What’s the difference between co-working and an internet cafe
For someone running a small business from home, access to a local internet café may seem like a perfect partner. With wifi access and other facilities, it’s useful for meeting people when you work flexibly.
From reading this post, you will be able to compare the difference between co-working and an internet cafe.
How better to do this than paint a picture and look at it from both angles? Imagine a meeting between yourself, a home-based small business owner and an important new prospect.
- The Meeting –
Venue; A Local Branch of a Well Known Coffee Shop near LeedsIt’s busy. You’d forgotten it’s half term.
Ah, there’s a free table in the corner.
You put your laptop bag down and look for someone to wipe over the table after the last person. The baristas are all serving other customers.
You grab a napkin and give the table a cursory clean. There’s a little time to finish your preparation before the meeting, so first of all, plug in the laptop which needs charging.
Oh, dear, there’s only one socket in reach of your spot and it’s being used.
With just a little charge left, you set about your work. But you do feel obliged to buy (an expensive) coffee. If only the queue wasn’t so long.
As you add the finishing touches to your presentation, you can’t help being distracted by the noise of the other customers and background music. Then you realise, you should have printed the document before you left the house.
Five minutes left, so a quick trip to the toilet is in order. But you don’t want to leave your valuable laptop unattended and packing up would mean you lose your place.
Never mind, your client is at the entrance waving to you.
“I’ve got just less than an hour, I’m on a parking meter,“ he says, sounding a little flustered as he greets you…
By the Way
Incidentally, the first ever internet café in the UK is Cyberia, which started providing internet access since way back in 1994. If you’d like to read more about this and other alternatives to co-working, read this post.
Now, let’s re-run that scene again, in a co-working office, set up like the one you would find at Carrwood Park.
The following scenario only includes a few of the amenities you would require in a co-working space. For more information about the wide range of services, download our Co-Working Starter Pack.
{{cta(‘ab154be3-29fb-457e-8650-7f4e805a2854′,’justifycenter’)}}
- The Meeting –
Venue; A Co-Working Space in LeedsYou arrive at a smart, professional looking building. As you walk over to the entrance, you make a mental note that there are still a couple of spaces free for visitor parking.First of all, you put your laptop on the empty desk you’ve chosen to sit at. Then you plug the charger into the bank of sockets under the desks.
While the laptop is booting up, you quickly pop to the toilet (nice and clean – thanks to housekeeping services).
On your way back to your workstation, via the reception manager, you have a brief word with her. That’s to confirm that the meeting room you booked for just a small fee is ready for you and your visitor. Which of course it is.
Note: You can read this previous post for some more top tips on preparing for a meeting like this, or a larger meeting.
While you’re there, you ask her to print out your presentation. You had intended to print it at home, but that’s not a problem. You know you can simply email it over to the reception manager who will sort it out. As you’re already connected to the wifi, there’s no need to log in, saving you valuable time.
Your client arrives and is greeted by the reception manager, who asks him to sign in for security. She shows him to the meeting room and offers you both complimentary tea or coffee.
“This is impressive,” he says as he shakes your hand…
After reading these two scenarios, you may think that co-working is an option worth investigating further. To find out more, call us for a no-obligation chat and ask for a tour of Carrwood Park. We’ll talk through your situation and help you work out whether co-working is going to be the right option for you.