Today, there is a strong entrepreneurial spirit in the UK. Whether that is due to the intrinsic individualistic nature of the population, a genuine desire to improve, a need to get rich quick, or simply to get out of the traffic jam is open to debate. The fact is that it is there, the government is willing to promote it and there are many people who do it: some succeed, some survive and others, unfortunately, fail.
The perennial problem that all new startups face is how not to look like a startup when you are applying for that big job that will fuel you for the next 6 months and allow the business to recover.
The Internet is a good place to start, of course, and although the phrase is used less these days, it’s still true that “no one on the Internet knows you’re a dog.” Not unless you ‘let’ them know, of course.
But the same can be true both offline and online these days, as technology makes it ever easier to create that corporate presence from your back bedroom.
Before you start this in earnest, it’s good to address a specific problem that may already be in the back of your mind. Yes, it’s possible to address this problem by partnering with a national business center that offers at least some of the things I’m going to describe below. Before you jump into this, check the price; it will make you think again. The steps below will cost you much less.
Step 1: Set an Address This can be surprisingly tricky. It is a relatively simple step to set up a PO Box with the UK Post Office. There is information about this on the post office website and on a basic level it will cost you around £60 per year, plus for extra services like mail forwarding etc.
If you are operating as a sole trader or partnership, this may be enough. After all, you’ll see a lot of very large companies giving out their mailing address(es) as a PO Box, or a variety of PO Boxes these days, as it’s a good way to manage or redirect mail. to the correct specific department.
If you are setting up through a Limited Company, you may have a hard time deciding on the correct head office address and using your home address somehow gives away the game. In this case, it’s worth finding an alternative business address that may be prepared to handle your business-related mail. As long as you are restricted to Company House type mail and not much else, your accountant may be willing to have their premises used as your registered head office. After all, a large proportion of Company House correspondence might end up at your address anyway. Otherwise, try a friendly attorney or even a friend with an established business who may be willing to help.
Obviously what we’re looking for here is something free. Remember that a PO Box can still be used for normal business correspondence; at this time, we are only looking for the head office address.
Step 2 – Get one or more phone numbers Don’t mess around here. If you are working from home, you will need to install a second line to begin with for four main reasons: 1 – it will be much easier to manage your bills/accounts 2 – you need to know when the phone rings that it is a business call and everyone in the house needs to know how to handle it (and/or behave) when a business call comes in. 3 – The last thing you need is your phone connected to your family chatter while a business client is trying to get through 4 – You really don’t want your private phone number bouncing around in the public domain from both a privacy and security perspective. More on this later.
Yes, the additional line will have an associated cost, but not having it will have a much higher hidden cost.
Least Cost Routing (LCR) can be used to reduce outgoing call costs if you have a BT line and there is a link at the bottom of this article to Phone Lines 2u who offer a very competitive service in this area.
In terms of the number you provide, it makes a lot of sense to mask the location of the number by using a national “marketing” number. Remember, we want to appear like a substantial business here. Initially, there are three types of numbers that you might consider using:
0870 – National number with national cost regardless of originating location 0845 – Local call rate number regardless of originating location 0800 – Free for the caller, the recipient pays
All these numbers are redirectable. That is, you will still have your normal phone line and phone number, but when someone calls your dedicated 0800, 0870, or 0845 number, they will be redirected to your normal phone line.
From a general marketing perspective, the numbers 0845 and 0800 make sense. However, it will cost YOU money to RECEIVE the call and in a start-up situation it is difficult to recommend these numbers unless you have substantial funding to back it up.
The 0870 number option is commonly used with large businesses these days and has the added benefit of generating revenue from incoming calls. This may make sense if you expect to get a lot of calls, but it can be a lot to expect if you’re just starting out.
What the marketing number can do for you is provide a mask to the actual destination number. This makes you look like a bigger player, but it can also have the added benefit of maximizing your flexibility behind the number. So if things go well and you move from the back room to a dedicated business space, there is no need to change your literature, business cards, website and advertising.
Likewise, you can have a range of numbers, and you can choose a different number for each ad campaign so that you can measure the relative effectiveness of each. Phone Lines 2u offers a reporting service on these numbers for free on 0870 numbers, so you don’t even need to do any work to get the analytics.
Step 3 – Get a fax number
This does not necessarily mean getting a fax machine, as it is possible to receive faxes via email for very modest fees. Again, you can choose a national number online with the phone number you have selected in step 2 to consolidate the national presence. Faxes arrive by email as an image so you can view them on any standard PC or Mac with a wide range of viewing and printing software, the vast majority of which are available free of charge or bundled with other software you may have ( for example, MS Office).
A link to tips on how to set this up is at the bottom of this article.
Step 4 – Get a virtual PBX By PBX I mean a telephone exchange system. Like the ones used by the big ones, but virtual. A phone call goes into a virtual call center and handles the calls as a large company would, for example: “Welcome to our company, press 1 for sales, press 2 for accounts, 3 for production, and 4 or hold for all other queries.”
You might have 2 or three colleagues, all working in different places: one who handles sales, one who handles accounts, and the other who is responsible for producing the overall service. Depending on the choice made, the caller will be directed to the appropriate person.
There will be a charge for the redirected call, but if you’re using an 0870 contact number, the full amount you make on the O870 call will most likely negate any internal transfer redirect charges.
Setting this up is easier than you might think: details are available on the Phone Lines 2u site; see below
Step 5 – Get Familiar with Video/Audio Conferencing If there is more than one person in the virtual business, you will need to meet/talk regularly. The fastest and cheapest way to do this is ‘virtually’, either via video or audio conferencing.
Basically meaning everyone involved in the meeting is on the line at the same time, controlled by a chairman.
Let’s start with video conferencing first, as this can be done for free. All you need for this is a PC each, a basic webcam on each machine, and a microphone of some sort. I saw a basic video conferencing package on sale in the supermarket the other day for £10, so you don’t need to break the bank to set it up. The software to manage the call is available for free from Skype or MSN and it’s relatively easy to set everything up.
Otherwise, or in the (probably common) case that not everyone can access their PC at the time of the meeting, audio conferencing works the same way, but over phone lines instead of the Internet. Yes, there is an additional cost to this, either by subscription or additional calling charges, but it will be minimal when measured against fuel costs, travel time, and lost productivity if everyone has to travel to a central location for a face to face
Audio conferencing also works well for those who work in low-tech environments, travel a lot, or people who are just plain technophobic. It’s as simple as making a call at the assigned time, entering a PIN, and continuing with the meeting. There is a bit of extra skill involved in managing this type of meeting, but I think that’s something for a future article.
So, in conclusion, having a small (or even larger ongoing) virtual business is cheaper and easier than you think. It may seem like a big player to your clients on the one hand, but the above tools and techniques will also make the whole operation much cheaper and more effective. Yes, there are some associated costs, but the savings and increased sales opportunities far outweigh any downsides.
Not only that, but virtual business is eco-friendly – it’s good to know that making your business more efficient and saving you money can also save the planet.