When To Move Your Small Business Out of Your Home
If you are a Growth Maven then you’re the type of entrepreneur who wants big growth and long-term success for your business. You want customers to know who you are and what you stand for. You want to develop a great reputation and have a consistent stream of dialogue running between you and your customers.
It’s time to start building your global enterprise-for you this means you must get out of your home office and into “real” office space so that you can start hiring people. But you want to handle it well so that the big move doesn’t divert your time, money, and resources.
First, avoid real estate agents and most landlords. Despite what they say, their agenda is often times very different from yours. A traditional lease in a traditional office space does not have the flexibility your fledgling company needs in order to grow.
Here are two solid arguments to avoid even relatively short-term leases, much less 3-5 year contracts.
1. New businesses often don’t make enough revenues to cover their expenses in a cash flow crunch
The simple solution, which many real estate brokers won’t bother to mention because there’s little or nothing in it for them, is to rent space at an executive suite. These executive suites are often classy, fully equipped, and ready to move into. Often there are other small businesses renting space there so networking becomes quite easy. Some other options are subletting space or sharing an office with a larger company.
You can move in immediately because your executive suite is fully equipped, furnished, and ready to go. It has high-speed Internet access, phone systems, furniture, fully functional conference rooms, and in many cases a receptionist to answer the phones.
Here’s how it works. An executive suite company typically rents an entire floor or two in a well-located office building. These buildings tend to be first class, prestigious, and in the heart of the business district. The company then subdivides the space into a large number of offices for rent to individual businesses like yours. These individual offices range in size from about 100 square feet-good for one person-to several hundred square feet-good for up to five people or more.
Executive suites are the ideal place for “image” entrepreneurs. These are the folks who know that having a first class professional appearance will help build their business. They know that their clients want to invest in and work with winners. Looks count. These business owners realize that perception is reality-you are only as big and solid as you look. They want to work with the big fish clients and compete against companies many times their size. And this is how they can.
Imagine prospective clients coming to see you in your gorgeous office where they are greeted by a friendly receptionist and given coffee while they wait in comfy chairs. Then imagine these prospective clients being blown away by your high-tech-enabled presentation and the videoconferencing you did with your partner in London.
Much better than making your presentation in your living room next to the wet socks hanging off the TV set, right? If you agree, then it’s time to take action.
Filed under: Home & Garden