Working from home has many perks. You don’t have to travel far to get to work, you can work around other commitments, and you don’t even have to get dressed if you don’t want to. However, when you’re running a business from home you can run into many dilemmas. Not having a professional address can have a massive impact on your business, meaning that you might be missing out on potential clients that could bring in a lot of profits. Moving an office can be stressful, and can also have an impact on your business too because of time missed while you’re moving. If you’re thinking of moving from a home office to a professional one, take a look at these tips on how you can make the whole process a breeze.
Photo by Nastuh Abootalebi on Unsplash
Size up properties
The first thing that you will need to do is find offices for sale that would be ideal for what you need it for. Remember to think about any expansion plans that you’ve got, and also whether you’re going to need a team to work for you. Try and get yourself a new work premises that’s in an ideal location so that potential clients and customers can easily find you, and so that deliveries of stock can easily get to you. This will make your life much easier in the long run and help the chances of success with your business. Don’t forget to measure your current furniture and equipment alongside anything else you’ll be adding so that you’re able to find a premises that’s the perfect fit.
Speak to your bank
An expansion in business is never going to come cheap, and if you don’t currently have the funds to put into your business, you might feel like you’re stuck in a hole. Arrange a meeting with your bank so that you can talk about your plans with your business, and see if they are able to provide any financial help so that you can get your plans underway. Remember that your bank is unlikely to lend to you if you’ve got a bad credit score, so keep an eye on it using Clear Score, a completely free to use service that can really help you improve your credit rating. It tells you what you’re doing wrong and how you can improve it, and also gives you a range of offers like credit cards that can help you rebuild your trust rating with lenders.
Hire a member of staff
It’s likely that you’ve thought about growing your business since you’re no longer going to be running it from home, and now is a better time than ever to hire a member of staff to begin your expansion. Not only that, having someone to continue the daily tasks while the move is happening will help prevent your business from falling behind too far. Put out job adverts so that you’re able to begin the interviewing process. Remember to look up the rules and regulations of hiring staff so that you can avoid doing anything wrong.
Announce your move
One thing that will help make your office move more successful is by announcing it to your current clients or customers. This will give them a chance to prepare for the move, especially if it involves them having to travel further to get to you. Announcing it on social media will also generate a buzz and get people interested in using you once you’ve reopened. Create competitions and giveaways so that people are sharing your news and you gain more exposure.
Create an event for your grand opening
If you run the kind of business that deals with their customers face to face, then it’s a good idea to create an event for your grand opening. Perhaps you’ve got a store now rather than selling your goods from home? Plan a fun day for people to attend that will bring them into your store to check out what you’re all about. Chances are, if they like what they see they will be back with their friends and family too. Kids face painting and other fun activities are great for attracting people in, and don’t forget to have a few deals on products that people won’t be able to resist!