5 Ways Savvy, Independent Operators Generate More Revenue Without Spending a Dime
Overcome constraints and accelerate profitability
Independently owned and operated coworking spaces face their own unique obstacles on the road to positive revenue. Location, square footage, buildout, and branding are all critical to achieving profitability. But regardless of the characteristics of your location, there are specific steps you can take to build revenue faster at little cost. Even if you have reached sustained profitability, you may not be taking full advantage of these opportunities!
Obstacles independent coworking centers face
Limited resources. Effective internet advertising and SEO take expertise and a significant budget. But without an adequate online presence, your center is likely to go unnoticed.
Limited offerings. Your coworking space has private offices and likely shared coworking areas, but what else? Meeting rooms? Day offices? Hot desks? Flexible plans? Digital mailbox service? Do you provide for the needs of remote workers?
Limited space. Independent operators typically have less square footage then franchise locations or multi-location operators. Allocating space more profitably or increasing virtual memberships that don’t take up space, opens additional revenue opportunities. I don’t understand this last sentence.
5 ways to generate more revenue without spending a dime
As a framework to think about profitability, DenSwap recommends having at least enough office rental revenue to cover all your fixed expenses, with additional revenue from shared desks, dedicated desks, conference rooms, and virtual mail to cover other expenses and profit.
Let’s take a closer look at what every independent operator can do to boost revenue now and accelerate profitability. If you’re not doing all of these, you’re leaving money on the table. If you’re doing some of them but lack consistency or creativity, then it’s time to apply more focus to get better payback.
Optimize your online profiles: You may have set up your online business profiles on Google, Bing, Yelp, and Apple Maps, but are you regularly updating them with accurate business information?
Search engine business profiles are increasingly a deciding factor for coworking prospects. Whether your profile is updated with recent photos, reviews, and posts can make all the difference between picking your location or another.
Make it a part of your weekly routine to add new content, ask for and respond to new reviews, and ensure your details are still accurate.
Provide creative flexible shared space and day office plans: A variety of plan options for freelancers, entrepreneurs, small businesses and remote workers will attract more clients. For example, consider flexible plans that allow multiple members to share an office by allocating selected days or times of their choice.
These plans can be more attractive to remote or hybrid workers who need an alternative to their home office and may have a stipend from their employer. They also allow you to utilize your available office space inventory while still searching for more permanent tenants.
Offer digital mailbox services: Through services like iWorkSpaceMail with iPostal1, operators can create two new revenue streams that take up little space.
By listing their address on iPostal1.com, coworking operators can massively boost their visibility, receive new virtual clients, and create new recurring revenue at no cost to them. All you need is space for a file cabinet to store mail and you can have unlimited clients.
With the same technology platform, provide existing members iWorkSpaceMail digital mailbox services so they can remotely view and manage their mail and packages with an app or online. Members with digital mailbox service are likely to stick with you longer.
Leverage your square footage: Coworking centers with larger shared spaces or meeting areas may consider hosting local events, trainings, classes, and workshops. You can take a space rental fee from event organizers while showing your coworking space off to guests that might not have visited or even heard of your location before.
Consider offering discounted or even free office space, shared space, and meeting room usage to non-profit or community organizations as a way to get people into your center. An empty office isn’t going to generate any revenue for you, but you can still use it to promote your business and get your name out!
Partner with brokers and referral partners: With the assistance of established brokers like Instant Offices or LiquidSpace, operators can get their coworking space listed on highly-trafficked sites as a cost-effective way of gaining visibility to prospects looking for office space, meeting rooms or event space.
Much like your search engine business profiles, to get full effectiveness out of these broker partners you should provide updated, accurate information with attractive photos.
Running your own workspace is a dream for many, but getting to profitability quickly is often the difference between a dream realized and crushing disappointment. Marrying hard work with smart strategies to accelerate revenue at little cost is a formula for success. We hope that you have found this article helpful. Click Here to learn more about digital mailbox service.
Follow iWorkSpaceMail
