How to Build a Marketing Strategy for a Coworking Space
Marketing is an essential aspect for any business. Here are a few tips you can specifically apply while running a coworking space.
Running a successful coworking space is a matter of marketing your spaces to the right people. Statistics show that 84% of people feel more motivated working in coworking spaces, with 68% noting their skills have also improved since they started visiting. While the reasons for working in a coworking space will differ from person to person, adopting a solid marketing strategy will help attract a crowd.
Build a Solid Online Presence
Everything that freelancers and small startups do revolves around online connectivity. You need to make a good first impression online to have a chance at capturing your audience’s attention. There are several things you can do in that regard:
Create a representative website with photos and videos of your premises
Create social media pages on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn
Create your Google My Business page with your business’ details
Create a podcast for your coworking space to interview freelancers and discuss trends
To not go over your marketing budget—you can use a profit calculator and keep your monetary resources under control. A coworking space has to have a solid online foundation to be more appealing to its potential visitors.
Emphasize the Perks and Features of your Coworking Space
Differentiating from your competition is an important element of developing a solid marketing strategy. Do you have a lounge area with comfy chairs and video game consoles? Does your coworking space have a conference room or a dedicated catering service that can enhance business meetings and social events?
Think about what makes your coworking space unique, and play to your strengths. List these perks front and center on your website and social media to make sure more people notice them. You can update the list over time or even create a coworking space roadmap with a long-term plan for the space’s development.
Showcase Satisfied Freelancers and their Testimonials
When it comes to coworking spaces, no one wants to be the first to test whether it’s worth it. That is why you should interview your existing members to use as promotional materials online and/or have them write testimonials or reviews.
You can even have freelancers write short blog posts or essays about their experiences with your coworking space. You can use GetGoodGrade to make sure no grammar or formatting errors are present in these essays before you publish them online. Social proof is extremely important and can turn the tide in your favor by attracting the right crowd to your coworking space.
Organize and Market Events for Different Crowds
One of the benefits of running a coworking space is that you can organize various public events for professionals . These events will not only gain the loyalty of existing visitors but also put your coworking space on the radar of many others. Some events you can consider organizing include but are not limited to:
Professional development seminars (programming, web design, business development, etc.)
Demo seminars (for companies to present new products/services related to IT)
Networking events (for professionals to meet likeminded individuals to cooperate with)
Hackathons (for professionals to collaborate on a single project with joint accountability)
Open day events (casual events for people to come and check out your coworking space)
Offer Loyalty and Friend Referral Discounts
Coworking spaces need to charge monthly fees to their visitors to stay operational. However, you can sweeten the pot for new and existing members by creating and marketing loyalty discounts and offers. For example, you can lower the price of renting an office desk for 6- or 12-month subscriptions. Or, you can offer exclusive gifts and discounts for people who bring friends and acquaintances to become your full-time members.
Loyalty offers are an amazing way to entice people to stick with your coworking space for an extended period. It’s also smart to focus on retaining existing members rather than to focus solely on acquiring cold leads. After all, there are only so many professional freelancers who may be interested in working out of a coworking space in your area.
Reach out to Online Influencers to Cover your Coworking Space
Being promoted by others online is also a neat idea you can explore for your coworking space’s marketing strategy. Different bloggers, online personalities, and influencers in your area might be interested in visiting and promoting your hub. Reach out to them via social media or email and pitch them a collaboration project to work on.
While some may ask for monetary compensation, others will do it for other perks or completely free of charge. Popular personalities or brands advocating for your hub on their social media and website are very helpful. This will convince not only their followers but also cold leads that you are a spot worth checking out.
Maintaining a Solid Marketing Strategy for your Coworking Space
Marketing your coworking space is a long-term time and resource investment. You will never really be done promoting your space if you want a constant influx of new members. However, as your membership grows, word of mouth will start to spread and do a much better job at marketing to new freelancers. Always work on improving your business model and you won’t have to worry about whether people want to work out of your coworking space.
Jessica Fender is a copywriter, editor, and blogger with a background in marketing and sales. She enjoys sharing her experience with like-minded professionals who aim to provide customers with high-quality services.