How to Create a Virtual Office
A virtual office is an ideal way for a small or online business to present the look and feel of a professional front, even when most or all of the employees telecommute or work in different parts of the country. By having a single mailing address and a central phone service, clients can still connect directly with the business, while the business owners can save a significant amount of money on unneeded overhead. Creating a virtual office takes some planning, but once the office has been set up, maintaining it is easy.
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Instructions
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Establish a mailing address for your virtual office. This can be either a post office box or a private mailbox at a package shipping or mail handling firm. Post office boxes are generally cheaper than private mailboxes, but are very obviously P.O. boxes; they are also unable to accept packages from third-party shipping companies.
Private mailboxes cost more, but provide your virtual office with a standard street address and are able to receive packages through either the Postal Service or third-party shipping companies.
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Set up a phone system, preferably with an automated attendant that can forward calls to different team members as needed. Make sure that the phone service you use offers voice mail as well as call forwarding so that any missed calls will be handled by the same service. Answering and messaging services staffed by human operators are also available, though they often cost more than an automated service.
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Purchase a fax machine so that important documents can be sent via fax when needed. Alternately, purchase a scanner so that the documents can be scanned and then sent via email. If using a scanner, make sure that you utilize a fax-to-email service that will provide you with a fax number that can be used by others; any faxes sent to that number will be converted to documents and sent as an attachment to the email address that you specify.
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Create a website and professional email accounts for each member of your team to present a more united front. Should team members prefer to use their existing email, simply set the new addresses to forward any emails they receive to the email address of each team member's choice.
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Rent conference rooms in hotels or similar locations if you need to meet with clients face-to-face. If the clients are traveling to meet you, book them rooms in the same hotel where your meetings will be held to make the trip more convenient for them.
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Tips & Warnings
Stay in contact with the various members of your team; make sure they feel comfortable with their role in the business. This will not only help to build teamwork without working in the same physical office, but it will also help you identify potential problems before they can affect your business as a whole.
