Five Advantages of a Shared Office Space
Small Business Labs predicted that the number of people renting office spaces would grow from under 1 million in 2016 to 4 million in 2020. A 300 percent increase in four years would be comparable to Airbnb or UBER regarding rapid market growth. That’s nothing to sneeze at.
The fact is, everyone from small start-ups to SMEs and larger corporations with satellite offices are realizing advantages to licensing a shared office space.
What exactly is a shared office space? It’s not to be confused with coworking. The folks at Balance Small Business define it as, “a turn-key office solution providing an office space shared by other companies or professionals. These offices often come fully equipped and furnished, a ready-made solution for establishing a branch office or saving limited time and money for start-ups. Besides the lower costs, a shared office space can help home-bound entrepreneurs feel less lonely and provide a more upscale image for your company.”
Now that we are on the same page as to what shared space is, here are our top 5 reasons that Shared Office Space should be at the top of your list in 2019:
- Low Overhead
Trust us. It can be both expensive and time-consuming to establish a new office. Shared office spaces free you from the hassle of furnishing a new office space, setting up utilities, setting up Wi-Fi, hiring a cleaning crew. Not to mention dealing with what happens if something is delayed, broken or just plain wrong. Instead, you can focus on getting down to business.
2. Infrastructure
Nowadays there aren’t many businesses that can function efficiently, much less at all, without a reliable internet connection. And quite frankly forget reliable, businesses want fast internet that works all the time without delay. Joining a shared office means that this is handled for you and it works, quickly and efficiently and if it doesn’t, it’s someone else's responsibility to fix it.
Infrastructure doesn’t just mean internet. Consider postal services, telephone, cleaning, repairs, et al. In a shared office, this is one (or four) fewer things you have to think about allowing you to focus on the real work.
3. Flexibility
Shared office spaces allow you to choose the most appropriate office space to suit your specific business needs in real time and let’s face it as an SME your needs may change from month to month, much less in three to five years. Built-in flexibility is a distinct advantage over private leases which may not account for your limited budget or your schedule, not to mention your bottom line or ability to scale.
4. Access to Resources
When you office alone, you might be paying less per square foot for your office space but do you have access to a conference room, a kitchen or collaborative area? You’d be amazed what a significant disadvantage that is not only for your team but also for client entertaining.
Other resources to consider?
- Free parking
- Printing/Scanning capabilities
- USPS mailing address
- Local and long distance phone in the conference room
5. Growth
The ultimate benefit of a shared office space is that you can grow a successful business, keep your overhead down and mitigate your risk so you can focus on what matters…the work.
If you would like more information on how a shared office space should work, or to see shared office space in the Kansas City metro area contact Edison Spaces for more information.
