Key Considerations When Moving Your Business to a New Location

There might be a variety of reasons why a business might have to relocate depending on the type of business. From lack of space to finding better prospects, the reasons for the move are plenty. The impact relocation has on your business is significant, which is why it is necessary to carefully plan out the entire process.

Here are some key considerations to note when Moving your business.

Why Move?

Why are you moving your business? There must be a solid reason behind the move. Don’t consider moving if you don’t have a clear answer to this question. Once you have your answer, do some research, Is moving your only option? If optimizing existing space solves the problem, then moving would be simply counterproductive to your business. Unless moving is crucial for your business, don’t consider it.

Scout out the Location

You will have to find the perfect location depending on what kind of business you run.

In-Store Businesses

For In-Store businesses, you will have to thoroughly research your customer demographics to find the ideal place where you can get the most customers. You will also need to factor in the proximities of rival businesses, accessibility, appeal of the new location, and many other important factors before locking on a location.

Other Businesses

If your business has fewer visiting clients, like in the case of manufacturing units or IT firms, then you will have to consider accessibility and connectivity for employees, raw materials, suppliers, and such. A good spot will allow your business to flaunt huge signages, increasing your brand awareness, and thereby aiding business growth.

Don’t think you will be wasting money on prime locations. Even Sub-par businesses do well if they are situated in a proper location.

Notify Concerned Individuals

In-Store Business

For In-Store businesses putting up signs beforehand, maybe even months before the relocation is a good move. This will make sure your regular and loyal customers know where you are shifting to.

Other Businesses

Customer retention won’t be much of an issue for other types of businesses, but notifying clients, suppliers, employees, and others involved in the supply chain is essential so that the transition happens smoothly. If you are relocating to someplace far away, not informing concerned individuals might greatly affect your business.

Update Address

Once you relocate, don’t forget to update your business address. Change it wherever you had the previous address listed, and don’t forget about the digital platforms, especially Google Maps. You might also have to get signages and visiting cards printed with the new address.

Plan it Out

Budget

Estimate the expenses for the entire move and set a clear budget. Having a set budget will help you avoid losses and encourage you to spend wisely. Make sure to take everything into account, from leasing or buying the new property to hiring packers and movers.

Layout

Based on your business needs plan out a layout for your new business property with the assistance of Interior design professionals while also taking inputs from your employees. It is good to focus on Aesthetics and Productivity, but don’t leave out safety, sustainability, and User Experience.

Inventory

While you are at it, taking Inventory won’t hurt, in fact, it is very important to do so. This will let you know what is exactly in your inventory. Armed with this information you can decide on what to move and where to move. You can do away with anything that you don’t need. And for the inventory you feel like you will need at some point, but don’t want to clutter your new business place with, you can use a self-storage space. This way you will have less stuff to move about.

Labeling

While taking inventory and packing up, don’t forget to label everything. It is commonplace to lose things when moving, so to save time and shift your stuff with minimum hassle, labels are your answer. While labelling make sure to mention the area/place where that particular thing will be placed, in addition to adding its name on the label. You can further use different colored markers to make classification easier.

When, Where, and How?

Have a plan of action ready, once you have fixed where to move, plan on when and how to move. Moving often causes chaos, but you can avoid it altogether if you draw out and stick to a proper plan and schedule. Decide if you will be moving all the furniture and stuff yourself or if you will be hiring Packers and Movers. If you are hiring Packers and movers, decide on a time frame with them, and have a backup plan ready in case they are a no-show.

Fix a time for when you will be able to carry out the entire moving operation without being disrupted and/or without disrupting anyone else’s work, ideally when your employees are off.

IT

If your business has servers and other systems in place, plan well to move them without disrupting your business operations. It is wise to get your Internet service provider, landline operator, and any other service providers you take service from in the loop, and have them provide your new business place with an active service before you move there.

After you Move

Reopening

Depending on the type of business, you can plan how you reopen your business after you have moved successfully. For In-Store businesses, you could offer discounts, special offers, and such to attract new customers and make them aware of your store. For other businesses, you could host a party for your employees and clients to celebrate moving into a new place.

Assessment

A month after the move would be the right time to check some analytics to see how the move affected your business. If it’s negative you can work on new strategies and continue monitoring the growth of your business for the coming months. If it’s positive, then celebrate and work on improving it further.

These are some general tips to help when moving your business. Based on the type of business you have you can streamline the steps and make a more suitable plan for your business.