Do Virtual Offices Save Money?

The aim of any company is to produce as much revenue as possible while satisfying its customers to the best of their abilities. A virtual workplace is a great way to save hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in office expenses. Virtual office rental works for many companies by providing a physical office for important meetings, a private place to work as required, and a drop-off/delivery mail that adds a level of professionalism to any company.

While brick-and-mortar spaces still cost thousands of dollars a month in rent, virtual office spaces cost a fraction of that. Businesses pay only for the facilities they use. Financial consultants may have a physical space to hold meetings and may also use this address to receive mail or as an address for Google Places.

Another advantage of virtual office systems is that they often come with reception services or virtual assistant services. If a client calls, and they don't receive an answer, they can lose faith that the counselor is lawful. Finding someone to answer phone calls regularly and answer high-level questions will help the business grow. With financial consultants with workers, employees can enjoy flexible work hours and the cost-savings of not needing to go to the office on a day-to-day basis. Financial advisors can't afford not to have an office, but that doesn't mean they have to break the bank in order to have a physical location. Digital offices provide the right balance between cost savings and knowledge management.

• Monthly commitments (zero overhead vs. thousand).

Typical maintenance and services to operate a physical office include power, water and sewage, the Internet, software licenses, office supplies and more depending on the company you run. Such expenses can easily run into thousands of dollars. A virtual office will provide all the facilities of a normal office for hundreds rather than thousands of people, without forcing you to constantly pull out the company's credit card to pay for the maintenance of your building and workers.

• Employees (hundreds vs. thousands of employees).

At the bare minimum, a physical office requires the presence of a receptionist and/or security guard to greet incoming visitors and guide them to the property what to do. Cleaning staff is also important in most office environments, but you will occasionally find leased office buildings where the owner offers cleaning services to their commercial tenants.

• Leasing costs (hundreds vs. thousand).

Leasing costs can be one of the biggest savings SMEs can expect when choosing a virtual office over a brick-and-mortar alternative. Depending on the city you live in— business vacancy rate, unemployment rate, and physical location— a low-cost lease can go up to $5,000 for a small office! Higher vacancy rates can drive down costs, but they are usually low for a reason.

You can choose from multiple locations to rent a virtual office, which you will list on your marketing materials and which you will also have limited access to. The virtual venue, and the service provider that you choose, will also impact monthly rates, but will generally cost hundreds rather than thousands a month. No security deposit or first and last deposit is required either.

Because we work in the digital world, it only makes sense to include a virtual office in our list of digital tools. It should now be evident that on-the-go companies, who do not need a physical office room to use on a daily basis, can save thousands of dollars a year using a virtual office.