virtual office manila Archives - Page 4 of 6

Why Your Startup Should Lease Office Space in Parañaque

Why should your startup lease office space in Parañaque?

Bring value and contribute to revenue generation
Give your startup privacy
Improve your existing workflow
Allow space for growth

Launching a startup can be exciting, which is why there has been an increase in the number of people doing just that. While many of these new entrepreneurs are content with working from their homes, shared office spaces, garages, basements, or cafes, others are taking the plunge to either buy or lease an office space in Parañaque and other cities to give their businesses more authenticity and credibility.

Research shows that the majority of people believe that starting their own business is a good career move. As a result, more than 27 million entrepreneurs today are either running or starting up a new business. However, is leasing an office space the best decision you can make early for your startup? If you are considering whether or not you want to make the jump, here are a few reasons why your startup should lease office space in Parañaque.

Bring Value and Contribute to Revenue Generation

Entrepreneurs and company founders should always carefully consider how much they are spending. In other words, if an expense does not bring or generate any revenue, you should probably reconsider if you truly need it.

Should you choose to work in an office space for lease, you and your business can greatly enjoy the benefit of private space. It can even improve the dynamics between your team members, the experience of the customer, and the efficiency of the workflows at your business.

When it comes to the eye of the public, having your business operate out of your own office space can definitely lend authority and trust to your startup. And while clients and investors alike might find your company more endearing once you have your own private office space, try and get it only when it is absolutely necessary for this phase of your startup at this current time. Avoid leasing an office space just to boost your ego or add “flash” to your startup.

Give Your Startup Privacy

Every startup or business needs a certain level of privacy. As you operate your business, you are going to have to deal with making phone calls, collecting personal employee information, making a record of your clients, among other sensitive details.

An office space ensures that any important records you keep, both electronic or hard copies, are safe from theft, loss, or outside tampering. Having your own office space also allows you to have private meetings with clients which may help set them at ease as opposed to holding meetings in a public area.

The security of your startup is a serious concern that can be addressed by leasing a private office.

Improve Your Existing Workflow

Bringing your in-house team along and moving into a private office space can change the dynamic of how your team members work together. It can also affect how employees make their reports, communicate with each other, and get their work done individually.

Change is not necessarily a bad thing. And there are definitely a lot of benefits to finally gathering your team together in one place, but be sure to consider how transferring to an office space can impact your workflow and plan accordingly.

If this transition happens in your favor, you stand to reduce the number of mistakes and errors during the early phase of your startup because everyone is going to learn how to work together in a much more intimate environment.

Allow Space for Growth

Carefully consider how you expect your startup to grow when you are thinking about switching to a private office space. During the early phases of your startup, the growth of your company could come in fits and starts, or it could be explosive. In any case, there is a good chance you are going to hire more people.

Think about how much space you are going to need as your startup expands. Based on these projections, find an office space for lease that is going to be able to accommodate you and your team.

Lastly, remember that the length of a lease for a private office space can significantly vary from three to six months for short-term lease or three to five years for long-term lease. Carefully consider the needs of your startup so you don’t get locked into a commercial lease with no room for expansion or growth.

Key Takeaway

While the first few months or years of a startup often happens in a place like the home or garage of the owner, there will come a time when this will no longer be enough. As your business grows, you should also be considering when it would be time to move to a place like an office space for lease in Parañaque.

It is important to determine where you want your company to go because the location of your business can affect the creativity, community, and productivity of your team. Before you make your choice, consider the kind of work being done in your company as well as the people who are doing it and find the right environment for them.

4 Ways You Can Improve Your Work Performance in Your Virtual Office Space in Manila

What are the ways you can improve your work performance in your virtual office space in Manila?

Focus on your goals
Manage your time wisely
Make use of communication tools
Have a little friendly competition

The modern workplace is changing in a huge way. More and more employees nowadays are starting to work remotely. While it might be appealing for some people to do their work at home, other people might find that they aren’t so productive when they work laying on their beds in their pajamas. For these kinds of people, working in a virtual office in Manila and other major cities can serve as the perfect compromise.

Eliminating the need to commute for a long time is just one of the many benefits a virtual office can provide many workers. There are other countless advantages to working this way, but whether it is located within a rented space separate from your corporate headquarters or located just within your home, a virtual office can be a way for you to be productive and focused while still being flexible.

Virtual offices that are not designed correctly, however, can cause employees more harm than good. Choosing the wrong kind of virtual office space can even lead to decreased happiness and reduced communication. If you are trying to maximize your productivity while when working away from the office, here are four ways you can improve your work performance in your virtual office space.

Focus on Your Goals

Setting achievable goals can be a very powerful tool for motivation. Make a simple to-do list and set some goals you need to achieve every day, week, month, or even for the year. Share these goals with your co-workers and so that everybody knows what you should be working on and what your deadlines are. Encourage others to do the same so that you can keep each other accountable and help everybody stay on track.

Make it clear not just to your team, but to your leaders as well, about what they expect from you as well as what you expect from them. Reach out to others if you are having a hard time meeting your goals and let your team know that they can do the same with you.

Manage Your Time Wisely

Set some reasonable expectations for the amount of time you need to work. Lay out your own set of rules for time management that shows how many hours you are expected to work every day or when you should be working on a particular task. Minimize all of the distractions around in order to ensure that you meet all of your working hours.

Just as you would when working in a traditional office, let your employers know beforehand if the number of hours you will be working for the day will be reduced. Inform your boss or supervisors if you are going to miss a few days due to an illness or an emergency within the family.

Make Use of Communication Tools

Proper communication is key to keep yourself engaged with your work. It can be hard for your employers to know if you are working or not, so it is important that you constantly communicate with them in order to earn their trust.

Make use of communication and collaboration tools that can help you keep connected with your team such as:

Basecamp – a tool for project management that allows you to keep all of your communication and work in one place
Slack – provides workplaces with real-time communication with the option to organize chat into different channels
Microsoft Office 365 – offers several office productivity applications for your computers and mobile devices including Skype, file sharing or storage, and email.

Find the right tool that works for you and make a schedule for updating your employers regularly, both through chat and face-to-face. Not only will you be able to keep track of your progress, you will also encourage a culture of loyalty and trust within your team.

Have a Little Friendly Competition

Sometimes, all it takes to encourage productivity and engagement is a little friendly competition among your teammates. “Gamification”, or the application of game-playing elements to non-gaming environments, is a popular strategy to push individual employees to increase their productivity.

Engaging in friendly competition can even build a sense of cooperation and teamwork, so try to encourage a few individuals or team-based competitions that reward your day-to-day activities.

Competition can also be a good way to measure your performance because it creates a more standardized way to evaluate your productivity. Finally, it can even help employees that are working out of a virtual office in Manila like yourself feel more included in your team.

Key Takeaway

Putting together a productive, efficient, and happy remote workplace is the key to improving your performance at work. Just remember, finding new ways to improve your productivity can take a long time. Don’t hesitate to change your strategy or try out new things.

Every day is an opportunity to improve and learn so when you prioritize your performance, you are going to thrive in your work, regardless of your location.

5 Tips for Authentic Networking in a Co-Working Space

What authentic networking practices can you employ in a co-working space?

Strike up a conversation
Suggest a fair work trade
Share your knowledge
Use your supplies for promotion
Show passion for your work

Co-working spaces have sprung up in different places because of the shift in our work practices and the overall economy. The growing popularity of project-based and freelance work has caused a lot of office space for rent in Parañaque to be turned into co-working spaces, and people are using them now more than ever. Slowly but surely they are competing with coffee shops, which are favorite places of work among freelancers.

Workers gain many benefits from working at co-working spaces. They can just go in, hunker down, put their headphones on, and zone in on their work. It’s definitely a great way to be productive as there are little to no distractions. Co-working spaces also open a lot of opportunities for individuals to grow their business. It’s the ideal place to spread awareness of your business since space is shared by professionals from different fields and walks of life.

However, doing this isn’t an easy task. You can’t just walk up to these people who are busy with their work and pitch your business/service. Authenticity is the most important aspect of networking, so individuals must learn the following practices that bank on this trait if they want to successfully expand their network.

Strike Up a Conversation

Start by a simple “Hello” accompanied with a warm and inviting smile. Ask people how they’re day is going. Inquire about their lives, their hobbies, their likes, and dislikes. You can even invite them to lunch. Put simply, treat them like how you would someone you want to be friends with. Taking a genuine interest in their lives is the simplest and easiest way to build rapport and establish a relationship.

These simple conversations will slowly turn into sales conversations and business talks, and you just have to wait for it to naturally happen. During this process, you should be able to make a lifelong friend and a business acquaintance.

Suggest A Fair Work Trade

There may come a point where someone offers you something you need may it be in form of a favor, product or service. When this comes, try to pay them back with something of equal value preferably with your own service or product.

This equal trade produces many benefits sometimes in the form of referral. If your colleague likes what you offered, he/she may spread the word. Such words will reach the ears of other people in the co-working space and even outside of it.

Share Your Knowledge

Business is about the constant acquisition of knowledge and continuous learning and a co-working space is the best place to achieve all this. As said before, the people sharing the office with you are experts in their own professions, which means they have useful knowledge that you don’t and vice versa. Sharing this knowledge will lead to immeasurable gains for both parties, so try to be generous with information.

Rest assured that there’s no need to divulge trade secrets. You can simply let them in on an amazing software that has stayed under the radar or share contact details of useful individuals/organizations like accountants or legal services.

Use Your Supplies for Promotion

One subtle way of promoting your business is plastering promotion material on your office supplies. Pens, staplers, punchers, erasers, and similar things are routinely needed in these spaces. People will constantly borrow these things from you, so might as well use it as an opportunity to promote your business.

You can label these items with something similar to but less straightforward than a business card. Something like a piece of paper with your business’ name and URL should suffice. You can then leave these things in your desk and encourage people to use it if they need or leave it in the break or conference room for good.

Show Passion for Your Work

Ever had an unenthusiastic salesman talk you into buying a product or at the very least recommend it to your friends and family? Never, right? No one wants to buy something from someone who clearly has no passion or confidence in their product and the same can be said for your business. No matter how hard you try to flower your words, if your passion doesn’t show through your actions, then no one will be interested.

On the other hand, if you display a passion for what you do, people will be drawn to you due to curiosity. They’d be asking what it is you do and how you remain so in love with your work. Doing this allows you to build relationships which can then lead to opportunities. Even if they have no need for your products or services, they may be willing to recommend you to others.

Key Takeaway

Co-working spaces are so much more than just places where you can quietly do your work. They are also places where you can expand your network and build professional relationships in. The next time you’re in an office space for rent in Parañaque, why not try out these 5 tips for authentic networking. Surely, these will get you what you want which are strong relationships and dozens of business opportunities.

Perils of Freelancing in Your Own Home

What are the perils of freelancing in your own home?

Lack of human interaction
Slacking off
No help or assistance

When you start working as a freelancer, the freedom you get can be exhilarating. For one thing, suffering through long hours of commute will be a thing of the past and there won’t be a dress code that you have to adhere to. It is like your very own virtual office. Manila-based freelancers use this to their advantage but sometimes there are challenges that come with working at home.

Remote work isn’t perfect and it still doesn’t beat the networking opportunities that a virtual office in Manila or any other location in the Metro can give you.

If you find yourself in a rut, with no progress in productivity, you might want to check out these perils of freelancing in your own home to find ways on how to fix the problems:

Lack of Human Interaction

If you are one of those professionals who thrive in a crowded environment, then working at home would probably make you feel lonely and isolated. However, this does not exclude introvert types because sometimes the lack of human interaction can become unbearable.

Thanks to the enhanced methods of communication from the technology today, you can still stay in touch with co-workers through chats, emails, or video calls, but personal encounters are still unmatched. A direct connection can enhance your social skills as well as establish trust and a solid professional chemistry with like-minded peers.

The authenticity that you would get from a face-to-face exchange can do wonders for your learning process and you cannot have this from your home, save for the occasional conversations with your housemates which can be distracting at times.

Slacking Off

Freelancing at home requires a strong sense of self-discipline and a great deal of self-motivation. Situating your office at home might push you to get carried away with the cozy atmosphere and this will end up in a decreased level of productivity.

Working alone means that you have to manage your own workflow, and most of the time, being your own boss leaves you no choice but to make yourself your greatest enemy in the battle of creativity, productivity, and progress. Not to mention that there are many distractions that will affect your workload which will result in the delayed execution of timelines.

No Help or Assistance

As previously mentioned, working from home means that you are all by yourself which means that you have no one to turn to when you need help. Relying on yourself will be a great cause of strength build-up but there are times when this could become difficult.

Working remotely will challenge you in terms of self-improvement but you might miss the rich collaborations, brainstorming, and the sense of community when you work among other people.

Collaborative work can prove to be the best. Independence is a great thing but being inspired by the work and ideas of other people can also be a rewarding experience.

Key Takeaway

Working at home can deliver many benefits to your work life but you have to admit that there are drawbacks to it as well. Consider working at a virtual office and you can get the best of both worlds: working alongside various personalities and you can work alone if your mood permits it.

Check out the office spaces for rent in your area and ask about virtual spaces for your freelancing needs.

Making a Checklist When Switching to a Virtual Office

What are the things you need to remember when switching to a virtual office?

Prepare for the transition by evaluating your business objectives
Set a structure
Manage your expectations
Use Technology wisely

If you are wondering what it would be like to make the switch between being in a traditional office space and working in a virtual office, then reading this checklist would definitely help you out. Once you have scoured and exhausted all possible options in office spaces for rent in Paranaque, Quezon City or any part of the greater Manila area, you will need to have the right tips to help you get organized.

Setting up your new office in an unconventional space would be a daunting task but an exciting one as well. It pays to plan for it and a great way to do this is by making a short list of essential things you need before making the switch to a virtual office space.

Keep these things in mind when you are going over your checklist in switching to a virtual office space for rent in Paranaque or in other Metro Manila work hubs.

Prepare for the transition by evaluating your business objectives

Shifting to a virtual office will provide good opportunities for evaluating what you want to achieve work-wise. If you are a freelancer, you should think about the benefits of working in a virtual office which will improve your productivity and overall work performance. Make sure that you are knowledgeable of the benefits of having a remote office and changes that you might encounter with the transition.

Plan for the transition by making a list of key points that you should consider. This would result in a successful transition and a beneficial shift in an office setting. You should list the reasons why you have decided to make the transition, how you plan your office space appearance when you can make the transition and what your objectives are in a virtual office.

Set a structure

Working in a virtual office means that there is a flexible allowance on time. Leaders and employees alike look at job responsibilities at an outcome-based perspective. Tracking the time of employees would just be a futile effort since employers would have a harder time to focus on this element because there are cases wherein they are based internationally and the employee works locally.

This would deliver the focus to quality and quantity over time budget. Setting expectations when switching to a virtual company would be a manageable task. It is important that you should set up a structure so that you can have a clear idea of how you would go about doing business in a virtual office.

Manage your expectations

Working remotely would be a completely different process from working in a traditional setup. With this, you have to plan out the projects that you would need to deliver. Outline them in specific details so that you would be rewarded with a well-organized process that you would need to follow and let the project run its course.

Take a breather and list down the possible benefits and risks that will come with working in a virtual office space. Networking, versatile project timeframe, a relaxed ambiance with a great sense of community are important considerations when looking for a virtual office or co-working space in Manila. Working alongside like-minded people would inspire productivity and creativity which will spell an excellent work performance.

Use technology wisely

Working at a virtual office will open you up to new possibilities in integrating new technologies to your work. Solutions for communication, project management, and team collaboration can be done with a reliable source of technology. This will enable you to work successfully when aided with significant tools that can be a means to having solutions for an improved work performance.

Most virtual office spaces offer technology like Internet connection but choose one that will keep up with the requirements of your workload or better yet, find one that exceeds that expectation. Working on a rented virtual office can also mean more for your business because it would make the whole operation efficient.

Equip yourself with the tools that you need to have a successful transition to a virtual office so you wouldn’t risk running into any mishap along the way.

Key Takeaway

Before making the switch final, you should keep this checklist in mind and do the necessary steps in transitioning to a virtual office. Working in a co-working space opens up an opportunity to make you a member of a community of ideas which is composed of different kinds of people with many skills to impart.

Working in a different environment from a traditional office space would be overwhelming at first and you can instantly notice a change in ambiance but the key to a successful transition is an organized and transparent planning strategy which puts the business objective at the best interest.

Choose the best virtual office space for you and this would begin a productivity streak that would make difficult projects seem easy.

Here’s How Augmented Reality Could Have a Role in Virtual Offices in Manila

What are the benefits of Augmented Reality’s Role in Virtual Offices in Manila?

Remote conferencing made better
Improve business organization
Efficient employee training
Reimagined office culture

Almost nothing is impossible with technology nowadays. An imagined future with Augmented Reality (AR) was a used as the material for film plots back in the day but today it can be integrated into various industries. It has been a mainstay in the video game industry but did you know that you can use now use it in the workplace?

Augmented Reality has done wonders for people who work in virtual offices in Manila, and in other parts of the world. Its business potential allows you to work in a real-world environment without needing to fully immerse yourself in a completely digital setting. Organizations who are thriving from remote work or working-at-home setting can make use of this technology.

This will be an essential benefit for a virtual office in Manila and they can have big impacts on employee training, communication, productivity, and customer service. Learn more about how augmented reality can transform the way organizations operate on a daily basis:

Remote Conferencing Made Better

With the help of AR, remote teams can convene even with constraints in time or location. Virtual conferences can benefit a lot from augmented reality devices because it will be a great foundation for collaboration even if there are discrepancies in the distance.

You do not need large and fancy conference rooms to open up a discussion. It will also reduce office distractions since Augmented Reality can solve this dilemma by blocking out unnecessary distractions that may occur in the workplace. This way, the attention would be centered on the objective at hand and how it can be met.

Using Augmented Reality in a virtual office can be a cost-effective solution because significant deals can be made remotely all while maintaining visual contact. This is a convenient and accessible option that would take the technology that co-working spaces offer and it can open up channels of collaboration across the globe.

Improved Business Organization

Large quantities of data can be tackled and it would spell out profitability for the business. Augmented reality devices can help in organizing data and distributing it accordingly. This technology can change the way that organizations do business simply because it will widen their reach and capabilities through versatile data conferences.

It would also be a great feature when the team is brainstorming and generating ideas through the platform opens up an entirely new process with regard to execution that wouldn’t even require you to leave your virtual office.

AR will give you an edge in the industry since it is a lightweight and non-intrusive technology that will break barriers in terms of communication. It is also an effective tool that can be used in sharing and collaboration, employees can deliver high-quality work on time with the right way to do data analysis.

Efficient Employee Training

The potential that Augmented Reality can bring to your business can deliver advanced results to the overall operations of the team. It also has the potential to improve human resource processes. The training program aided by augmented reality can open many opportunities towards better skills equipment and utilization of employees.

Having a renewed sense of culture in employee management because of this added technology will do a lot in the overall productivity of the organization.

Reimagined Office Culture

Using Augmented Reality as a company asset will result in an increased effort to provide improved relations between executives and their employees. It is also a great way to establish genuine networking efforts between colleagues and co-workers in a virtual office.

This would encourage a more personal working relationship with the company and this will result in advanced results in productivity, creativity, and overall performance of the company. Employees who feel connected tend to be more comfortable in the workplace and pair it with a great training of the administrative staff, employees would be poised to deliver profit to the company.

Augmented Reality is also a great way to adopt new technologies and it will result in enhancing the versatility of the employees. The potential in these technological devices are endless and the avenue that it threads within creation and collaboration will do more in valuing assets. Having AR as an integrated platform in the company strips away the limitations that the traditional structure of an office pose. Instead, it will be an exciting way to work and be efficient for the whole organization.

Key Takeaway

Having Augmented Reality as a tool for your virtual office in Manila can bring benefits more than the ones mentioned above. This is a way to use new technologies as a great way to have an edge in the market.

This will improve the way that communication is disseminated in the organization. Technology continues to evolve and with this, your team’s performance should follow suit. Staying up to date in the emerging world of technology can be achieved by having Augmented Reality or other devices in the workplace.

Use it to your advantage but remember that it will only aid you in having a high-quality organization but the overall work performance will still dictate its fate in the business industry.

Virtual Office vs. Traditional Office: Find Out What’s Best for You

What are the things to consider when choosing between a traditional and a virtual office?

Convenience and customer trust
Flexibility and accountability

There has been a long-standing debate on which is the better setup for certain kinds of businesses. With the growing preference for convenient ways to work and easy shortcuts to age-old techniques, many startup businesses have now elected to go with a virtual office. Manila, the capital of the Philippines, is home to many small and medium businesses that have most if not all their operations via virtual offices. However, there are still more companies that use the traditional office setting because it is what has always been done in the past.

If you are planning on starting a business or restructuring your business, one of the most important things to consider is the office setting. Both the traditional and the virtual office setting has their perks. To identify which one is the most ideal for your business, you have to choose which one fits what you need the most.

Convenience and Customer Trust

Virtual offices basically let employees do all of their work anywhere they want. It prioritizes the convenience of the workers. Since most people who work in virtual offices do so in their homes, have a very flexible way of working, and don’t have to worry about the stress of commuting to and from a workplace. Startups in Manila prefer to operate in a virtual office because office rent in the Philippines has done nothing but soar higher and higher.

However, because most virtual offices in Manila don’t have a physical location, they don’t have any place to interact with their customers and team face-to-face. Traditional offices have a physical location where all the employees, as well as the clients, go to make their transactions.

The presence of an office space makes it more likely for customers to trust the business, as they are able to interact with them. To make up for this, virtual offices typically book places for their face-to-face interactions with their customers or their team.

To put it simply, choosing each office setting will give you a boost to either the convenience of your work (virtual offices) or the customer trust that you gain (traditional offices). Both can obtain each other’s perk as the business moves forward.

Flexibility and Accountability

A major difference between virtual offices and traditional offices is the work hours for the employees. The average employee usually works for 9 hours, usually having two 15 minute breaks and a 1-hour lunch break. Employees are usually required to monitor their time while working and on break. People who work in virtual offices, however, have the liberty to do what they want with their time. Apart from deadlines that they need to follow, people who work in virtual offices choose when they want to work.

If you want to be able to control your work hours, then a virtual office would be ideal for you. This kind of office setting lets you work any time of the day, for as short or as long as you want, and anywhere in the world. However, virtual offices are mostly results-based.

Traditional offices usually have fixed working hours that are heavily monitored by the management. Some of them have implemented a system called flextime where the employees can choose what time they can go to work, for as long as they get to reach a certain quota every week or month.

A virtual office is perfect for someone who wants to work in the comfort of their home. These people require huge amounts of discipline in focusing on their work.

Key Takeaway

The two most notable differences between virtual offices and traditional offices are the presence of a physical office, and how much freedom the employees have with regards to when and where they work.

For people who are starting a business, virtual offices are highly favored because of how office rent in the Philippines has been continually getting more expensive. For most people who are uncomfortable with the traditional office setting, and would rather work in the comfort of their home, then a virtual office would be perfect. On the other hand, people who can’t focus well at home and need a space dedicated to them for work are much better off with traditional offices.

Secrets to Successfully Starting a Company

What are the secrets to successfully starting a company?

Make something with value
Aim to improve the lives of your customers
Be transparent and authentic

There are a lot of people who have always wanted to start their own business but have failed to do so. Whether it is simply because they are not sure about the specifics that are involved or because they feel overwhelmed by the entire process, there are a lot of reasons a person can be turned off from starting a business in the Philippines like a virtual office.

Once you make a list of the things you need to do to, starting a business can seem daunting. This list might include everything from forming a sound business plan to coming up with a name for your company to hiring your first few employees. Fortunately, most of these processes can be simplified with this list of secrets to successfully starting a company.

Make Something with Value

Business experts talk a lot about creating something of real value because it is the cornerstone of success. In fact, you have probably realized it yourself, but the wealthiest people in the world are the ones that have created the most value for everyone. More importantly, creating value is essential if you are looking for your company to succeed.

Value is important because it does not guarantee your company success. While you feel like your company might be able to sell anything, there is a high chance you might fail once you put your own needs before the needs of your customers. Experts in business agree that no matter what you want to sell, create, manufacture, or dream up, you should do it with the best interests of your customers at heart.

This is what it means to create something of value or add a large amount of it to an already existing product. Most of the successful companies in the world added value to their products first before they even took profits into consideration. For instance, Facebook connected the world through their massive social network and Google provided accurate search results before they ran ads.

Aim to Improve the Lives of Your Customers

You should also look for ways on how you can improve the lives of your customers with the product or service you plan on providing, aside from delivering real value. Even if you are able to sell your product to your customers for a brief period, it might not be sustainable if you are not improving their lives.

You can transform your business and take it to the next level if you aim to build products or provide a service or information that improves the lives of others. This can even result in a long-term exponential growth beyond what you initially predicted.

Improving the lives of others does not mean you can’t profit from your efforts. This simply means that you have to shift the focus of your company into improving the lives of your customers first and foremost.

Be Transparent and Authentic

Customers tend to avoid companies that they perceive as untrustworthy. You will fail to sell anything if your business earns a reputation as the company that people dread speaking to. Do not do anything underhanded or low-ball your suppliers or customers.

If you really want your company to succeed, experts recommend that your company be transparent and authentic. Avoid making claims that are unrealistic because your customers and even other people will see right through it. Instead, be honest about what your product or service is actually capable of doing. Make use of real-world testimonials from actual people who have used your products. Those reviews can go a long way.

Everyone can tell when you or your company is being inauthentic. People are keen on those things so don’t take advantage of them by trying to be or saying something that is not true.

Key Takeaway

Starting a business from your home in the Philippines or a virtual office can be one of the most exciting things you can do in your life. While many others before you have succeeded, keep in mind that there are countless others who have tried and failed.

Do not underestimate the sacrifices you are going to need to do in order to run a business. There is a good chance that your company is going to succeed if you are willing to work hard and listen to your customers.

4 Freelance Jobs That Are in Demand

What freelance jobs are in demand?

Social media manager
SEO and content writer
Virtual assistant

Your bank account can probably use a boost no matter what your freelance job is right now. Even if you are already working on something in a virtual office in the Philippines, it does not mean that you can’t take the time to do some extra work on the side; a side hustle, if you will.

Before starting your new career as a freelancer, it is important to first know your target market and know which types of skills and jobs will get you paid the most. This way, you can maybe plan for your future career in freelancing or start learning a new skill.

If you are interested in earning a steady income independently and want to move away from renting an office space in Manila, here are four freelance jobs that are in demand.

Social Media Manager

A social media manager or assistant, in simple terms, is a person that is entrusted with the contributing, guiding, filtering, monitoring, and measuring of the presence in social media of a product, brand, individual, or corporation. This job usually entails managing the Twitter account or the Facebook page of a large brand.

You are going to need a few important skills in order to be a social media manager. First, you need to have an aptitude for writing because 90 percent of social media and interactions within it is text-based. Second, you must be at least decent in graphics production. Part of the job might require you to use videos, images, and other multimedia.

Third, you must have a customer-service mindset to be able to communicate well with your audience. Lastly, you need to be able to keep up with the latest trends in social media marketing.

SEO and Content Writer

Content blogging is a form of writing that aims to help websites become more visible on major search engines such as Google or Bing. As a result, content writing and blogging are directly tied in with SEO or search engine optimization.

Learning how SEO works and applying it to writing content is one of the most important skills that are required today if you want to succeed in an online-based career. This is more important now that SEO services in the Philippines are becoming popular and therefore more competitive. Website owners have to do all kinds of measures just to remain at the top of popular search engines because more and more websites are being created every day. Because of this, they are in constant need of good content writers and bloggers for SEO.

Good SEO writers know how to use the keywords when writing their content. When they write their articles, they know how to seamlessly include the keywords that people are searching for. They also understand that they have to write articles that are engaging to the reader and that they have to avoid obsolete SEO practices such as stuffing keywords within their articles.

Virtual Assistant

There has been an increase in virtual assistant jobs being posted on popular job websites compared to just two or three years ago. A virtual assistant is similar to a personal assistant, but with one key difference: because a virtual assistant works remotely, their offices are online. They usually work from home, in a virtual office in the Philippines, or in any other location that is convenient for them.

Virtual assistants are hired to handle different tasks such as data entry, calendar management, writing, and WordPress management, among others. If you want to avoid paying rent for an office space in Manila and are willing to do these tasks, then this might just be the right freelance career choice for you.

Key Takeaway

Many people these days are always looking for easy ways to get rich quick, especially if they are still young. You probably have heard of all the stories about startups that make billions or smartphone apps that have made billions and want to to try your luck in making it big.

No matter what you see or hear from the media, however, do not lose sight of the important message that is hidden in all of those success stories: You need to work hard to make money. Find a career path as a freelancer that you are passionate about and challenges you to learn something new every day. Work hard and the money will follow.

What to Look for in a Virtual Office in the Philippines

What should you look for in a virtual office in the Philippines?

Convenient location
Cutting-edge technology
Spacious conference rooms

Virtual offices in Manila and other cities have been steadily gaining popularity among small business owners, startups, and freelancers. While it was originally thought of only as a way to “look like you are there when you are not”, virtual offices have evolved to become an all-around solution to the different problems businesses face.

It can provide small businesses and startups almost everything they need to give an appearance of professionalism, from a simple shared space and/or access to meeting rooms, a business address for your company, to fully furnished boardrooms and executive suites.

Because most companies are being forced to optimize in order to remain profitable, some of them are even choosing to have their employees to work remotely to reduce the cost of maintaining the cost of office rent in the Philippines. If you are in a situation where you need to explore the different choices of virtual offices available, here are a few things you should look for:

Convenient Location

Just because your business is probably going to be remote most of the time, do not assume that your clients or anybody else will not visit your offices. Clients will want to meet with you in a place that is professional in nature, so it is not out of the question that they may choose to meet in your offices.

When you are looking for a virtual office in Manila or other cities, make sure that it is located somewhere convenient. Aside from clients and customers, you might also have to call in your current employees or new hires for training and onboarding. This means that you want to find a virtual office that is located somewhere that is in a relatively central and accessible location and easy for everyone to drive or commute in.

Cutting-Edge Technology

If your virtual office has a full suite of office tech like large, easy-to-use printers that can scan and print a complicated array of paperwork or high-speed internet, you might find that your employees are more eager to come in the office. Workers that have an easier time when it comes to doing their job are more encouraged to come into work every day.

Choose a virtual office that can give you that additional value through the technology they can provide you and your employees. Make sure that your employees will have easy access to any office infrastructure they might need during the rare occasion when the resources they need are not available at their home.

Spacious Conference Rooms

You should actually visit the virtual offices you plan on using and take a look at their facilities before committing to them since you are probably going to spend a considerable amount of time in those offices and conference rooms.

You should consider looking for a place that has at least one private and elegantly decorated conference room. Aside from having a nice, spacious area for training your employees, this can also be the perfect place for you to impress your clients who want to meet in your office.

Key Takeaway

A traditional office for rent in the Philippines can be a good option for other companies that may have already been established or have grown too big, but a virtual space might just be the perfect thing for a freelancer or a small startup business.

Having the freedom to let your employees work from home or anywhere else can be great for modern businesses and professionals alike. However, no matter how easy it may be, you are still going to need a physical location and address with a mailbox from which your business can be officially reached.