What Is a Virtual Office? How Virtual Offices Work Explained

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What is a virtual office? It sounds like a virtual reality space where employees meet and work in a simulated environment. But — some might say, unfortunately — the practice is a lot more mundane than that. The virtual office has risen in popularity in recent years, with many businesses opting to include the service within their operation. But what is it and how does it work?

If you’ve heard the term virtual office, but aren’t quite sure what it is and if it’s something you need, then this blog is exactly what you’ve been searching for. Mint Formations talk you through virtual offices so that you can get clued up on one of the latest business trends.

What Is a Virtual Office?

A virtual office isn’t actually a virtual space at all. Virtual office space is a very real physical address that exists somewhere — anywhere — around the world. Virtual office spaces are found in most-all countries and major cities. They are genuine addresses you can register to your business. A virtual office isn’t a proper office, though. While it is a registered address, it cannot function as a work environment. Consider virtual offices like PO boxes, but with proper postal addresses.

How Do Virtual Offices Work?

A business — such as Mint Formations — acquires property within a location like London. We allocate addresses to this property similar to flats, which allows us to have multiple addresses for a single property location. You can then “rent” these addresses from Mint Formations, allowing you to access this address without having to secure your own office space.

Who Are Virtual Offices For?

Typically, when you rent an office, you pay per square metre of space and the costs quickly rack up. Some organisations require office space to carry out their business, but what if you don’t need space, but want an office address?

Virtual offices can be used by any size business, although they are most popular with remote working companies and self-employed individuals running a small business. They have become popular because they allow businesses to acquire genuine real estate and local addresses without the need to rent or buy property themselves.

Why Would You Want a Virtual Office?

So, you don’t need office space. You either already have a working environment, or you work remotely and don’t require a local headquarters. Why, then, would you want to rent a virtual office? There are some important business-building benefits to acquiring virtual office space that you should consider, especially if you run a remote enterprise. These include:

  • Local Access: Many businesses thrive on local sales, which may mean you want to capitalise on more than one region. The problem is, if you are based in Bath, it’s going to be hard to sell local service to somebody in London. A virtual office can provide you with the necessary locality to access regional markets without having to establish a real presence there. How? Something as simple as being able to list a regional address on your business card and website can be enough to attract local customers.
  • Business Mailing Address: A registered business address is still very important in the modern-day, despite the rise of remote work. This is because it can be used for any number of things, from contact to formal business registration with Companies House if you do not want to use your current address. If you work out of your home, using this address for your business may appear unprofessional — especially when trying to attract corporate clients. It will also become publicly listed, which can impact your privacy. Virtual offices can transform your business image and protect your personal information.
  • Low-Cost Alternative: Rental of business property is costly, especially in cities that provide a good economic presence, like London. Virtual offices allow your business to find an affordable way to acquire a local address without the need to pay high amounts of cash for a property you don’t really need.

 

Could a virtual office benefit your business? Get your London virtual office address today and start reaping the rewards of going local!

 

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Raj co-founded Mint Formations with business partner Andy Tree in 2017. Mint formations is established to nurture small UK businesses and enable exciting new opportunities for quick growth. As a successful entrepreneur, Raj knows how to start and run a business. He currently resides as a board member of seven successful companies across the world. He is best known for founding Integra Global Solutions, specialists in robotics, automation, and business process optimisation.