Moving Offices

You’ve found your perfect new office space. Moving brings a new environment, new opportunities, and it can also bring new stress. But, it doesn’t have to. Here are some tips to make moving your business go as stress free as possible.

Start Planning Early

Give yourself at least three months to plan your move. Moving offices will go more smoothly with a plan. Evaluate what needs to be moved and decide what should be donated or securely eliminated. Many charities do accept old office furniture, you just have to coordinate ahead of time for pick up.  The same goes for the secure disposal of electronic equipment. Advanced planning will help streamline these logistics. Also, don’t keep employees in the dark about your plans of moving. Keep employees in the loop as your plans unfold so they can manage workflow appropriately and support a smooth transition process.

Recycle Old Electronics

Whether it’s old office phones or computers, it’s essential to dispose safely of these products both to protect your company’s security and prevent harmful environmental damage for e-waste. Removing your personal information from the devices isn’t as simple as just deleting old files. It’s important to completely wipe the hard drives and delete all information off of the devices before you recycle or donate the devices. Once all of your information is wiped off the devices, you can either recycle, donate, or go to companies like Best Buy and Amazon who have buy back programs.

Plan How You Will Cater To Customers

For most small businesses, it isn’t practical to shut down your whole operation while you are moving. So, if your hours of operation are Monday through Friday move on the weekend. If your customers rely on you to answer their emails or phone calls, make sure that you inform them that it will take a little longer than usual to respond because of the move.  If you’re enlisting the help of your employees during the transition period with moving-related duties, consider designating one employee as the emergency client contact. That way you can ensure that your customers needs are still being met and you can focus on the move.

Non-Essentials Should Be Moved First

Conduct a thorough analysis of all parts of your office and divide items into two categories “essentials” and “non-essentials”. Reduce downtime by moving non-essential items first to your new office space. Equipment that’s necessary for day-to-day operations should stay in place until moving day.

Change Your Digital Address

In addition to updating vendors and clients about your new address, don’t forget to change your NAP information with Google. Moving offices needs to be reflected digitally. Simply updating your address in your Google My Business listing won’t be enough. In addition to fixing your data with Google, you’ll need to fix your data on sites that supply directories with this data. Google pulls information from a nearly infinite number of sources, including Yelp, Yellow Pages, Citysearch, Local.com etc. They use these sites to ensure the accuracy and credibility of your business and it’s information.

Reduce Wasted Square Feet by Utilizing Storage

Whether you are downsizing to a smaller office or you want to have less clutter in the office, storage is a great option. Opting to put rarely used documents and files in storage, rather than taking up space in your office, will minimize your real estate footprint. Our storage facilities include a computerized inventory system, a secure facility and climate control.

Moving your business to a new location can be a lot of work. But, with a bit of planning and the help of a professional moving team like Access Gentle Moving, you can be in your new office in no time.