Our space is located in Pella, IA. Population 10,000. We've been in business since October of 2010. Some other great "rural" spaces on here too... you guys have thoughts?
My thoughts on your questions below. Pricing- Our monthly "mobile member" pay $55 a month for 24-7 access to the space. With that they get wifi, conference rooms, printer/fax/copier, and a few other perks (see our site at veelhoeden.posterous.com). It's worked very well. We started at $50 and only took a price increase after 12 months to cover some overall costs of business and some inflation. We also have leased space members for 4-6 offices. The bigger question is what you are paying for your space. Paying $2500 a month, you'll need 50 mobile members to just make rent, plus you have other expenses. Pay $500 and you could be running with 10 (again, you'll have other spaces to cover, so you'll need more). My point is, pricing is a derivative of expense, so until you know your expenses you won't know what will fly. Sponsors- We discussed them early on, but with the exception of a few of our events, we never pursued. Possible could include a local copy/print business (you push all your big jobs to them), chamber of commerce (allow members to use conference rooms if you are closer to their business), college (allow their students access for free or reduced fee), or anyone else with some ties to supporting small businesses in town. Colleges- We did partner with our local university and had them sponsor all their Business students for one organizational fee. This was NOT a lot of money ($500 or the equivalent of 10 mobile members for one month), but our intent was to build a partnership with them, not make crazy money. For that, we have students come in and do research projects (win-win as they get class work done, we usually get some project work done) and the occasional drop in who wants to study or talk to businesses. They also come to our networking events, which has been great for recruiting and securing interns, as well as good for our businesses who may be hiring. Fulltime space- Again, we discussed, never implemented. Our clients either didn't care where they sat or they wanted a lockable door/office of their own. The one person I got ready to sell a "permanent" desk to ended up vanishing on me. That said, the biggest thing is that they want some space to leave things, and in some case, a true desktop computer to leave at the space (think engineer using CAD or other specialized software). You may need to think about lockable lockers if this is a need in your space, as they allow them to secure items without need more furniture. Combo with Chamber- Explore this with Chamber first. Some Chamber will love you. Others see you as competition. Regardless, a Chamber membership is a money maker for them, so they may be hesitant to share that with you if they don't see clear value. For example, if you chamber is vibrant and has already courted some freelancers or mobile folks, maybe providing Chamber members a discount off your mobile membership makes sense. I'm not sure what you mean by "Chamber networking membership", but if that means your members get to go to Chamber events without being members the Chamber is going to have to see value in this (as possibly sniping new Chamber members from your ranks) before they would consider it. Depending on the size of your town this may or may not be feasible. My BIGGEST advice to you for a rural space, which is just as important in other spaces but DEVASTATINGLY important in rural communities... Find your members... then find & start your space. If you need 10 to make this fly, identify 25 and get as many to commit to the project as possible. Get their input early on needs (to plan and manage your costs), get them to help you pick out the space, get them to come up with their dream environment, etc. In short, get their buy-in, both financially, but more importantly, emotionally. They have to want this as bad (or worse) than you do. But more importantly, they need to feel part of the community even as you are building it. Want to fail at this quick in rural Americana? Start your space, sink in costs for things that people "could" want, make it all nice and pretty... then go out and find members. In the meantime, you are paying bills and working alone while the clock ticks on how long you can operate at a loss. And just so you know, unless you sleep on a cash-filled mattress, that clock won't tick long. I wrote an article on this a year or so ago... you can find it here. http://www.smallbizsurvival.com/2011/03/how-to-start-coworking-space-in-your .html Regardless, you've made the best choice in coming here to research first. You are years ahead of many of the rural owners I have talked to who are building their empire in a vacuum (and quickly getting sucked into annihilation by said vacuum). Would be happy to answer any questions you have. Love to see you explore this for Idaho! Thanks & God Bless, Joel Bennett Chief Dreamchaser Veel Hoeden veelhoeden.posterous.com Join Us on Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/veelhoeden> ! <http://ink1003.com/p/tp/3ee1a6d9cb9fb511/url> Follow us on Twitter -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of hssmedia Sent: Tuesday, March 13, 2012 12:54 PM To: Coworking Subject: [Coworking] Pricing Strategy for a Rural Development Hello, As I am still in the research phase to determine if my coworking space could be viable in a smaller town in eastern Idaho, I had a few questions/thoughts that I would appreciate some feedback and discussion with the experts: 1. Do you think a lower pricing strategy (possibly $50 a month for a monthly membership, sitting anywhere) is a viable option? Could a coworking facility be successful on that pricing strategy alone? Just $50, simple as that... 2. What are your thoughts on sponsors in your space? What value can I promote to the potential sponsors/advertisers that would make them pay a fee for advertising and resource space within the community? What value does my coworking space have to the sponsors? 3. Have you ever considered partnerships and alliances with local organizations and have them pay the fee and give access to their members. For example, is it better to target the students of a local college, or go directly to the college and secure a contract with the organization, which in turn gives everyone access? 4. What is the standard principle for a full time desk? I envision a section of my space for the full time desk that could be close to $100 a month. What would one expect with a full time space? 5. Have any of you explored partnerships with organizations in the business community? For example, partnering to offer a Chamber of Commerce Networking membership with the purchase of a coworking membership? You guys are awesome! I look up to so many of you and want to bring this type of innovation to my hometown! As I am only 21, but not an inexperienced entrepreneur, I want to go in extremely prepared before I open my space! Thanks, Tyler Kraupp -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to <mailto:[email protected]> [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to <mailto:[email protected]> [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at <http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en> http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/coworking?hl=en.
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