Changing the physical location of your business is an exciting process, but it can also be quite stressful. There’s a lot to do and consider throughout the transition, like how to alert your clients to the change and whether or not you should keep your current business phone system. In order to make it as smooth and pleasant as possible, here’s a brief list of the most important things to keep in mind throughout the moving process.
1. Update your address everywhere
You’ve probably already thought about the fact that you will need to print new business cards and company stationary to reflect your new address, but have you considered how you will notify your current clients and the general public of your move? It’s important that you cover all of your bases when listing your new address. Your website, blog, social networking accounts, and all business directories (such as Google places and Yelp) must be updated in order to ensure that your consumer base can find you. It’s also smart to include a special notice on your main webpage and at the footer of all of your e-mails announcing that you have moved and prominently listing the new address.
2. Purge what you don’t need
Your move should be a fresh start for your business. There’s no need to drag unwanted or old furniture and other items to your new location. With long distance relocations, it can be very costly and impractical to move all of your furniture to the new office. Because of this, it may be time to consider selling your old desks and chairs and updating your furniture. As an added bonus, this will really help to create an atmosphere of “new beginnings” to get you and your staff in the right frame of mind for the transition.
3. Consider upgrading your business phone system
Will you continue to use the same business phone system and service provider when you move? The layout of your new building can impact the way that the cabling and wiring must be installed, and a long-distance move could also mean that you need to change service providers and/or your phone number. At this point, it may be prudent to think about upgrading to a more modern business phone system which utilizes VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) telephony and other cloud-based services. This will keep you on the cutting edge of technology, and will actually save you money on calls.
4. Double check your licenses and insurance
If you’re moving to another city or state, you can’t just assume that you can move your stuff into your new building and start doing business. Plan ahead and find out which business licenses or certifications you may need to obtain before you open your doors. Start applying for your licenses right away so that there is no lag time. This would also be a great time to call up your insurance agent(s) and find out if they need to walk your new building or make any adjustments to your policy due to the move.
5. Choose a scalable location
You already know that your business phone system should be scalable in the event of company growth, but your new office should be, too. After all, you don’t want to be packing up your things and going through this whole process again in two years! Though your facility shouldn’t be too big for your needs, it should be spacious enough to support expansion.
Moving your business doesn’t have to be stressful. By adhering to these tips, your transition will go as smoothly as possible.
This article was originally published by TTI Houston
Published: July 26, 2013
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