In today’s world, your job isn’t so much the place you go, it’s the work you do. Especially during a pandemic, working from home can be a godsend. If you are an entrepreneur just starting out, there are a number of reasons you should at least consider creating a virtual office. Let’s look at some of the advantages that this new digital world can bring.
Virtual Offices Can Save Money
You will need a sizeable initial investment, but if all your employees can work from home, you eliminate all of the overhead costs associated with a physical building, such as building expenses, equipment investment and a building lease. You also don’t have to deal with safety and environmental concerns in the office and your carbon footprint will be significantly less without all that office equipment running. Employee absences will be reduced considerably as well since even with the sniffles or sore throat, most people will continue to work from home. Perks, such as the coffee machine, water cooler and snacks, are also eliminated. Your employees will love saving a ton of money on gas and other transportation expenses. They’ll also spend a lot less on wardrobe and food, which is a huge plus for your group.
Working From Home Can Increase Productivity
You can eliminate many of those typically annoying office distractions, such as drama between co-workers and those conversations you can’t avoid with the office busybody. Studies have shown that people are usually much happier and more comfortable working from home. When people are more content, they are more productive. You will get the added bonus of having a lower turnover rate.
Virtual Jobs Create Easier Access to Talented People
You can generate new and exciting ideas when you aren’t limited to the resources in your specific area. It’s always good to get a fresh perspective from people of different backgrounds and geographic locations. Working from home will allow you to network with people all over the world and perhaps see things in a whole new light.
Virtual Offices Make it Easier to Multitask
Many virtual offices contract outside services to complete specific functions. This allows several tasks to be performed at the same time without the additional employee benefits costs. Functions such as mail forwarding and receiving, customer care and even a virtual answering service can all be handled remotely through contracting a separate agency.
- Call centers can be given a script to follow when making phone calls. Telemarketing companies, political and charitable donation centers and market research companies all use call centers, but virtual offices can also use this assistance for their customer service needs.
- Mail forwarding and receiving can be handled remotely. The company will set up a virtual address for you where your physical mail can be received. Mail coming in is opened and then scanned into the online digital mailbox assigned to you.
- A virtual answering service is also a smart option for any virtual office. One such service, VoiceNation, can answer the incoming calls of your choosing and take messages for you. The messages will then be sent to you digitally. Other services that can be provided include such things as answering basic questions and setting appointments. Many service companies employ bilingual operators who can be available all day, every day.
The virtual office is a fairly new approach to doing business, but it appears that the idea is starting to take off by leaps and bounds. As social distancing is becoming the new normal, things may never be quite the same. If you are a creative entrepreneur, a virtual office may be just the thing to take your concept to the next level.
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