As the world gets more technologically advanced, many business owners are making the switch to virtual offices. And, from start-ups seeking a business presence to small to medium enterprises looking to expand, a virtual office provides all the advantages of a traditional office, with added cost savings and flexibility on top of that.
Meanwhile, if you are wondering how much a virtual office costs, it’s not always so clear-cut, as factors such as customization make their way into the final quote. To make it clear, we’ve put together the information about virtual offices you need to know and outlined some prices you can expect to pay for one in New York City.
7 Benefits of a Virtual Office for Small Businesses
Virtual offices allow businesses to give companies the amenities and benefits of a physical office while significantly cutting the costs required to operate one. Here are 7 benefits small businesses can expect to see with a virtual office in NYC:
- The facilities are managed for you
A virtual office, complete with reception, can start in the low hundreds per month, depending on your needs. Additionally, facilities at a virtual office are managed by the entity leasing to you. That way, you incur no office upkeep costs.
- The monthly obligation costs are zero
Past business ventures usually involved expanding small businesses by buying or leasing expensive offices with their associated overheads. With a physical office, maintenance and utility fees can easily cost thousands. However, with a virtual business model, there is zero overhead.
- Substantial employee cost savings
When it comes to transitioning to a virtual office, firms can save thousands in personnel costs. For instance, an experienced receptionist can cost around $70K to $80K once you figure in hiring costs such as recruitment, training and medical insurance. Since a company that offers virtual offices typically provides a receptionist in their plans, you save this expense.
- More flexibility is offered
The flexibility features of virtual models are popular with small business owners and employees alike. For instance, granting your personnel more flexibility can increase productivity and scale down the vacation days. On the other hand, employees don’t have to contend with a long commute, so they have more freedom to focus on work/life balance.
- Moving your business location is easier
You rent virtual offices by the month vs. being on the hook for a lengthy lease for a physical workplace and all the early termination fees associated with it. In addition, this makes things easy if you want to temporarily rent, transfer to another office location or cancel your service.
- They represent your business professionally.
Virtual offices give validity and shed a positive light on your business while maximizing every opportunity. They offer a private place to work when necessary and add professional services such as mail handling and drop off to the mix. You’ll never have to worry about dogs barking in the background, either, since a professional office receptionist answers your phone calls.
- Massive savings on leasing costs
When small to medium businesses encourage their employees to work from home, it can save them tens of thousands annually in leasing costs. This fact alone makes it one of the most significant savings that business owners can reap on this list.
Virtual Office Prices
Factors such as the area of the country you work in, the office vacancy rates, location, unemployment rates and more can determine the lease rate for a small conventional office. Prices for these conventional offices can start around $5K, whereas costs for using a virtual office can range from under $50 to more than $200 a month.
Extra services that are tacked on make the lease tilt more toward the side of the $200+ mark, too. For instance, a Central New York City business address with mail forwarding could have a basic plan that starts at $29 and go up to a premium plan that starts at $269.
Also, bear in mind that high vacancy rates that bring rental costs down for a physical office usually exist for a good reason. However, the prices for a virtual office can fluctuate, depending mainly on how many of them are in the area and competing with one another. For example, a virtual office headquartered in NYC is relatively cheap compared to other big cities since the virtual office market is so competitive.
Some of the Services Offered by Virtual Offices
Below is an example of some of the services you can expect to see in a Virtual Office Plan in NYC:
Mail Content Scanning or Mail Shredding
When you select Corporate Suite’s Silver Plan, you’ll get features such as mail content scanning or mail shredding for easy disposal of your sensitive documents.
Pick Up Mail at Address Location
If you don’t have time to pick up the mail, virtual office packages like Corporate Suite’s Silver Plan provides someone to do it for you. This service includes picking up envelopes and small packages for you from courier locations such as USPS, DHL, FedEx and UPS.
Telephone and Receptionist Services
Virtual offices usually have a receptionist that represents and supports your business. Corporate Suites provides a bilingual receptionist to do just that as part of our Basic Plan. We also have virtual phone services with a local 212 number, voicemail, & reception call answering as part of our Basic Plan.
Check Deposit by Mail
As part of flexible office integration, many virtual offices now feature check deposits by mail. For the service, Corporate Suites provides someone who takes a photo of both sides of your endorsed check with your tablet or smartphone or tablet. Then, we securely deposit your check digitally.
Additional Virtual Office Services
Virtual Offices in NYC often start with a basic plan. Features you might see with one include a central New York business address with staff to handle & forward your mail, onsite IT Support and secure superfast Wi-Fi. In addition, they typically allow access to color copying, printing & scanning, workspaces and meeting areas.
Setup Fees
Although Corporate Suites doesn’t charge for one, most companies charge a one-time setup fee that’s around $100-150 when you go the virtual office route. Additional virtual office services can include bespoke solutions, plan upgrades and on-demand services.
Bespoke Solutions
One handy service that often comes with a virtual office plan includes adding the bespoke solutions you need without committing to an upgraded plan.
For example, if you had a $39/month Basic Plan with Corporate Suites and didn’t want to upgrade to our Silver Plan that’s $89/month, just to add the fax to the email service, it would only be $10 added to your plan. That would make the monthly charge $49 vs. $89.
Upgraded Plans
Our virtual offices in NYC have all the features that fit your needs. We start with our Basic Plan ($29), with 20% of Spend Credited When Upgrading to a Full Time Office. We also offer upgraded plans such the VOIP Plan ($39), Silver ($89), Gold ($109) and Platinum ($269)
A few of the features you can expect to see with upgraded service include:
- Personalized Call Answering During Business Hours
- 4 Hours Meeting Room Space per Month Included
- 2 Days per Month of Private Office Included
- VOIP Business Phone Service with Handset
- Mail Forwarding Service with UPS, FedEx or USPS
On Demand Services
On demand services are flex services where you are usually charged by the hour. They are an additional charge to your plan unless they are included as part of the monthly contract. Here are three of the popular On Demand services that Corporate Suites features:
- On Demand NYC Member Rates for Meeting Space & Video Conferencing ($60-$80/hour)
- On Demand NYC Member Rates for Private Furnished Daily Office Rental (From $20/hour)
- On Demand NYC Member Rates for Coworking Space Rental (From $35/hour)
The Perfect Virtual Office Solution for You
As you can see, virtual offices give you the legitimacy of a brick & mortar office address without incurring the cost of leasing or staffing it. At Corporate Suites, we know that no two businesses are the same. For this reason, we give you the option to completely customize your NYC virtual office plan.
Whether you’re in need of a short term commitment for a month or two, or a long term solution as you establish your business in the city, we will work with you to tailor a virtual office NYC plan that accounts for your unique requirements. For more information about our NYC Virtual Office Space Solutions, please contact us at (866) 462-8863. Alternatively, you can book a tour using our online form.
