The number of self-employed workers and the entire remote working community have been growing steadily with no sign of slowing down this massive revolution. And the reasons this revolution is happening are real and have far-reaching impacts on the quality of life for remote workers.
According to survey data from the Society for Human Resource Management: “early 2 in 3 survey respondents who work remotely say they are more productive now than when they worked onsite at a company.”
Coworking spaces are a godsend for freelancers, online entrepreneurs, outsourcers and remote workers in general. But the business model of coworking spaces requires a special approach to marketing in order to thrive and achieve its full potential.
Here’s a couple of less obvious suggestions on how to maximize your maximize your reach to the right audience when marketing a coworking space.
Optimize your website for Mobile
Hopefully by now, the whole internet has driven this point into your head. Whatever you do, if you want your local business on the world map, do not neglect responsive design!
Mobile has become a huge player in the world of search engines. This goes hand in hand with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) efforts. In fact, half of all search engine queries are made from mobile devices.
Missing out on this opportunity is a huge loss. Keep track of your own smartphone usage and you’ll see that it’s true. We are using every spare second to get back online: while in transit, in the waiting room at the doctor’s, in the shopping line, some can’t even let go of it while driving.
Local SEO & Social Media
Make sure you invest in digital marketing that will:
- Put your business on Google Maps, and preferably the first page of the search engine for local keywords
- Make your business pop up in the social media feed for the right people (targeting the relevant local demographic)
Get Visual With Pictures, Diagrams & Infographics
A picture says a thousand words. Including pictures of your facilities and spaces along with the descriptions and characteristics of your company is a must, especially on your website.
Apart from the website, you might want to employ more traditional forms of promotion, like taking it to the streets, dealing brochures and flyers. Include the most appealing images of your facility and people will be much more inclined to look for more info either personally on-site, or over the web.
This is a good tactic as you can also instruct the promoters to limit their target age group, and since they are going to be working near the location itself, the target audience is almost completely going to be local, and thus geographically relevant. Instead of casting a wide net, you’re laser-focused on the right audience from the get-go.
Additional website content you could utilize includes diagrams and infographics about your business. These are mostly used for providing visitors with easy to understand explanations, pros & cons, house rules and, of course, the layout of the facility. This content ensures that many of their questions are already answered before they make any judgement.
Communication With Current Customers – Feedback Collection
Reviews and feedback have more value than the obvious 5 stars presented on your website or Yelp, or another review platform.
This is an opportunity to talk directly to your customers and see what you’re doing right, but more importantly – what you’re doing wrong. Sometimes, you can make major improvements with minimal investments, and your own customers will tell you what they’re missing or what’s bothering them.
Since what we’re talking about is a working environment – a place that people depend on to make money, hiccups in your own organization will cost your clients money, and it’s not just the rental fee. If your customers can’t achieve the proper state of mind essential for getting work done, they will feel it, and you need to be there to ask for suggestions before they leave.
Your job is ensuring that your customers achieve full productivity while at work. They might not be working for you directly, but these people constitute the lifeblood of your business. Learn what makes them tick, and perform small-scale tests when introducing major changes.
Videos, testimonials, showcases
Videos are a great source of supporting content for articles posted on your website, but also landing pages for your services.
For some reason, we are wired to care about what other people say, and filmed reviews provide viewers with an opportunity to see the reactions of actual people, and judge whether they’re genuine or not. In contrast, written reviews are missing a crucial human element: non-verbal communication.
Video production may seem more expensive, but it’s not like you have to pay a CGI crew or a screenplay and a set of actors. Your customers are the storytellers, there is no script and definitely no need for acting. As for technology, modern smartphones provide good enough video quality, but you might want to invest in (or maybe rent) a good microphone.
Tracking Down Potential Customers
Many remote workers like working from coffee shops. Getting these people to consider switching to a coworking space can be as simple as chatting with them in the very coffee shops they visit.
This active hunting method can have a massive impact, since a good portion of remote workers that aren’t working from home are often willing to experiment with a change of scenery, and striving to achieve greater efficiency. And guess what? They’re often networked with others from the same niche. A large part of their network is also your potential customer base!
Offering a free day-pass or a discount for newcomers also goes a long way to reel in plenty of leads. Some companies, like Atlas Workbase, even offer guided tours that you can book online. This is a great way of getting to see the reactions of potential customers that come in with fresh eyes and might point out flaws that you may have missed.