5 Reasons Why Small Businesses Need a Virtual Office

Virtual offices offering the flexibility and technology that make it possible to work from just about anywhere have come a long way over the last two decades. Indeed, they have matured enough that all sorts of businesses can benefit from using them. As early as 1995, virtual offices were making their foray into corporate spaces where companies such as Digital Equipment and Microsoft adopted the concept of virtual offices. Soon after that, other companies realized the immense capital savings offered by virtual offices and adopted them. 

Starting from the early 2000s, virtual offices have become the norm, with companies offering virtual office services to businesses at a fraction of the cost of traditional offices. With virtual offices, employees can work from wherever with access to their work files, emails, and even telephone extensions. For small businesses, a virtual office eliminates the need for investing in a physical address and its associated costs. Here are 5 reasons why small businesses need virtual offices. 

1. Prime Office Addresses for a Fraction of the Price

While it is desirable to get an ‘A’ grade office space for their business, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense for a small business or a startup to invest in an office. That’s why most small businesses and startups are home-based. Small business owners, such as those operating custom essay services, would rather operate from their garage in the early stages of their business so that they can re-invest their revenue in the growth of their business. Therefore, investing in an office at that stage is not on the list of priorities of most business owners. 

With small business virtual office services, however, owners of small businesses and startups do not have to break the bank to get their very own offices. As a matter of fact, a virtual office offers the small businesses owner a distinct opportunity to get prime address that plays well into their marketing efforts. Just think about it. What would it mean for your business if you got an address in one of the most prestigious addresses in your city? What would it mean for the revenue of your business? You’d expect an influx of new customers and a constant growth in profits.

2. Keep Your Home Address Private

Tightly tied to the benefits of getting a prime address for your business is the fact that you get to keep your home address private when you get a virtual office. Instead of sharing your home address with your clients, you share the address of the office with them. You can place the address on your website, business cards, brochure, and even advertisement campaigns. Customers are more likely to work with you when you have an office address. It would take some convincing to encourage a person to do business with you or invest in your business if the address you provide leads them to your garage door. One of the biggest virtual office benefits is that it allows you to appear formal and professional, boosting the confidence of your customers.

3. On-Call Staff 

When you set up an office, you inevitably have to hire a few people to help around. You need a janitor to make sure everything’s squeaky clean, a secretary to handle the day to day activities, and perhaps a receptionist. With a virtual office, you don’t have to worry about staffing, let alone the furniture and other amenities for your new office. Staff are available around the clock, ready to handle the daily office tasks and you’ll never have to pay them. 

4. Increased Productivity

Believe it or not, a virtual office increases your productivity. Operating a virtual office means you and your employees are not tied to the stresses that come with being tied to a desk every day. Think about it this way. Instead of spending an hour commuting to work every day, you and your workers can spend that precious hour focused on work. What’s more is the fact that getting to work from virtually anywhere in the world leads to increased work motivation. IBM and other companies noted that virtual offices increased the productivity of their workers by as much as 68%. Such an increase in performance will transform the fortunes of your small business. 

5. Work-life Balance

Another benefit of getting a virtual office is the work-life balance you get. With typical offices, you are tied to your desk for 8 hours a day, for the entire week. When you get home, you’re too tired to spend time with your family. With a virtual office, you get a terrific work-life balance. Spending time with your family rejuvenates you, meaning you’ll have greater enthusiasm in your work. 

Want to learn more about the benefits of using a Virtual office? Click here!

About Michelle Lambert

Michelle Lambert is a freelance writer at EduBirdie based in Toronto. She used to work from home but after discovering the benefits of virtual offices, you’ll find her working from her virtual office. While she is not in the office, Lambert likes to talk to small business owners to gain insight on the various challenges they face.