6 benefits of a virtual office

by Paul Sandquest 14 March 2021

Your business needs an address.

Every account you set up, online listing you publish, supplier you work with, and more will ask you for your business HQ.

Some business owners choose their home address, but this can come with a whole host of negatives for your business and undermine your future success.

Others look towards renting a traditional office or co-working space. However, this comes with a hefty monthly price tag to cope with.

A low-cost alternative is choosing a virtual office address. Virtual offices give your company an impressive address without damaging your brand or forking-out expensive rental fees.

Virtual offices offer a range of benefits to SMEs looking to work remotely and economically. Here are just a few reasons you too should consider adopting a virtual business address.

1. First, let’s look at the bottom line

Now, I know it isn’t always the most important, but cost is always a big deal when committing to any service for your business.

There are three options to consider when looking for a business HQ — traditional office space, co-working space and virtual office — and the latter is by far the best value. And that’s why it’s number one on our list.

Sure, traditional offices and co-working spaces offer four walls and a roof to work under. But, the cost of that privilege, and the dreaded commute for that matter, runs into the hundreds if not thousands of pounds a month.

Your virtual office, on the other hand, you can rent for as little as £10.42 per month.

And a virtual office will never limit where you can work, the world is your workspace, and your mail is redirected to your home. You toil remotely, while your business address attracts impressed customers.

2. An address to impress

You may think your audience isn’t swayed by your company’s address and you will just use your home address. But would you buy from a business based in the block of flats at the end of your street? Or would feel more trusting of a company in a known business district? Perhaps one you know is really swanky and posh?

Truth is, it does matter, and your customers may think twice about using your company.

You simply can’t hide your address. Suppliers, business services and other stakeholders need to get that info easily.

And do you want your local target market to find you online? You’ll need an address on your website, online directories and other platforms. How else will search engines and other sites know to show your business to locals looking for your products and services?

Your home address simply won’t cut the mustard. Fortunately, virtual offices offer a host of luxurious addresses that are bound to impress.

They’re located in business hubs rubbing shoulders with titans of the corporate world. They’re found in bohemian cultural hotspots basking in the hipster glow of independent shops and studios. They’re sitting in your city opposite your competitors surrounded by your target audience.

Virtual offices offer business addresses to make your company really standout to your next customer.

3. Mail to your inbox in minutes

Every letter you receive at your virtual office can be mailed straight to your nominated address. You may like to collect and file every hard copy.

However, virtual offices also offer a scan-to-inbox service. In this, we open, scan and conveniently send your post straight to your email address.

Not only does this mean that within minutes of receiving your mail you can access it wherever you are, but it also allows you to easily find and reread any document any time.

Other office alternatives cannot offer this, and having all your mails at your fingertips improves the speed and efficiency of your business’ communication.

4. Add a call answering service to your office

No office is fully complete without a reception – and a virtual office is no exception.

Consider a potential customer finding your listing online, and noticing your swanky office phone number is your mobile or home number, which is obviously not local to your business’s address.

A tad apprehensive, she calls anyway only for you to answer unaware it’s a business call. Confuddled, you stumble through the conversation, your voice drowned by a torrent of background noise.

Not the best first impression, eh?

Now imagine the same caller. Imagine she calls a number reflective of your office’s location. The call is answered by your receptionist, who professionally delivers your scripted welcome, takes the caller’s details and message, and sends it straight to your inbox.

This is exactly what you can add to your virtual office.

You can even get virtual assistants who can take orders, schedule appointments, manage your inbox, and more to fully utilise your virtual office.

5. You’re still the manager of your office

You may be working remotely from your virtual office, but that doesn’t mean you’re not the head honcho.

With our virtual business addresses, you get access to our Virtually There Portal. From there, you’re in control. You decide on how you want your mail forwarded and where you need it to be delivered at a click of a button.

It also works as your postal records room, storing all the mail you receive so that you can quickly reference it exactly when you need to.

And when you adopt a virtual receptionist, virtual personal assistant or virtual landline to your office, you’ll be able to direct your reception by editing your call handling script, instructions, and even who to transfer live calls to in your business.

All invoices too can be reviewed. And if you need any amendments to your account, you can do it from the portal too.

6. Cancel any time

As a business owner, you have big decisions to make. We don’t want choosing whether to have a virtual office or not to be one of them. That’s why we offer the option to cancel at any time.

Some providers make you commit to 3 months or more, with no opportunity to see if the service lives up to your expectations.

The same is true for all of our services and addons. In every case, just give us 30 days notice. That way we can collect and forward all the remaining post and calls you receive before we say goodbye.

Most service providers offer virtual offices on a monthly subscription basis. We are one such provider that offers highly sought-after offices with no long-term contracts, and this reduces the risk for your business.

By choosing a virtual office address over a traditional office, you can simply use and pay for the service as long as you need it.

So, there you go – these are some of the benefits that a virtual address can provide to start-ups and home businesses. If you’d like to learn more about how a virtual office service can benefit you, contact us today!