A Comprehensive Guide on How Virtual Offices Work and Setting Them Up For Your Business

A high turnover rate can have severely ill effects on the productivity of a business. From high commute times to non-flexible work hours, the reasons for employees to leave organizations vary greatly. So, is there a possible solution for this business problem?

Indeed, there is!

Remote work will allow you to dramatically reduce your employee turnover rate by cutting down on employees’ commute time and enabling them to work flexibly. A virtual back office support service will allow you to operate your business remotely in a desirable location without having to pay the rent or infrastructure for an actual physical space.

It’s like you have an office in Charleston or New York but actually work from your home in Ohio or some other affordable city. Or in your car. Or even the airport! What a cool idea it is, isn’t it?

Wait But, Where Did This Brilliant Concept Come From?

The virtual office concept has existed since the early 1980’s and has come a long way. There are many stories of founders like Ralph Gregory, James Blain, and Mark Dixon, among others, who, in 1980’s, are believed to have started the trend of work from home or from a remote location. With advancements in technology, the concept evolved and became more widely adopted by businesses globally.

Let’s Help You Set Up a Virtual Office

If you’ve planned out a business plan and are thinking to set up a virtual office to save some cash, here’s a handy guide for you make the whole process as smooth as possible for you:

Have a good office setup- Regardless of whether you plan on working from your home or while traveling, you will need to have a good setup in a quiet location away from any possible distractions such as the TV and kids, among others. Make this place a designated work space and ensure to not do anything other than work in this place or room. Discipline is the key for the virtual office concept to work successfully.

Sort your business address- Running a business from your home is definitely a cool concept. However, you don’t want to use your home address as your office address, do you? Imagine the kind of impression it would make on your clients if you had to do it. For a corporate sounding business address, you could either rent a post office box or use a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency mailbox (CMRA) service.

Consider your equipment and hardware needs- Depending on whether or not your work involves traveling to client locations or other places, you will need to decide on the most suitable equipment and hardware. If you need to travel around, you’ll need to have your entire office with you everywhere you go. A laptop would be most suitable in this case. If you do not need to travel around, the traditional desktop computer system with plenty of hard disk drive and memory will work just fine. Some other equipment and hardware options to consider include a laser/inkjet printer, fax machine, scanner, CD burner, DVD writer, modem, digital camera, removable media storage device.

Fulfill your software requirements- If you work independently and do not require to coordinate with others, some common categories of software you will require include an e-mail program, a word processor, spreadsheet or database programs, presentation software, virus protection software, utility programs for computer maintenance, graphics editing tools, and internet browsers. Whereas, for group software needs, enterprise email software, collaborative service applications, groupware, shareware, communication tools, and team management tools are some of the common categories of software you’ll need to look for.

With this guide, you will not have to test the turbulent waters of the business world to be able to operate in a virtual environment well.

However, if you’ve too much on your plate, provided you’ve just started your business operations, relying on virtual back office support services would be a great idea. They provide an array of services that include bookkeeping, accounting, IT services, data entry, and eCommerce optimization, among others.