There are lots of virtual business address options - so which one?

Let’s not start by searching for the “cheapest” think about:

1. The legals

Anyone can loan you the use of their address - oh no they can't! The provision of a virtual address for your business in someone else's premises is a regulated service and without a licence from the UK authorities, principally HMRC under the Anti Money Laundering regulations, it cannot be provided by anyone not legally authorised.

Of course that doesn't stop people doing it because they didn't realise they needed to obtain a licence, nor unscrupulous operators who see it as a quick way to make some money at your expense. It's best to check it out, if their credentials are not published clearly on their website then ask them.

We maintain three credentials: under AMLR MONEY LAUNDERING REGULATIONS our REGISTRATION NUMBER is XVML00000196700

In addition we are registered with ICO (INFORMATION COMMISSIONERS OFFICE) and our REGISTRATION NUMBER is ZA198728

Finally and because the use and provision of a virtual address is a known gateway to serious organised crime we are registered with NCA (NATIONAL CRIME AGENCY) under REGISTRATION NUMBER 09043380

So, before clicking on the cheapest online find out maybe why it may be.

2. Location - the actual address

An easy one, just need a generic address location ie anywhere that routes public searches away from your home address or do you want the address to be properly associated with your specific business and in a specific place?

A generic address in a location with no relevance to what your business does is sometimes ok but an association with a place is often valuable if your business intends to market itself for example on Google.

Also generic addresses are easy to spot online and though an accountant or solicitor's address is ok the connection with you is maybe not strong or valuable for you or your brand online; also accountants and solicitors have recently started to realise the value in their address (and the associated costs of the service) so some have started charging for the privilege directly or is added within your fees.

So, another one to think about before committing.

3. Your Brand Values

Promoting your business without an address might feel ok but ask yourself honestly what it says, it might still be ok but get that white board out and run your own focus group session first!

Beyond that what does it say about your business because you chose the option everyone else you can see on there has obviously chosen because it was the cheapest one on Google, still ok with that so do you do the same when choosing anything else, your coffee, your clothes, your car?

4. Service Levels

This can really vary so you need to work out what you really need: what happens when mail arrives, what happens if a parcel arrives, what happens if you need to meet people at your address and maybe have a meeting there?

All of this can impact on cost as well so it is worth thinking it through first and then checking what you might need and what it might cost, is it available even, and is it included or not and if not how much extra will it cost?

5. and so finally… the cost

Costs can vary and you need to think through a “whole cost” scenario based on what your needs are rather than just choosing based on a headline rate; you can expect as a norm that the basic cost will be around £20 to £30 plus VAT (check one of the big providers like Regus) and anything a lot cheaper will mean there is a reason for that such as lower service levels or extras that quickly pile up. For the provision of any service there is usually a direct relationship between the cost and the quality of the service you are going to receive, since we know from the first item at the top that there are clear regulatory hurdles, thus costs associated with the service, there is a good chance that you'll soon find out where you stand and changing your address later because you missed out on doing some research and thinking time first will likely cost you more, maybe even reputationally, further down the line.

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Legal Statement on working with Google: for the provision of any services NG1 Group provide, including workspace, office and virtual office and any other address service we work strictly subject to Google terms & conditions as they publish it online and no direct endorsement by Google of any of our services is suggested or implied; for you to work with Google when using our services you need to be aware of and follow their guidelines which are regularly updated so can change.