Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
Angela Howard – Culture Expert
Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
- How do you integrate virtual office members into your in-house coworking community?
- Events, special perks, exclusive promotions, and surveys help to welcome virtual members into your space.
- Experts from Venture X, Barrister Executive Suites, and Createscape Coworking share their knowledge.
Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you how to build a coworking community.
It’s been done to death, and I’m not a community manager anyway.
If you want to learn how to build a happy community in your coworking space, attend a GCUC event or check out online resources like this one from Cat Johnson.
While you’re doing that, remember that not all your members work in your space every day.
Those spaces that run a virtual office product (which should be all of you, given that virtual offices are a profit-generating machine) will have members who spend nearly all their time working off-site.
So how do you integrate virtual office members into your in-house community?
It’s not as difficult as it sounds.
Following on from our recent article about mail best practices, we once again called on Carson Owen from Venture X (Greensboro, N.C.), Aubrey FitzGerald from Barrister Executive Suites (Woodland Hills, Calif.) and Keller Davis from Createscape Coworking (Austin, TX) to share their knowledge and first-hand experiences on how to welcome and engage virtual office members within a coworking community.
Being Helpful has a Snowball Effect on Your Community
A virtual office client’s first impression will live with them, which is why it’s so important to make them feel welcome and valued from the start.
If you introduce your own clients rather than using an aggregator, you’ll be responsible for every step of their onboarding — including those tricky mail compliance steps.
Filling out and notarizing the PS 1583 Form often feels daunting to clients. As Venture X’s Carson Owen notes, regardless of how many times your team has completed these forms, “it is always the member’s first time.”
Being helpful not only puts your client at ease and gets them over that compliance hurdle, he said, but it also has a valuable knock-on effect in your existing community.
“Extending your patience to new members encourages them to do the same, which encourages the next person, and so on and so forth.
“No matter how small it feels, going that extra step to help someone out will always snowball into a tighter, happier, more content community.”
It’s the Little Things
Great service is at the heart of every successful coworking and virtual office business.
For Aubrey FitzGerald from Barrister Executive Suites, getting to know virtual office clients personally helps them to feel welcome and included in your community.
“Building strong relationships and delivering excellent service starts with genuinely caring about the people who use your product,” FitzGerald told us.
“Our virtual clients are just as valued as our physical clients. They are included in all community events and receive the same level of personalized service. We take the time to get to know them — their business, their customers, and even personal details that help build meaningful connections.
“Remembering the little things makes all the difference in fostering a strong sense of community within our workspace.”
And it works.
According to FitzGerald, some of their clients have been with them for over 45 years, with an average tenure of 15 years.
“Our clients and their guests enjoy a friendly, professional community where connections happen naturally — creating not only a positive environment but also valuable networking opportunities,” FitzGerald added.
Likewise, Createscape’s Keller Davis recognises the importance of personal connections in building a happy community of members, both on- and off-site.
“A positive community starts with engagement and genuine care,” said Davis. “By cultivating personal connections, we create an environment where members feel comfortable collaborating and networking, and they trust that their needs are understood and prioritized.”
The result, Davis added, is the kind of prized community that every coworking space strives for — “a culture of mutual respect and support that grows naturally.”
Events and Mixers
Coworking events are a great way to build connections between community members while giving your members the opportunity to collaborate and network with each other.
For these reasons, virtual office clients will often jump at the chance to attend your business events.
“I have found that virtual office clients love our onsite networking events, sometimes even more so than our in-house members!” said Owen.
“A lot of our virtual members are just starting out; they relish the opportunity to come into our space, their space, and meet with other business owners in the area.”
Business events create opportunities for your space, too.
Events serve as an introduction to the physical space and help virtual clients gain first-hand experience of the community. According to Davis, some virtual office members who have attended events have transitioned into full-time coworking members.
Virtual Member Perks and Promotions
Another way to make virtual office clients feel included and valued in your community is to offer exclusive perks.
“We make a deliberate effort to include our virtual office members by offering discounted coworking day passes so they can work on-site occasionally,” said Davis.
Again, this helps virtual office members discover your space and leads to additional revenue opportunities — whether it’s an occasional day pass, meeting room time, or a monthly membership.
Even those who can’t attend on-site events or use your onsite facilities can still enjoy community benefits. The Createscape team provides virtual networking opportunities, such as online member spotlights and business promotions, to build engagement and ensure all members feel part of the community.
Survey Your Members
If you’re looking for more ways to engage your virtual office members in your coworking community, why not ask them directly?
It’s easy to send a short survey, an email, make a phone call, or speak to your virtual members next time they come in to pick up mail.
Ask them what they want or need from your space, and whether they would like the opportunity to meet some of your other coworking and virtual members in-person.
Every one of your members is in business, and they’ll most likely appreciate the opportunity to collaborate and network either virtually or in-person. And if they don’t, you’ll still gain essential feedback to help improve your business.
Happiness Leads to Loyalty and Long-Term Revenue
One of the great things about investing in your coworking community is that it benefits both you and your clients.
A happy, harmonious and engaged community of entrepreneurs (both in-house and virtual) recognise the value in your space and are more likely to keep using it.
That means less churn, fewer acquisition costs, and more long-term revenue — because clients who have a positive experience in your space will stay longer and are more likely to purchase additional products along the way.
Don’t just take our word for it. We’ll let Davis have the last word:
“Strong relationships turn one-time users into loyal members. By fostering trust and reliability, we’ve built a community where clients feel valued, leading to longer retention rates and positive word-of-mouth referrals.”
This article was written by Elba Elizondo, Partner Success Supervisor for Alliance Virtual Offices.
