them to help you out and try to make the move as seamless and as stress-free as possible. Finally, make sure that your business is still up and running during the move to avoid risking becoming irrelevant and falling out of touch with your audience.

About the author:Mike Johnston is a home improvement and business blogger from Sydney. He is a regular writer at SmoothDecoratorand contributor on several interior design, real estate and eco blogs. Mike’s goal is to create and share meaningful content that helps and inspires people.

4 Things to Check When Choosing Your New Business Location

/ nancyrubin

You are getting ready to expand into a new business location. This is an exciting time for your company because it means you are finally entering the first major step in your company’s growth stage. Hopefully, if everything works out the way you planned, you will be pulling in twice the revenue and possibly more before the year is finished. However, there are a few things you still need to check out before choosing a new business location.

Traffic

When moving to a new location, the amount of traffic, both vehicles and foot traffic, is going to help determine how much business you will be doing. If the location you are looking at has low rates of traffic, this can become restrictive to your ability to generate sufficient revenue. By positioning yourself in a high traffic area, you will increase your opportunities for attracting customers to your new location.

Local Codes

Before you sign that lease, you need to know if something about how you do business will be in violation with local codes and city ordinances. Usually, you can obtain this information directly from the county building or government center for the county in which your business resides. This is important to check because you do not want any surprises sneaking up on you that could cause unnecessary financial strain on your business.

Building Maintenance and Repair

If you are buying the building you intend to expand into, then you should expect that there will be a few building maintenance and repair costs associated with moving into a new location. This is why you should be ready to work with an experienced company such as Drey Roofing who can manage any commercial building repairs, such as a new roof, for example, that may require a lot of work.

Your Parking Lot

In order to accommodate high enough customer or client volume, you will need to have adequate parking for employees and those frequenting your business. Not only should you make sure the parking lot is big enough, but it should be repainted too. Nothing gives a new location a fresh look like a parking lot that looks fantastic and has adequate parking.

Conclusion

You are about ready to open your new location. Since you did all your homework before making the big move, everything went smoothly as planned. Now it is time to open the doors for business and provide your company’s much-needed products and services to your local community.

Business Investing 101: What to Look For In a Commercial Property

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If you are buying a property abroad because you want to expand or if you are buying a property in your own country and you want to take things to that next level then there are a couple things that you need to know. After all, you need to know the market you are going to invest in, why you need to make the purchase and even any goals that you have as well. Below you’ll find some advice that will help you out if you are a first-time buyer who is investing in the property market for the very first time.

Finding the Right Property

Searching for the right property can be difficult. You need to take into account every single aspect of your business and you also need to take into account how much money you can make from that property as well. One thing that a lot of people overlook is the impression that property is going to make on their clients and this is a huge part of your purchase. You need to make sure that it is going to make you look professional and that it is accessible as well. This isn’t as important if you plan on running a warehouse or even a storage facility, but it is very important if you plan on opening up your own retail store. After all, if people can’t find you then they certainly aren’t going to want to do business with you and this can have a serious impact on your investment. For this reason, if you are opting to have a store or even a retail location then you have to make sure that it is near public transportation lines, that it is easy to find and that it is very close to other local amenities. This even applies if you are opening up a set of new offices as well because it’s super important that your staff are able to get to work without going through too much effort. Another thing that you need to think about is the impression that this location will have on your investors. If you choose a location that is run-down and generally not very safe, you may see potential in it but your investors probably won’t and this could cause them to jump ship.

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Facilities

The facilities that the new location has are also very important. If you are opening your store or your business to customers then you need to make sure that you have both male and female toilets. If you are just opening a store and you don’t plan on providing your customers with bathroom facilities then you can have a staff bathroom for both genders without any problems. This can be a single cubicle and it can be located away from the initial storefront. If your facility already comes with all of this then you can be sure to save a ton of money in the future and you will also be providing your customers with the facilities they need at the same time.

Business Activity

If you want to look into a mortgage for your business then this link may help: https://www.propertyguru.com.my/resources/buy-property-guide/the-complete-guide-to-obtaining-a-mortgage-loan-for-property-in-malaysia. If you already have your loan sorted then it’s time to look into what activity your business is going to have. For example, if you plan on opening up an office then you need to know how many desks you need to have and you also need to know the space that you need to accommodate them as well. When you have this information you can then try and plan out how you are going to fit everything within your floor plan. It’s super important that you figure out all of this information before you invest in the property because the last thing that you need is to buy the space, only to find that it isn’t actually as suitable as you thought. Another thing that you need to do is make sure that your floor can accommodate the weight. For example, if you are looking for a warehouse space then you need to make sure that it can accommodate the weight of a lot of forklift trucks. It also helps to know if the entrance is going to be big enough for this machinery as well.

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https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-architectural-design-architecture-buildings-373912/

Access

If you want to have a lot of success with your business then you need to make sure that it is accessible for just about everyone. For example, if you have a business that is on a higher level then you need to make sure that you have a lift so that you can provide those who need it with disabled access. Not only is this important for your customers, but it’s also important for your employees as well. You also need to think about the layout of the building and if it is in line with all of the fire and safety regulations. For example, if you are buying an older property and one of the exits is boarded up then you may have to get this sorted out sooner rather than later and you may also want to take note of any other potential damages as well.

Renovation

Buying an older property is great and you can save a lot of money by doing this as well. The main problem with this is that you could run into problems that you didn’t even know were present. For this reason, you need to have some money put to one side so that you can prepare for this and you also need to make sure that you aren’t going up to your maximum budget either. After all, things always go wrong and if you are not ready for all of this then you could end up making a really bad investment. It’s important that you take your time and that you leave some money to one side to help any emergencies or urgent purchases that may come up along the way. When you do this, you can easily make the most out of your investment.

Business Expansion: 5 Concerns When Moving Your Company across State Lines

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The fact that your business is growing is good news. However, with expansion comes a new set of challenges. Whatever your situation, here are five concerns to consider when moving your company across state lines.

Regulations

Some states will have fewer regulations than others, or regulations on one thing but not something else that was more heavily regulated in your old state. For example, a product may be required to be made without a certain material or you may now be allowed to sell certain kinds of products. Other important regulations to follow include any relating to employees. Different states have different workplace rules that you must follow as an employer.

Taxes

Taxes may be a significant part of the reason why you’ve chosen to move your business in the first place. Some states have much lower taxes than others, and it can be advantageous for businesses to move where they will be afforded a tax break. In some cases, however, you may be moving to a state with a higher tax rate. It’s important for all business owners to understand their tax burden and properly plan for it. Don’t forget to plan for tax that must be collected on sales across state borders—especially online sales.

Licenses

This is not relevant in every industry but it is important to a number of professions. For example, trade careers, such as electricians and plumbers, are almost always licensed at the state level. Restaurants need to be properly licensed in order to sell food and alcohol. Don’t forget about any local licenses your business may need. Check with your new state to see if anyone on your staff requires a license to perform their job.

Insurance

Due to a number of factors, including different laws and even different insurance companies servicing the area, your company will likely have to obtain new insurance coverage when moving to another state. This includes worker’s compensation insurance, liability coverage, vehicle insurance and more. Check to make sure your new location is not in an area that floods frequently. Flood insurance is not usually included in most policies but can be purchased separately if you have need of it.

Business Registration

You will need to register your business in your new state. This is usually as simple as filling out a form, especially because the business is already likely registered on the federal level. Consult with an attorney for any inquiries about business registration in the new state. While you work to get the registration sorted out, a multipurpose moving company such as Kloke Group Moving & Storage can store your company’s items and then move them when you are ready.

Moving a business across state lines is not as simple as it may sound. There are a number of concerns to investigate, with the most important being listed above. Educate yourself and plan ahead, and your move should go smoothly.

Guest author, Lizzie Weakley is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio. She went to college at The Ohio State University where she studied communications. In her free time, she enjoys the outdoors and long walks in the park with her 3-year-old husky Snowball.  @LizzieWeakley

 

How Well Do Your Know Your Computers?

/ nancyrubin

Computers are fantastic inventions that have enabled us to be incredibly productive at work and at home. However, computers are still a mystery to many people and it’s understandable considering how complicated they are and how many parts they involve. However, we believe that it’s important to understand how your computer works, what it’s capable of and how you can make the most of them.

So whether you’re moving into a new office and equipping it with new computers, or if you just want to learn more about the technology that you use in your business, we’ve prepared a thorough article that will teach you everything you need to know.

A rough understanding helps you cut future costs when purchasing hardware

As with many other industries, it’s important to have a rough understanding of something before you make investments in it. If you understand how computers work and the value of the parts, then you can easily cut future costs by purchasing second-hand or refurbished hardware instead of brand-new from manufacturers. With this rough understanding of computers (a simple course) you’ll be able to make some huge savings. 

Equipping your employees with the right tools will help their productivity

How much do you know about your computers and their costs? Do you know how satisfied your employees are with them? If you want to equip your employees with the right hardware and tools, then it pays to have a deeper understanding of the tools they use, the software they require and so on.

Computer slowdowns and errors are a common cause of low productivity

You may have experienced crashes and slowdowns in the past with your computer systems, but had no idea how to deal with them. By learning about computers and their errors, you could easily fix common problems without having to call out an engineer or tech specialist. If your business suffers from computer slowdowns and errors then you’ll likely experience staff lazing around and nothing productive. With just a bit of experience, you can easily fix any common errors before they have a chance to become annoying and ultimately slow down your business.

Software can do more than you might initially think 

If you have a large number of computers in your workplace then you might be considering managed IT support to help you look after your computers. This is to help you keep your software updated, to ensure that your programs are installed properly and to also inform you on how you can use different types of software to help you grow your business.

Conclusion 

Computers are an integral part of any business, but it’s also important to understand how they’re used, how they work and also what they’re capable of.