A common questions new business owners ask is whether they’ll need business address services for their company. It’s a smart question to ask, and the answer isn’t always 100% straightforward. Many of the benefits and drawbacks of having an official business address are highly dependent on your local laws, which means making the decision could require a little bit of local research.
Every year, more and more entrepreneurs start their new business ventures from their very own homes. With the continual growth and advancement of the internet, coordinating many types of businesses online is not only easier but also less expensive, too. However, with the rise of home businesses comes unique challenges and questions entrepreneurs must answer. To aid with your decision, we’ve compiled general guidelines that summarize the major factors to consider.
The Benefits of Business Address Services
#1 Brand Strength
Unfortunately, there’s still a lot of distrust to be had from consumers toward online businesses. While many feelings of distrust come from dated misconceptions about online services, there are some bad actors who have made consumers wary. Having a listed business address that is more than just a faceless P.O. box can add some immediate credence to your brand. Proper addresses look nice on printed materials. They confer trust online and go a long way to reassuring the more worried online buyers. A business address isn’t a magic bullet, but it can certainly help.
Additionally, there’s something to say for the sense of roots that a fixed business address gives your brand. While this may not affect every brand, some customers really do care where their products come from geographically. A business address can give your brand a local image that might otherwise be lost on such customers. With a dedicated business address, you can claim a business address on Google or other search engines and have an instant local presence for your business.
#2 Separation of Work and Personal
While many entrepreneurs love to work from home, home is not always the ideal place to meet clients, hold conferences, hash out contracts, or vet potential employees. Having a business address outside of your home (even if you mostly work from home) can be greatly beneficial. There are, in fact, offices and workspaces that are specifically designed to facilitate such a setup. Shared office spaces and temporary offices often offer convenient mailrooms, lounges, conference rooms, and even technology and equipment. These resources cost significantly less than renting and equipping your own office space. What’s best about these types of offices is that they’re use-as-you-need; if you want to work from home, you can do so guilt-free while still having a place to get your mail, meet up with colleagues, and greet clients. Business address services keep you from having to sacrifice your personal space for work.
#3 Privacy
The most straightforward reason to consider business address services is the privacy a business address affords you. Having your home readily available as the location of your business just isn’t viable for many companies. While customers are largely everyday buyers, some particularly driven customers might not hold the same perception of privacy as others, and having your home address readily available might not be the best idea.
#4 Taxes
While this is largely dependent on your local laws, there are times when having a business address, either at your home or elsewhere, can actually impact your taxes positively. Be sure to talk to a tax professional to see if this is the case in your area. Business address services can benefit you more than you might think.
Considerations
While there are plenty of benefits, there are undeniably some things to consider before purchasing a devoted business address. Be mindful of the following factors as you research business address services.
#1 Cost
Having a business address outside your home can come with associated costs. Whether those costs come in the form of office space upkeep and rental fees, shared workspace dues, or even just mailbox rental fees, they can become a burden depending on the size, scope, and initial capital of your new business. The leanest of businesses may prefer virtual office space, virtual mailboxes, or traditional P.O. boxes. Mail services such as mail forwarding or scanning can always be added as your business grows and changes.
#2 Efficiency
If you have a business address that isn’t in the same place that you conduct business every day, you’ll end up spending considerably more time on daily tasks like sending and receiving mail. Again, depending on how much mail your business handles, this may or may not even be a problem. But for companies that are expecting to be sending out lots of mail, having a remote mailing location could become a time burden you don’t need as the leader of a growing business. With virtual business solutions like mail handling, you can choose to have your mail forwarded to your personal address or scanned and sent to you electronically in order to save time.
Decision Time
In the end, you, the leader of your business, are the one who will make the final decision. It really comes down to a value analysis; if the benefits from having a business address for your company outweigh the costs, whether located at shared office space or a personally owned office rental, then it’s likely a wise idea to make the investment and reap the rewards.
If you have questions about acquiring a business address and whether it is the right move for you, contact us at Executive Workspace. We offer a variety of virtual office services that you can customize to meet your business needs. From mail forwarding and shredding to business addresses and phone service, we are here to help you business succeed. Click here to see our business address solutions.
