The term ‘virtual office’ may seem like an idea thought up for Tomorrow’s World along with food in pill form and hoverboards, but it is in fact a real and popular alternative for businesses without a fixed home.
So firstly, what exactly is a virtual office and what can it offer the user?
A virtual office is, in fact, not very “virtual” at all. As opposed to the cloud-style, CGI room that may come to mind, a virtual office will actually exist in the real world, but not necessarily where you are.
Instead, virtual offices provide a person with an office address they can call their own, with which they can put on business cards and use as a work address. Then, the more prestigious the address the better, as shown when, in looking for a virtual office, Mayfair and the like prove to be some of the most popular destinations.
Likewise, it can give you a dedicated work telephone land-line, with the opportunity to have a receptionist answer it and take calls for you.
If this is a little too remote, however, there is also the option to get office space in your virtual office to use intermittently as and when it is needed. This, of course, allows access to prime office space for meetings and the like, but does not require the full ownership of an entire office, only to then be used a few times a year.
Virtual offices such as these will often be decorated to a high quality but without branding. This ensures that anyone coming into the office is not confused by a barrage of different brand logos, instead allowing for a much more neutral feel that can suit all types of businesses for the time in which they are there.
So virtual offices may not be quite so ‘virtual’ as the name suggests, but they are most certainly useful for businesses who may neither want or need everything that goes with owning office space outright.





