Why is Your Office Location Still Important in a Digital World?

In 2018, you probably have more than a few people in your company who work remotely. You may have even spent some time working from home yourself. As work becomes more flexible, you might begin to question the need for a physical office at all. Why pay rent when Slack exists?

But if anything, the ever-connecting digital world makes physical office space all the more important. With the global economy, companies are growing fast and need to accommodate in more ways than one. A better location that gives you space to grow and fosters a productive environment is crucial to surviving in today’s market.

Here are four ways your location can impact your business and positively influence your growth so that a physical space becomes a key to your success.

Fostering an environment of productivity

In a physical space, your employees can come together to collaborate and communicate verbally rather than over email or chats. They can also enjoy the benefits of a building or office with amenities and take advantage of the opportunity to unwind and recharge during a stressful day.

A location that is safe, clean, reasonably quiet, surrounded by restaurants and shops, and easy to get to can contribute to a thriving workplace culture and ensure your office is a great place to work. And happier, engaged employees are more productive employees.

Strengthening relationships

While a space can enhance relationships among employees, it can also impact your relationship with clients and partner businesses. Locating your space strategically close to that of these businesses gives you the opportunity to pop in for meetings, go to lunch, and collaborate more efficiently.

For example, a bank looking to service high-profile clients can locate to a financial district or other big-business area in a large city. A juice bar looking to attract fitness-focused clientele will prosper if located next to a gym or yoga studio.

Increasing convenience

Your physical location can be an asset of great convenience to both you and your employees. For the office, being located near amenities like a post office or bank lets you take care of day-to-day business operations easily.

For employees, locating near to public transportation or big apartment buildings can make it easier to get to work every day, cutting down on commute time. Employees can check their PO Box before work, stop at home to grab lunch, or run a few errands on their midday break. Being close to such necessary amenities can enhance employee satisfaction while making it easier to run company operations.

Enhancing your brand

Your physical space is part of your brand experience. It’s a vessel for communicating your values to the world. It can also be a way to attract new customers. There’s a reason large department stores with ornate décor can be found clustered together in esteemed areas of cities like NYC and Chicago. Instead of making their customers come to them, they’re in a place their customers are already shopping, flaunting a brand designed to attract passersby.

Additionally, signing on to a physical office shows the competition you’re thriving and intend to become a permanent part of the area, contributing to the economy and attracting customers. A physical location is an announcement to the world that your growth trajectory is only going up.

While you can still attract customers and grow with the technology available to companies today, you can’t drop a package at the post office on your way to lunch with a coworker in a digital space. Nor can you pop in for a one-on-one brainstorm with a client at a local coffee shop down the street and halfway between both your offices.

No matter how computer-focused the workplace gets, email is no substitution for a conference room presentation and Slack is no placeholder for lunch with a coworker or client. In a digital world, real interactions in a physical space are more important than ever.

Like this blog? Read on to learn more about your physical office space

6 Must-Haves in Your New Office Floor Plan

10 Questions to Ask Before Choosing an Office Location

The Value in Moving Your Office to Downtown Cleveland

Sources:

https://eco-officegals.com/the-importance-of-office-space-and-location-for-a-business/

https://accountlearning.com/location-of-office-building-importance-affecting-factors/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/gaygaddis/2014/09/12/why-location-is-still-so-important-in-a-digitally-connected-age/#2b230a4250e1

https://www.hold-everything.com/the-importance-of-your-business-location/