Top Ten Tips For The Prospective Virtual Worker

Many start-up entrepreneurs and corporate entities are considering how a virtual office might enable them to attract quality business and staff. The Virtual Office® Group in Piccadilly has compiled a comprehensive list of useful tips to help decide if a virtual office is the way to go.

1. Are you the right 'type' to work from home?

Do you have what it takes to work successfully from home? Many start-up entrepreneurs and home workers admit it can be more difficult to maintain a healthy work/life balance and find they work longer hours. Research suggests that out-going, socially oriented and experienced professionals are more likely to be successful working from home as they are more committed to keeping in touch with clients and colleagues and tend to be better organised.

2. Decide if the advantages of a Virtual Office will benefit your business from the outset.

How do you feel about clients knowing where you live and having access to your home number or mobile? Do you need to meet your clients face-to-face occasionally? Is an impressive address going to help secure important business from the outset, i.e. do you need to project an image from the start or is this an aspect that can be deferred until your business is more secure? For a relatively insignificant financial outlay, the benefits of presenting an impressive business address via a Virtual Office (incorporating mail forwarding and a central '0207' telephone prefix) may be a crucial component of a start-up business plan.

3. Research virtual office contenders for the most suitable option.

It is not wise to compromise on the selection of the Virtual Office Service provider. Although several providers have W1 postcodes, the location may in reality be more obscure and less impressive than the one promoted so it is important to visit the actual address advertised.

4. Inspect the premises and meet the staff who will be your client's first point of contact.

Several budget virtual office companies outsource their address services from other office buildings and in reality occupy a negligible area in the one advertised. Subsequently business post is often in the hands of casual employees and there is no direct access to the person handling client mail. In some cases, call centres are also outsourced to areas outside the country. Be sure to request a thorough inspection of the call centre and all areas of the serviced office providing the virtual office services advertised. Examine the reception area, meeting rooms and hotdesk facilities and make sure these are well maintained and of a sufficient standard to suit your business needs.

5. Go through the virtual office provider charges carefully.

Check for hidden costs as it is not uncommon for virtual office service providers to surprise clients with costs for hidden extras such as itemised mail forwarding or additional call forwarding charges, and registration fees.

6. Don't compromise on quality support technology services.

Many start-up entrepreneurs have discovered that the discipline of making things happen on a shoe-string is invaluable. Research is the key. Make sure that the technology purchased is genuinely needed and up-to-date as it is essential to spend sensibly on office support equipment. It is important to buy quality premium equipment, preferably energy-saving. In addition, many professionals who routinely work from home rely to a large extent on email and mobile phones, and may not be aware of the diversity of low-cost support technologies such as web-conferencing and remote computer maintenance and problem solving.

7. Promote your new 'green' credentials Are you environmentally aware?

Is cutting down your corporate carbon footprint important to you? This is another good reason to consider 'going virtual' as working from home not only saves on fuel energy such as heating and lighting costs, but can comprise significant savings in capital expenditure (for office equipment) and home to office commuting.

8. Attract quality talent.

Prospective employers are discovering that by adapting existing business operation models to offer flexible working solutions, they are able to attract the most sought after staff. It is important to identify the technology and services best suited to enabling employees to remain productive and effective. Decide to what extent you need support staff services....do you really need to employ in-house or can a virtual office service take on some of the load? Additional factors such as maintaining operating efficiency in the face of possible pandemics and seasonal absenteeism should also be considered. Corporate agility separates the winners from the 'also ran' these days.

9. Promote flexible cashflow management practices.

Sophisticated telecommunication tools these days can enable business owners to manage cashflow on a daily basis from wherever - on the move while killing time in a taxi or at the bus stop, for instance. In addition, some quality virtual office service providers are able to assist SME's with elementary accounting and book-keeping services on behalf of their clients.

10. Outsource sensibly and monitor performance.

Make sure that you have researched suppliers and are aware of standard market charges. Always select companies with a proven track records and testimonials/credentials and go for quality. Have clear benchmarks and expectations and monitor performance.

The Virtual Office Group was established in London Piccadilly in 1980 to provide office and support services to SME's. The "Virtual Office" telecomms solution allows non-resident city professionals to project a central London address and phone prefix. In 1996 the Group became a certified ISO 9001 company by the BVQi - the only serviced office provider to hold this coveted industry benchmark of excellence. Visit http://www.voffice.com

Virtual Stock Market
Looking for a virtual stock market? Sign up and compete for big monthly cash prizes. Advanced trading features, real-time quotes and portfolio updates, interactive trading charts, market research tools, intelligent trading platform...

Ecommerce Advantages Of The Virtual Office
If you work from home or you own your own e-commerce business, chances are you work from a virtual office A virtual office can be as grounded or as virtual as you make it

Why You Should Get a Virtual Office Address
This argument on why anyone who has a business plan should get a virtual office address has been going on for a long time, and while the argument is still going on, there seems to be one side that is winning, and this is based on the sheer number of virtual office companies and providers that have been popping out from the wood work for the past few years

Virtual Office Services - Getting A Virtual Office Assistant
One of the more common aspects of the virtual office is that you will get a virtual office service that is called the virtual office assistant, and these are the for hire people that are attached to your account and help you to manage all the ins and outs of your everyday business dealings Having one is quite important because you will not be around for most of the time, and what is going to happen is that more and more people are going to want this service as part of the package

Great Virtual Office Address, Brilliant Business Planning
Having a great virtual office address is really one of the best business strategies you can have when you are thinking about branding your business as not a budget solution, but one that has some prestige and is able to give you the kind of elevation and prestige necessary to actually instil some trust into your potential customers

Virtual Office Private Phones - How Does it Work?
In this modern day and age, the virtual office has been the revolution that is changing the face of the global workforce, as we know it They provide the same amenities as physical offices and at a cost that is competitive and multiple times cheaper then renting an office space in some prime location

Chinese Businesses Offered Dedicated Start-Up Services to Launch into London Market
In partnership with Think London, the foreign direct investment agency for London, Avanta is offering Chinese companies looking to set up in the capital free office space at its Hammersmith business centre.

Virtual Offices and You
As the potential shaped by new-fangled knowledge shifts the centre of commerce away from the conventional office structure and toward a additional free-form virtual office system, it's significant that you take the occasion to believe whether a virtual office may be proficient to assist your production thrive in the twenty-first century

The Astonishing Benefits of a Virtual Office
In this day and age, it does make sense for you, if you are going to actually start your own business, to actually get one of the virtual office solutions that you can use when you are trying to launch your business idea off the ground One of the more important things that you need to know about is why you actually need to think about the virtual office solution in the first place and just what kind of benefits you can reap from getting it as your primary business platform, watching your business grow , then looking at your alternatives later on in your career

VirtualOffices - Pros and Cons
While many have touted how good virtual offices are, there are also arguments on the other side of the fence, so today, this article will look at both sides of the argument and then weigh the pros and cons of the virtual office and tell you, the reader, whether or not having a virtual office is a viable business decision for anyone to make in the long or short run

Virtual Office for Business
Running a business is no easy task and while you may not be a tech wizard, your business can benefit from having a virtual office. May sound scary if your used to your old PBX systems and are accustomed to traditional communication types, but the reality of it all is that Virtual Office is actually easier for the end user (you) than you might think.

Use a Virtual Office as a Profitable Alternative to Paying High Rent
A money saving service that is being used by many professionals today is the virtual office. With so many business professionals working from their homes or on the go, the virtual office has evolved into a popular alternative to leasing a permanent office. It provides a creative solution which benefits the small business owner tremendously.

4 Ultimate Benefits of Using a Virtual Office
One of the things that you might be finding familiar is that more and more people are actually using the power of the virtual office to launch their office, and when you are thinking about this, what you need to know is why more and more people are actually doing this and what kind of benefits they are achieving with the use of the virtual office

Virtual Office Services That Will Boost Your Business Idea
There are several virtual office services that you might want to take a look into and they will be able to enhance your business experience, no matter if you are doing it on a budget For one thing, the potential of the virtual office has exploded of late, and they are no longer looking at it as the weaker sibling of the traditional office, and this has proven more so with more and more people and enterprising individuals using the service to launch their business ideas and see if they can be a success in the market and the arena of their choice

Avanta Target a Million Square Feet to Double London Serviced Office Portfolio
One of London's fastest growing serviced companies, Avanta, has revealed major expansion plans to double its operation in the capital within the next two years.