One of the most tiresome aspects of a business can be the constant flow of visitors coming in and out of your business. Don’t get me wrong, incoming traffic is a must for those who work in retail goods and services. When you work from home, the last thing most entrepreneurs want or need is a steady knock at the door interrupting their workflow.
Posting your home address on business correspondence and other media literally “opens the door” to frequent interruptions to your work day, and the possibility of interactions with people you’d otherwise go out of our way to avoid. Once someone knows where you live, they’ll always have the option of stopping by whether you want them to or not.
Running your business out of your home also creates privacy and safety concerns, as not all business deals are going to go smooth as silk if you end up truly successful and serving lots of people. A customer will surely feel slighted here and there. Not to mention, some competitors have no boundaries when it comes to trying to shake up your brand.
Basically, you don’t want these people knowing where you live. At the very least, you want to have a clear delineation between personal life and business.
The virtual address option
A virtual office address attached to your business is a great option if you don’t need a storefront address, and could do without the possibility of someone dropping into your place of business unannounced. This is a very popular option for businesses operating in the digital era, along with being the most affordable option for registering your business in an official capacity without an expensive lease attached.
Virtual address offers more privacy
A virtual location adds a layer of privacy and security to your home-based business. You can still receive important paperwork at your at home if you like, including legal papers. But, when people search for your business location, all they’ll have access to is the virtual address. No more worrying about a client knocking on the door while you’re using the bathroom, or the worry of exposing undesirable strangers to your family.
Virtual staff can let down unwanted visitors nicely
Many virtual addresses also offer front-desk reception services; allowing people to stop by, visit, and leave a message for you if they like. Visitors never need to know you don’t actually spend time at the address. Reception can tell your visitors that you’re in an all-day meeting, or out of the country on a business trip. This is much more professional than having a customer knock on the front door to your home. Consider how much worse you look when you have to deny a customer your time straight to their face.
A virtual address often offers other helpful benefits
Very few companies offering virtual addresses will only offer just the address itself. As mentioned, virtual reception is an option that’s often included when you rent a virtual address. Access to virtual assistants that can do almost any task you can imagine is also common. A dedicated virtual business phone number is also an option that can be included with such services, or purchased as an add-on.
What’s a virtual address?
A virtual address is a physical office address that can be located anywhere. The companies that rent them own the space provided, and basically rent you the right to register your business to that address. This, in addition to using the address on your business marketing material and other media. Often, but not always, you’re granted limited access to the office when needed to use the facilities, such as when you need to meet with a client or partner.
Considering how inexpensive a virtual office address is to rent when compared to a brick-and-mortar location, there’s little reason not to use this option.