How important is location to your business?

July 11, 2016

CryptoGuru Author Level X³ July 11, 2016, 2:13 pm

Write the reason you're deleting this FAQ

As anybody who is self employed knows, one of the keys to a successful business is to ensure sure that your clients are taken care of as far as what services or jobs you'll be providing.

Now my question is as a self employed entrepreneur, i want to know and get some honest opinions, does location play a big role in a home or small business success or does the internet play a bigger factor.

My theory is that success in these type of freelancing/work-at-home businesses are not really influenced by location and it doesn't matter where it takes place. Your point of view is appreciated.

Comments 8

July 12, 2016

TommyCarey 10 years ago

You have more of a corporate identity since you can label your websites with an actual business address and not a P.O box. A professional business image is a big thing for some people because they want to work with established companies.
You can have local clients meet you at your office and not at a starbucks or other coffee place to go over details about their project, campaigns, etc. Not many people let clients come right to the office to talk about projects because you can just talk on the phone, so this could be a great selling point in order to get them to sign up since they'll be face to face.

Cons:

You have to pay a monthly fee to rent/lease office space in order to conduct business with a professional appearance.
You can purchase your own building, but if you're not established and don't have a good cash flow or funds, you will put yourself at risk.
If you're renting/leasing an office just for yourself, it's kind of a waste of money since you could invest that money into your business and bring in more clients.

Working From A Home Office

Pros:

You don't have to pay for an office space, or buy a building, in order to run your business. You can sit on your couch if you really want to, I know I do
You don't have to travel and put mileage on your car since you can stay at home. I love this and right now we only have one car because me and my spouse don't need another one since I work from home
You don't have to wear a suit and tie, or even get dressed in the morning. I typically wear basketball shorts and a t-shirt when working because I can

Cons:

When a client wants to meet up you'll have to arrange the meeting at a local coffee shop or restaurant since you don't have an office.
You can get out of order since you may not have a proper filing system and people in your house could mess up your papers if you have any.
You can have plenty of distractions such as pets, family, tv, the radio, etc. I know I have plenty that I have to tone out.
People think that since you're at home you can come out to lunch or do whatever you want, which isn't true

I own and operate my own SEO and Online Marketing company and I've had an at home office as well as an actual office in a big corporate type business. Both of these have their pros and cons and I'll try to cover what I can think of here. [b][size=200]Working From An Office Building[/size][/b] [u][b][size=160]Pros:[/size][/b][/u] [list][*]You have more of a corporate identity since you can label your websites with an actual business address and not a P.O box. A professional business image is a big thing for some people because they want to work with established companies.[/*][*]You can have local clients meet you at your office and not at a starbucks or other coffee place to go over details about their project, campaigns, etc. Not many people let clients come right to the office to talk about projects because you can just talk on the phone, so this could be a great selling point in order to get them to sign up since they'll be face to face.[/*][/list] [size=160][u][b]Cons:[/b][/u][/size] [list][*]You have to pay a monthly fee to rent/lease office space in order to conduct business with a professional appearance.[/*][*]You can purchase your own building, but if you're not established and don't have a good cash flow or funds, you will put yourself at risk.[/*][*]If you're renting/leasing an office just for yourself, it's kind of a waste of money since you could invest that money into your business and bring in more clients.[/*][/list] [b][size=200]Working From A Home Office[/size][/b] [size=160][u][b]Pros:[/b][/u][/size] [list][*]You don't have to pay for an office space, or buy a building, in order to run your business. You can sit on your couch if you really want to, I know I do :D[/*][*]You don't have to travel and put mileage on your car since you can stay at home. I love this and right now we only have one car because me and my spouse don't need another one since I work from home :)[/*][*]You don't have to wear a suit and tie, or even get dressed in the morning. I typically wear basketball shorts and a t-shirt when working because I can :D[/*][/list] [size=160][u][b]Cons:[/b][/u][/size] [list][*]When a client wants to meet up you'll have to arrange the meeting at a local coffee shop or restaurant since you don't have an office.[/*][*]You can get out of order since you may not have a proper filing system and people in your house could mess up your papers if you have any.[/*][*]You can have plenty of distractions such as pets, family, tv, the radio, etc. I know I have plenty that I have to tone out.[/*][*]People think that since you're at home you can come out to lunch or do whatever you want, which isn't true :([/*][/list]