Co-Working Q & A
A co-working space is simply an office environment where businesses, from remote workers to sole proprietors to SME, rent subsections of a larger office building and share common resources with different businesses. Co-Working spaces offer the same amenities you would find in traditional or private offices, with the added benefit of flexible working space and lower overall costs. For example, many coworking spaces provide WIFI, business technology, printers, reception staff, mail handling, and all the standard office equipment you would find in a serviced office.
Co-working, or shared office space, can be an affordable solution for the remote worker or small business owner who wants to project a professional image at a fraction of the cost of owning or leasing private offices. Already a well-established business model in large, urban cities, shared co-working spaces are now available in smaller markets, like Osage Beach. You save money while you enjoy the amenities and services usually only found in a larger company and you can focus on building your business without the hassles of facility maintenance or repairs.
Working From Home, or WFH, as it is known, has never been more acceptable to employers or popular to the general public than today, thanks to the COVID pandemic. However, it does come with some drawbacks. Billions of virtual meetings later, the same technology that has given people the ability to meet and conduct business remotely, has also provided an often-unwelcomed window into our private lives. For example, not every house is conducive to working remotely; interruptions, distractions, and space constraints can make it difficult to present the most professional image. Co-working spaces can be a very cost-effective alternate to working from home that protects your and your family’s privacy.
To see if renting a co-working space is right for you, investigate the options in your area. While co-working spaces are common in larger cities, in more rural areas, like Lake of the Ozarks. Renting a co-working space allows you to take advantage of flexible options. You rent only the space you need today and can scale up as your business grows. There are a variety of different configurations available in co-working that you can customize to fit to your business needs. The advantage of renting co-working is the ability to share resources and get access to the types of amenities that you could not otherwise afford as a sole owner of your facilities.
One unexpected benefit of renting a co-working space is that, unlike a traditional PO Box, you can use your co-working address as part of your Google Business Profile. This not only protects your privacy, but your customers can locate your business through applications that get their data through Google search. Companies that use a PO box as their official business address are often excluded from being listed in important online resources like Google Maps, Apple Maps, Yelp!, and others. Using a home or personal address should be avoided, as it is a privacy issue, and does not present your business well to the public.