How to Get the Most Out of Your Coworking Space

Despite the mismanagement and financial debacle of Wework earlier this year, the growth and adoption of coworking space remains on a steep trajectory. Consider a few of the projections from Small Business Labs:

• The number of coworking spaces will more than double from 2017 to 2022—from 14,411 to over 30,000
• The number of coworking members will almost triple from 2017 to 2022—from 1.74 million to 5.1 million (average compound growth rate of 24.2%)

Understanding the Benefits of Coworking Space

Solopreneurs and small businesses are direct beneficiaries of the growth of coworking spaces. There are myriad of reasons—greater productivity than working a home office, networking opportunities, ability to recruit and retain workers better, lower office costs (as well as from CapEx to OpEx), better work-life balance, the list could go on.

For those working from home offices, coworking spaces offer the chance to network and collaborate with like-minded professionals, a professional workspace, and an environment that may not be interrupted by home-life distractions. For small business with thoughts of or ties to permanent office space, coworking spaces offer lower costs and an opportunity to connect with other businesses. In the case of coworking spaces with available conference rooms, they often offer significant meeting space upgrades over permanent office space options.

Getting Optimal Value from Your Coworking Space

Making a coworking space a successful undertaking requires more than just reserving a spot at the closest coworking location. Following are some of the considerations solopreneurs and small businesses need to review when vetting their options and choosing a location:

1. Find your cultural fit.

Not every coworking space has the same amenities and culture. Before “hanging out a regular shingle” in a coworking space, you should determine if the location has the right level of privacy and that social interactions align with your preferences. Most coworking spaces offer daily or weekly options, and thus you can kick the tires before signing up for a longer commitment. This is particularly important for small businesses, where the larger team needs to be involved in the decision-making.

2. Know the management.

Those managing the coworking space—from the general manager to the lobby greeter—play a pivotal role in the experience you have (and your employees in the case of a small business) have when working from the coworking space. And with the lobby greeter the first person your company visitors meet when visiting you, it is important that they convey a level of professionalism that you and your business demand.

3. Socialize with other professionals.

Socializing has been proven to be an important activity that employees do when at their workplaces. But these interactions are with other professionals who are from the same company and same business background. In the case of coworking spaces, social connections are much broader—you have a chance to interact with professionals from a variety of different educational backgrounds and business types. Of course, it is important to adhere to a list of do’s and don’ts when socializing.

4. Network with others.

Socializing is just the starting point. Coworking spaces give you a chance to meet and collaborate with other business professionals, opportunities that may help you find new business, explore and develop new business ventures, or identify your next job. Networking is also a great occasion to learn about new things—search engine optimization (SEO) strategies from the hip marketing startup, how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to gain deeper data insights, and how to apply for and win government grants for special projects.

5. Get the right equipment and technology.

As part of the vetting process when you’re looking for the right coworking space, you should ensure that the coworking space comes with the technology tools you need to be productive. If not, then you need to plan on bringing those with you to the coworking space. Likewise, it is important not to overlook the meeting room space. As meetings can be a huge productivity drain if you don’t have the right technologies and tools at your fingertips (from white boards, to video and audio conferencing, to projectors), you need to ensure you’ve vetted their capabilities carefully.

6. Leverage administrative services.

Back to getting to know your management team. Most solopreneurs and businesses require administrative services, whether it is help photocopying documents, ordering and catering lunch, answering incoming calls, or faxing critical documents. Not every coworking space offers these, and thus it is important to determine if you need them and if the coworking space provides them before making a final decision.

7. Clean up and respect other coworking space occupants.

Nothing can wear out your welcome in a coworking space faster than if you do not clean up after yourself and create disruptions or distractions to other coworking occupants.

While these are not a comprehensive list, they are a great starting point for a solopreneur or small business seeking to get the most out of their coworking space—and the advantages can be substantial.

About Patrick Spencer

Patrick Spencer (Ph.D.) is the President and Founder of TIRO Communications that helps companies develop, build, and manage content, customer, advocacy, and demand-gen programs. Included in its offerings is TIRO Cognition Insights, a data analytics tool that enables B2C and B2B businesses to pinpoint what their customers and competitors’ customers are saying and to identify corresponding actionable product, services, competitive, sales, and marketing intelligence. LinkedIn Profile: LinkedIn Website: www.tirocommunications.com