7 useful points on how to move your office more efficiently…
Figures state that the UK has the worst downtime rate in business in the whole of Europe, coming in at a whopping 27 hours per year. That’s a lot of time to lose and as the old saying goes, “time is money” and in business we need to make every second count. Avoiding downtime in your hours of business should be your top priority because as it’s been proven time and time again, the key to good business is good customer service. If your clients cannot contact you when you’re moving office then you’re leaving the door open to your competitors and this can be very difficult to come back from.
What can I do to avoid this?
There are a number of different strategies you can have in place to help you avoid any type of downtime when you move.
- Planning – A smooth commercial move relies heavily on planning so start planning your move at least twelve weeks before your move date and that way any hiccups that may arise can be sorted out ahead of your moving day.
- Backup your digital data – Computers are very sensitive devices and they can lose your data if damaged during transit. In order to avoid loss of your businesses critical data and causing downtime for your business, make sure you take backups and if you can, back up to an external source for added certainty.
- Get connected – Internet service can take a while to get going and you wouldn’t want to be left without such a critical element of your business, so plan this well in advance.
- Retaining your current telephone numbers or re using your current telephone system – If you are retaining your current telephone numbers or re using your current telephone system at your new site then some degree of downtime simply cannot be avoided and you may wish to have a contingency plan in place that allows for out of hours work to be planned around your move dates.
- Installing new systems – If you are installing new systems at your new site then a smooth transition during working hours should be possible. Your new systems can be up and running in advance of your move and any issues with calls to your existing telephone numbers can usually be managed through diverts ensuring a continuation of service for all.
- Calling in the professionals – Professional removal companies are there to help with your commercial move and will be able to provide you with expert advice and knowledge, but just remember this expertise comes at a price and this is something you need to factor into your budget.
- Choose the best day for your move and make sure you discuss this date with your staff – This may sound like a no brainer but it’s a common occurrence for many business owners to find out that the day they planned their “big” office move has coincided with many of their staff being off on annual leave, leaving them to sort out everything on their own. As a business owner you don’t want to waste any time and you want to avoid downtime. Moving on a weekend might be a good idea if you are usually closed on the weekend.
We hope the above information is useful to you, if you would like assistance in understanding your best options then please contact us on 0800 50 533 50. Alternatively, you can visit our Office Movers page for more information or even run a quick quote to obtain a budget cost for a new telephone system in less than 60 seconds by clicking here.
