Moving your business is a lot like moving your home. It is a chance for a fresh start with organizing, and it can open up a lot of opportunities to explore a new area of town. Of course, moving your home doesn’t come with the risk of losing a client. When planning out your business relocation, you want to make sure it will be a smooth transition not only for your staff but also your customers. You can achieve that goal by avoiding these common mistakes:
1. Not Hiring a Moving Company
According to the Census Bureau, the average person moves 11.7 times over the course of their lifetime. Some of the smaller moves, like going back and forth from college, can be handled with a U-Haul and a few strong friends. Moving a business is no time for DIY. You need to hire a professional moving company that can protect the investments you’ve made in office equipment and furniture.
There is also the risk to your back to consider. You put enough strain on your back sitting at your desk all day. You don’t need to add to it by actually lifting that desk.
2. Not Carrying Insurance
You might have insurance at your office, but it wouldn’t automatically cover the transition in between offices. Most moving companies do offer insurance, but those policies only cover the bare minimum. It might be a good idea to contact your company’s insurance carrier to see what short–term policy they might recommend.
3. Moving in Bad Weather
There is no guarantee that you’re going to have a sunny day when you move. Once the movers are booked, the proverbial train has left the station. However, you can minimize the risk of being hampered by weather by avoiding a move in the middle of winter. The same rule can also apply to rush hour traffic. You don’t want your movers stuck on the big day. Mid-morning to mid-afternoon is the perfect moving zone for a business.
4. Rushing the Move
You want to allow your team some “buffer” time in between moves. Just because you’re supposed to vacate on the last day of the month doesn’t mean that should be your move date. It will help to schedule the relocation a few days earlier. That can also help get things up and running before the official “first day at the new location.”
5. Not Updating Your Company Website
You’ll be changing over phone service and utilities for your company move; just don’t forget to update your website. This goes back to the “rushing” mistake. If you can get your phone lines installed at the new place a few days earlier, then you can make the switch on the website and utilize answering services to field calls. You never want to leave your customers in a lurch.
No matter how well you plan things out there is still the “unknown” that can go wrong. As long as you’re insured and using experienced business movers, you’ll minimize those risks.