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Is it the right time to get a dedicated office?

Clean looking office space

Many businesses throughout the UK are based at a director's home address rather than a dedicated office, which can be more than fine. Not only does it help reduce the outgoing costs (shared phone lines, shared broadband, shared space and more), but it can also help the director spend more time in the business.

But is it time you moved out and have a dedicated address for your business? Lets take a look at some of the reasons why businesses choose to have a dedicated office.

A Better Impression

While you can keep your overheads low without a dedicated office, you must consider how it looks to your clients. Whats their first impression if you have to meet with them?

You need to consider your options; you could invite the client into your home, meet at a cafe where others may overhear what youre discussing, or rent a room for a day.

While renting a room sounds ideal, it can quickly add to your costs and be more expensive in the long run than having a dedicated office.

One of the key benefits of working from a dedicated office space rather than from home is the professional look it gives your business. Inviting potential clients to your office can make the business seem more professional, making the client feel as though they can trust you more than they would someone working from home.

Another reason for having a dedicated office is the professional-looking address. As a limited company, you need to show a registered address on the public record (although your service address can be different and is private). You may not want to show your home address, which is understandable.

Of course, if youre not ready to take the plunge with an office yet, you could also look at a virtual office address, which you can use on the public record. Although there's a fee for this, you may find it well worth it for your business as it can portray a professional look.

Productivity

If you're feeling stressed out at home from harsh deadlines or being bombarded with emails from clients, it's easy to switch off. You could pour a nice cup of tea, flick the TV on and relax for a short period to help you get your head back in the game. But it's a bit too easy, isn't it?

If you decide to have a dedicated office, its easier not to get distracted. Unless you have a relaxed office vibe, its not likely youll have a TV or games console which you can use to distract from work.

Thus, you should find that your productivity improves and you feel more motivated to work.

Interaction and Networking

One major advantage of working from a dedicated premises is the opportunity to interact with other businesses and use it as a networking opportunity. Many small businesses and start-ups prefer the shared office setup (either from hot desking or renting an office in a larger builder), and it presents a great starting point for building your network.

Chances are, you'll find businesses from all sorts of industries, which, depending on your products and services, could give you a good boost or just help you learn invaluable information to help grow your business.

Group gathered around a laptop

Hiring Staff

If you're looking to hire your first non-family employee, it can be tricky working from home. Even if the staff member is remote, they may still need to call into the office occasionally. But depending on your business, you may find that your perfect employee is waiting to work with you from the comfort of their own home, too. You may find this is the ideal scenario for you.

However, you need to consider how easy it is to collaborate on ideas for products or how to grow the business. While you can use professional messaging tools such as Slack, sometimes putting ideas across in person is easier.

Space Limitations

There may come a time when you need to move to a dedicated premises because of your business' growth. Whether this is because of the number of employees, the amount of storage required (such as files, folders, equipment, etc.), or needing to free up space at home, you may just need to move out to bigger premises. While most of us would enjoy a bigger home, this isn't likely to be the time to move your life, but rather just your business.

There are many office environments out there that offer varying-sized offices, even on the same site. The benefit of this is the ability to scale up or down with ease.

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