Starting An Organization From Scratch #4 Target Location

The location of your organization is central to its success. Accessibility by your primary clients is a crucial value proposition. When you think about your target customers, consider geographical locations where they are densely populated. Choose a location that appeals to your primary beneficiaries. Remember the whole purpose of your existence as an organization is to serve your specific target group therefore everything you do must rotate around them.

When choosing a location more so as a start up organization, pay attention to the cost of hiring and running the operational space. A typical startup has limited resources so it makes sense to go for the most affordable instead of most conducive. You want to ensure that every penny you spend has a high return. Consider sub renting or even co-sharing the space so as to lower your operational costs.

These days we have a number of hubs that have come up and offer shared working space at affordable rate. If the hub is located within the reach of your beneficiaries then consider that as an alternative. When I started my organization, I started by sharing an office space with a friend then moved to sub renting until we were able to pay for our own space.

While choosing a location also put into consideration the kind of activities that you want to run under your organization. For example if you intend to run several training's as part of your activities and you're located in a shared building with other offices, consider how your activities might affect the other tenants in the building. Would they feel safe with you bringing in your beneficiaries into their space? These are some of the things worth considering as you choose a location.

Incase you're not able to afford the kind of operational space that you need, you can consider looking out for potential partners within your community that would be open to either sharing their space occasionally or lending you some of their facilities at a subsidized fee. Or better still, work out a partnership that enables you work together.

Bottom line, you should choose a location that brings you close to your primary clients and also enables you to carry out all your planned activities effectively. Endeavor to work within your means so that you don't over spend on operational costs at the expense of your program activities.