Do you want to run a remote business? Are you perhaps already running one? In the modern business world, many welcome advances in tech have allowed us to create entirely virtual offices, with little need to pay out for the real thing. You increase your scope for hiring employees who live all over the place, and you cut costs in rent, travel and hardware too.
While the benefits are plentiful as is the accessibility, this is not to say that running a remote operation isn’t hard work and doesn’t come with some potential problems to solve. If you’re thinking of braving the leap or you would like some advice on how to develop your current strategies, you’ll want to consider the following.
Find the talent
Of course, the type of business that you are running will determine the skill sets or qualifications that you seek. Being a remote business, means that you do not have to restrict your employees to those who live in a certain location. You have a much wider pool of talent to choose from across the world.
Regardless of talent, not every employee is suited to working remotely. You’ll need to try to adopt strategies to discover those employees who are! Some people thrive creatively in an office space, while others are far more productive when they can work from their own space using their own devices.
Ensure that you write enough interview questions that allow you to determine if your candidates are a right fit. For instance, questions that determine if they can self-motivate themselves to stick to deadlines. You can hold interviews using video conferencing software to ensure that you make the right choices on your employees.
Tool-up
There are plenty of tools out there to help you to run a remote company, so it’s a good idea to take advantage of them. Tools like Slack, for instance, work as a virtual office whereby teams can communicate together in teams or one-one. Slack makes it easier to collaborate because of its file-sharing properties, and this will make it a whole lot smoother for your team to work on joint projects if need be. You can use Slack on an app, so it’s possible to use from your mobile phone also. It can also be integrated with many other business applications such as Mail Chimp, for marketing tasks.
Zoom is another popular tool for video conferencing solutions. You can use Zoom for those times when you need to have a group meeting live (as face-to-face as the digital world gets)!
Nurture Productivity
Even if you have put a considerable effort into finding the right staff, it’s still key that you nurture and promote their productivity as much as possible. Firstly, you’ll need to ensure that you communicate with them enough so that they stay motivated. Secondly, you need to set clear guidelines about what’s expected from them, how they will fulfil their role daily and monthly, and ensure they are fluent in the values of the business overall.
Marketing
Marketing is high on your to-do-list as a remote business. Without a physical premise or store, you’ll need to ensure that you supercharge your digital marketing to get people talking about you and thus gain more customers and stakeholders. Sometimes, marketing will depend on your type of business, thought the basic principles usually remain the same. For example, if you are an MSP business, you’ll want to look at an MSP marketing guide to best utilize digital marketing strategies in a way that is personalized to your particular field.
You’ll want to make sure that you have a gorgeous website, and or app, that is UX optimized and full of excellent content, for example, blogs or videos that your target audience will find valuable. In addition to this, you’ll want to make the most of social media to build your online presence and communicate your branding and persona to your audience. Lastly, if you hold webinars, you can give yourself the chance to present to your consumers in real-time and respond to their questions. Doing this will ensure that you seem personable as a business and contribute to your company being viewed as credible.
While there are new challenges to take on when running a remote business, the rewards and scope for growth are ample. Being clear on your goals and remaining endlessly organized is critical. Ensure that you don’t overdo it and always take regular breaks to make sure that your own productivity doesn’t falter.