If you own a small business and are looking to grow, one option to consider is renting a virtual office space. This is a popular move especially for small businesses without the capacity for physical office spaces yet.
For many other businesses, this is a new and risky move. You might have no idea how this works and why this is an option. To help you decide, the UOffice Executive Suites team will discuss everything you need to know about virtual office spaces and their unique benefits for small business owners.
What exactly comes to mind when you hear the term “virtual business service”? In a nutshell, this includes a variety of solutions that works to improve and help small businesses grow and thrive in a market full of competitors.
Here at UOffice Executive Suites, we provide access to virtual office spaces. If you own a small business, you can have the access to comfortable, ready-to-use, fully furnished office spaces, conference rooms, meeting rooms, and coworking spaces. Now different companies of all sizes can have the administrative support they need to get their businesses off the ground. Modern small business owners have been able to grow and operate more efficiently because of virtual office spaces.
A virtual office functions just like traditional office spaces but with more flexibility, offering the same services and amenities such as private office spaces with office equipment. Business owners can hire a virtual office space service and choose exactly what fits their company’s needs.
Does your company need private office space five days a week? Or are you looking for office space on a case-by-case basis, for example when your company’s remote team needs to get together to work in person on an important project?
Perhaps you’re in need of a conference room to meet with your clients. Other companies only need access to a conference room a month for their meetings. Regardless of your companies’ needs, a virtual office space can meet these exactly, making it perfect for small businesses that do not need a lot of services or infrastructure to operate or maintain on a daily basis.
Renting a traditional office space can be quite expensive for smaller businesses, especially if you need more space than you can afford. In these cases, virtual office spaces are the most practical solution.
If you’re on the fence about the logistics of finding and renting virtual office spaces, evaluate your particular situation. Virtual office space can be the right option for your business especially if you see yourself described by these needs and circumstances:
- It keeps expenses low – By opting to rent for a virtual office space you can spend less money on office rent and daily maintenance which results in having more funds to improve and grow your business.
- You are always traveling – Virtual office spaces are available whenever you need them while on the go. Virtual office providers usually offer different locations that their clients can use whenever they are on the road.
- Most of your company workers are working remotely – If you have a lot of employees situated in different areas, you can greatly benefit from using a virtual office space so you do not have to pay for a commercial office space that sits empty most of the time. If your virtual office provider covers multiple locations, your employees can access a workspace to accommodate them.
- You prefer an office space that can be modified as your business grows and improves – A virtual office space is flexible. You can scale up or down depending on your company’s needs. You can rent an office space, meeting room, or conference room depending on your current needs so you can avoid renting a whole commercial office space and end up not using them.
Virtual office spaces have been popular among young entrepreneurs, small business owners, and newly formed companies. This option allows them to lessen the expenses or decrease the cost of their business’ production while using a prestigious office location. This often results in improving and boosting the company’s professional business networking.
If your company hires a virtual office space, you can enjoy the benefit of having a business address for your company – all the while enjoying access to office equipment and necessary facilities.
But are all virtual office spaces created equal? To ensure the best fit for your particular business, factor in these variables to determine your ideal working environment:
The Virtual Office Space Checklist
Location
When you are searching for a virtual office space to rent, you must choose a location that is suitable and favorable not just for you but also for your employees, customers, and other visitors. Determine a reputable business address – it can help your company’s brand, so make sure to choose a virtual office space located in a popular business commercial area.
If you are located in Houston, Texas, you can rent or hire a company like UOffice Executive Suites.
Facilities/Resources
Consider the facilities and resources that the virtual office is currently offering. Your chosen virtual office must have all the necessary office equipment your company requires on the regular. Inquire about the availability and any usage fees for printers, scanners, overhead projectors, conference rooms, meeting rooms, tables, chairs, parking, etc.
Also, look into hygiene protocols. At UOffice Executive Suites, we consider the health and safety of our clients and provide air purifiers to make the surroundings safe and clean. We will also sanitize and disinfect rooms and common areas regularly.
Costs/Fees
An obvious consideration is the rental fees or costs of the virtual office space. Costs vary greatly especially when spaces are located in high-demand areas. Check with different local companies so you can compare quotes. If you own a small business, you will need to keep cash on hand to support your growing business, so make sure to consider the “hidden” expenses and other costs that your company will incur while renting a virtual office space, such as regular commuting, usage fees, etc.
Adaptability/Flexibility
Some companies offer virtual office spaces hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly rental packages. Take care to choose a virtual office space that offers flexibility and fits your company’s needs.
Safety and Security
When choosing a virtual office space, you must choose one that offers safety and security for you, your team, your clients, visitors, etc. As an example, we at UOffice Executive Suites are Covid-19 ready. We value the safety of our clients so we always make sure to sanitize and disinfect our rooms and common areas. We have also invested in air purifiers to keep the air and surrounding areas to be clean and safe for our clients.
The Different Types of Virtual Workspaces
- Virtual office – A private office that can be rented depending on your company’s needs. They are commonly used by solo professionals, new businesses, and small teams. This type of office is fully furnished so you will only have to bring your laptop and other important work essentials.
- Co-working spaces – This is an open concept working space for individuals that are working in a large shared space. It usually includes office desks, chairs, and workstations. This type of office is great for meeting new people but can a bit noisy at times. It is not advisable if your company constantly meets new clients every day. It can be difficult to take calls from a co-working space as it tends to get loud especially if there are a lot of individuals sharing the space.
- Virtual meeting rooms – This type of office is fully equipped with office equipment and technology needed for meetings such as conference phones, A/V output, whiteboards, projectors, speakers, etc. They can be rented by the hour, day, week, or month, depending on your needs. Most small businesses use a blend of virtual workspaces; for example, you can rent a private virtual office space for a few days and rent a meeting or conference room once a month or depending on your company’s needs.
As a small business owner, do you know how to get everything started? If you want to rent a virtual office space you must do the following:
How to Rent a Virtual Space in 3 Steps
- Find a location – Choose a location that will help your business grow.
- Select the business services that you need – Determine the virtual business services that your company needs. This will depend on what kind of company you have. For example, you might need a location to meet your clients, a place to hold meetings for your team members, a place where your team can do their projects, a place to run your company’s administrative support, or a combination of everything.
- Start your business – Contact the virtual office provider team for more information and get things rolling! If you’re interested in our services at UOffice Executive Suites, reach out and we can assist you with your virtual office space needs. You can check out our plans and services before making a decision.
Are you a small business owner looking for virtual office spaces? If you are based in Houston, Texas, make sure to check out UOffice Executive Suites. We provide virtual offices, meeting rooms, conference rooms, etc.
Contact us at 832-932-5165 or send an email to info@uofficesuites.com. We are located at Bay Plaza, 711 West Bay Area Boulevard, Suite 220, Webster, Texas, 77598. We have an uptown location located at 550 Post Oak Boulevard Houston, TX 77027. Get in touch today so we can assist you with your virtual office needs before spaces fill up!