If you want to succeed in the world of business then you need to ensure your business is appealing and professional to clients. You may have spent time generating leads, perfecting your website and advertising but this hard work could all be lost if your clients do not take you seriously.
If you are working from home it ensures your overheads are kept low whilst your business is in its growing and transitional phase. However, if a prestigious client is thinking of using you, a residential address may put them off. This is where a virtual office can help. A virtual office means that your mail all goes to a specified business address that you can choose. This gives the impression that you have a business address in a prestigious area and as a result it inspires confidence in the client. Having a business address gives the impression that you have a regional presence in your desired area without necessarily being there yourself. This will certainly boost the appeal of your business to clients. It is also very cost effective if you want to break a specific market as having an actual office in somewhere such as London would be expensive.
One problem you may encounter when working from home is where to host business meetings. You may not want clients to come to your home and meeting in a coffee shop doesn’t necessarily instil a professional image. Instead, you could hire a meeting room as part of your virtual office. It is possible to do this on an ad hoc basis meaning you could pencil in a day of meetings and use your meeting room to see clients. Your meeting is then in the same location as your business address. This provides a strong, professional image to clients which will, in turn make your business more appealing. Perhaps you just need some quiet time away from your home office? Again using a meeting room with all the facilities you could wish for will provide you with a quiet working space.
If you are plagued by phone calls all day preventing you from getting on with work then a virtual office could provide call answering services. If you are on the phone other calls can still be answered so you do not run the risk of a missed call which could ultimately lead to missed business. You will in effect have a personal secretary so they will be able to answer the phone as you specify and they can even stop things such as unwanted sales calls reaching you. Call answering will give the impression to clients that you are based in your virtual office and can afford staff. This again serves to build confidence in your business and suggests that it is prospering within today’s tough industry.
As you’re not having to pay overheads for an office or for full time staff it leads to a positive cost implication. The money that is saved can be used to boost your business in other ways. Perhaps it could go towards developing your website or promoting yourself with advertisements.
If you are interested in the benefits a virtual office could bring to your business then do not hesitate to contact Velocity Virtual. They have a number of prestigious London virtual office addresses such as Fleet Street and the Royal Exchange and they also have addresses in other UK locations such as Bristol and Reading. Velocity Virtual can arrange call answering services for your business and meeting room hire meaning they can provide a full package of virtual office services or alternatively just the elements you require.
Thanks for this useful post – I have already sourced a virtual co-working space but the telephone answering service may be handy down the line!