As your small business or startup grows, it’s possible that you’ll quickly outgrow your home office space (or other ad hoc office solution). The good news is that is not a bad problem to have. Still, finding the perfect office space has its challenges.
You want an office that suits your company’s culture, a space that feels like it will fit your vision just right. Perhaps most importantly, you need an office lease that fits your budget. To guide your search for the best commercial space, keep these 8 office hunting tips in mind.
1. Know How Much Space Your Office Rental Needs
This might be easier to understand if you are a solopreneur looking for a shared office space that rents by the day or hour. However, deciding on space gets trickier if you have a distributed team or special equipment or needs to accommodate. Office size can drastically impact not only your job satisfaction but your team’s as well. A quick way to lose that satisfaction is a cramped workspace.
2. Choose an Office Layout Based on the Team’s Work Style
Think about the type of office layout or workspace environment that will lead to your employees doing their best work. Would they love an open collaboration space, private offices or cubicles, or a combination?
As an example, open offices are popular amongst many modern businesses. This can be great for teams that thrive on collaboration. Though, if your team needs to focus without distractions, this type of setup may not be the best for maximizing productivity.
3. Rent an Office Close to Where Employees Live
Commutes to work can impact employee happiness and turnover. Let’s face it no one wants to deal with a long commute Monday through Friday; wasting production hours when there are employers more conveniently to their location. To the extent that it’s possible, try to find an office that everyone on your team can reach without too much hassle.
4. Rent an Office That is Accessible to Clients, too!
Make it easy for your client to do business with you. One of the best ways to do this is by choosing an office rental that can be easily reached by public transportation and major highways. Is there parking? Is the area safe? Don’t lose a client simply because they cannot find you.
5. Select an Office That Fits Your Culture
It is equally important to find an office that fits your company’s personality. Scrappy startups may feel out of place in swank corporate office parks, and businesses with high-end clientele may want to skip the trendy warehouse district.
The more comfortable an office space feels the more your team is likely to attract similarly minded companies, which can be great for networking and morale.
6. Set a Budget (and Stick to It)
In addition to location, the cost will be the next biggest concern when searching for a new office. Before the search begins, crunch the numbers to find a monthly budget that will be comfortable for the business. And don’t exceed this budget, no matter how posh the office space looks.
7. Negotiate Your Office Lease Before Signing
Everything is negotiable, including rent for commercial office rentals. You can negotiate for specific lease terms, free rent, maintenance, and more.
8. Consider a Flexible Virtual Office Membership
Virtual office memberships, like the type we offer here at Intelligent Office (IO), are a great option for startups and small businesses who need flexibility. Our virtual office spaces have:
- Flexible lease terms by the day, week, month, and beyond.
- Locations throughout the U.S. and Canada, available to all members.
- Budget-friendly rental terms.
- A variety of spaces, from executive office suits to meeting rooms.
