Many small law firm opt for operating without a physical office address. Rather than investing in an office lease, business owners often utilize P.O. boxes or even skip stating any address for their business altogether. Here are the top three reasons why small businesses should consider virtual office space.
1. Professional Appearance
A physical office space creates the appearance that the business is successful and trustworthy – providing a professional appearance to customers and colleagues. Businesses can use a P.O. box or home address on a business card or website; however, many customers look at this address and think that the business is too small or too young to handle large clients or requests. Physical addresses also make it easier for businesses to receive deliveries and have an office phone line.
2. Professional Meeting Space
Always meeting clients at their place of business or at a coffee shop or restaurant is not likely to instill confidence in your services. A virtual office space provides businesses with consistent, professional meeting spaces – executive offices and conference rooms – with all the technology needed to run a meeting, including a copy center, internet access, digital video equipment, flat-screen monitors for presentations, telephone conferencing capabilities, dry-erase walls, projectors, and professional staff to support your administrative, witnessing, and notary needs. Receptionists are available to greet guests and offer refreshments.
3. Google Local Search
Google Local Search is becoming more and more essential to the small business as well as to consumers – and for good reason. Consumers tend to use a business that is within 20 miles of their home or business. To be listed on Google Local, however, a business must have a physical address. The latest Google update, dubbed “Pigeon,” is actually removing some service-area businesses for not having an address; and Google does not accept P.O. boxes. If a business wants to compete and rank online, it needs to appear in local SEO listings, especially since most people research a business online before purchasing from it.
When it is cost-prohibitive for a business to invest in physical office space, many professionals turn to virtual office spaces. Virtual office spaces do not require a long-term commercial lease commitment, and they have lower overhead since companies do not need to invest in a full-time staff or office equipment. These spaces are tunrkey and available when and where a business needs them. Plus, virtual office space services usually offer a variety of amenities and options allowing businesses to personalize the space.
A company is at risk of losing business and not being found online if it doesn’t have a physical office address. Virtual office spaces are cost effective for smaller businesses or larger businesses that need to be more mobile. Leslie Malawer Keenan
