Category: PR

Definition of Coworking

Coworking is the act of engaging a community of freelancers, entrepreneurs, remote workers and small businesses in a shared space with the purpose of working and helping each other out professionally and personally through the creation and activation of relationships.

Coworking requires that the operators of coworking spaces actively create opportunities for and engage the coworkers to get to know and help each other.

The people doing it are the facilitators of coworking spaces (although they can be known under multiple names). They facilitate the introductions, point to who can help, etc.

Without the development of links among the coworkers there’s no community and there’s no coworking.

Coworking also refers to the act of working in a coworking space. In some regions it is used as shorthand for coworking space. When companies say they do coworking they are referring to the fact that they have a coworking space.

Without an engaged community you do not have a coworking space. You may have a collection of people in a shared working space but not a coworking space.

These are the mandatory elements to identify a real coworking space:

* Calls itself or the service it offers coworking.
* Has a fully dedicated space for coworking (not just a few hours or a cafeteria shared with patrons).
* Has an active community of members, not just clients.
* Has at least one facilitator dedicated to connect the members and build trust among them, engaging in activities to build the coworking community.
* Treats coworkers as 1st class clients.
* Promotes and encourage collaboration, interaction and serendipity.
* Offers one or many kinds of membership (full or part time).
* Does not discriminate who can become a member or how they can participate with hidden or implicit rules.

The original elements I included as President of the European Coworking Assembly (abandoned after I left) that were included in the Coworking is Dead article. I advanced this elements in the coworking community group (where the last one was added) before using them as founding principles of the European Coworking Assembly and the nascent Belgian association of coworking spaces (with the approval of the members of both).

Think of them as the eight commandments of coworking.

Coworking is not written with a hyphen. Co-working is wrong when used in this context and should be preserved to refer to people working for the same company (co-workers) as I requested to the AP and they included in the AP Style Book.

Note that AP’s definition does not include a word about community.

There are plenty of other collaborative and shared work spaces and there’s nothing wrong with them, but if they are not doing coworking with its community aspect, they should not refer to themselves as coworking spaces.

You may also want to take a look at the advantages of coworking and its disadvantages.

If you want to open a coworking space or you are struggling with one, you will benefit from reading The Coworking Handbook.

June 24, 2019

Coworking Benefits: The Global Movement You Should Care About

Customize the Infographic With Your Own URL

Are you considering launching a coworking space? Do you work in one now? Maybe you’ve never even heard of the concept. Regardless, that’s why I’m writing this blog. I want to tell you more about the global movement of coworking, and how it’s changing the lives of so many entrepreneurs and freelancers worldwide.

Coworking brings endless benefits to coworkers. From increased productivity to happiness, and plenty in-between. However, I’ve gone ahead and compiled the top ten so you can get an idea of why you should consider coworking for your business.

  1. Expedited Growth

    Coworking gives you the right environment to focus on your current and future goals while helping you be more productive.

  2. Expand Your Network

    You never know who you might meet in a co-working space. You might make some friends, you might make some professional contacts. You might make both! Coworking spaces are all about communities. The people behind these communities want to bring people together who share common interests. You might also get the chance to find new clients and grow your income, talent and people to work with, and more. By introducing yourself to others, you never know what you might achieve.

  3. No Distractions

    We all know how frustrating it can be to work in a traditional office environment and be distracted by coworkers’ questions the whole time. If you work from home, you’re vulnerable to distractions by your family. In a coworking space, people respect your privacy – but they’re there to support you if you need it. You can crack on with work, free from distraction, and get more done, faster.

  4. Zero temptation

    Working from home is dangerous. The fridge is right there at all times, as is the pantry full of treats. By working in a coworking space, you’ll be forced to eat nothing but the lunch you packed for yourself. Speaking of temptation, there’s also no TV to watch or cozy bed to cuddle up and nap in. You’ll only be surrounded by other hard-working professionals! Coworking spaces get you out of your home (and out of your PJs) where you can work in a clean, professional environment and work like the professional you are.

  5. Stay inspired

    It’s easy to feel alone when you’re working from home by yourself. If you see countless people working hard around you, you’ll be inspired to do the same. In coworking spaces, you’re usually surrounded by people from all sorts of industries, exposing you to all kinds of different ideas and ways to stay motivated. In coworking spaces, you’re never alone – unlike if you were isolated at home. You’ll embark on a journey with others who also go through good times and bad times!

  6. Be Creative

    By getting out of your home and surrounding yourself with more interesting people, you’re more likely to tap into your creative side more of the time. Coffee breaks in coworking spaces are where the magic happens, and incredible ideas are born. You can share your ideas with others and hear their input – it could just change everything. Coworking spaces have also been found to increase self-confidence by helping you to establish a better working routine.

  7. Better work/life balance

    Insomnia isn’t uncommon in people who work from home. Why? Because they can’t separate home from business. By traveling to a coworking space each day, you’ll get into the habit of mentally isolating home from work to enjoy a better work/life balance, and of course, better sleep. It’s best to switch off at the end of the day then focus on work again tomorrow. Coworking spaces help you establish and stick to a routine while still keeping to your own schedule. These spaces are designed to adapt to your needs!

  8. Better Health and Happiness

    Studies show that loneliness can literally wreak havoc on your well-being. By being in the company of others, you can recharge your physical and mental batteries. There’s something about seeing familiar friendly faces every day that make us feel good.

  9. Better Internet

    This one pretty much speaks for itself. Coworking spaces must have fast internet to cater to the needs of people across all sorts of industries – like video editors and graphic designers or animators who demand high speed and performance. Take advantage of it!

  10. Save money

    Not only will you not have to travel or sit in mind-numbing traffic, maximizing your income-producing hours, but you can also save on utility bills seeing as coworking spaces cover this expense themselves. You also never have to worry about dealing with service providers or repairs. If something goes wrong at the coworking space, they have to fix it – not you! Also, renting a coworking space is far cheaper than renting a traditional office.

Honestly, this is just the beginning – and the only way to experience the coworking difference is to try it out for yourself!

If you run a coworking space yourself or are planning to, get the complete Coworking Handbook to improve your business right away.

May 2, 2019

How to Leverage Automation for Better Coworking PR

Automating boring PR tasks

It’s Fred at Prezly, back again for one last post about using PR to promote your coworking space. From creating press releases to sending pitch emails to managing relationships with local influencers, we’ve covered a lot of ground on how to bootstrap your way to PR success.

If this sounds like a lot of work, you’ll be relieved to learn that today’s blog post is all about automation.

Eight reasons to love PR automation

PR is ultimately a human-powered industry. Robots and computers can’t forge relationships, build trust, or tell great stories about how coworking has transformed the world of work. That said, there are plenty of repetitive PR tasks that we’re more than happy to automate.

Here are five really important but boring PR tasks that are better left to robots, and the tools you’ll need to automate them:

 

  • Track email responses with Yesware. If you send a lot of pitch emails, use Yesware to keep track of responses. Yesware is a Gmail and Outlook add-on that lets you monitor opens, clicks, and responses for every email you send to influencers. You can even automate your outreach with editable templates that pre-load in your inbox, so you don’t have to cut-and-paste every pitch.
  • Customize an email response with Rapportive. Rapportive is a simple Gmail add-on that shows you important social media data from every person who emails you. You can then tailor your reply based on the sender’s location, their recent tweets, and other online activity.
  • Enrich your influencer list with social data from FullContact. If you have a list of email addresses but no social profiles, use FullContact to quickly, easily, and automatically enrich your data. Just enter an email address or Twitter handle, and FullContact’s API gives you a list of associated social profiles. You can also sync contacts from all your address books, fix duplicates, and correct formatting errors in your database.
  • Nurture influencers with the help of Contactually. Contactually sends you automatic reminders to contact influencers whom you haven’t reached out to in awhile. Use it to periodically nurture your influencer list with useful links and articles, even when you don’t have big news to share. You’ll build credibility, show them you care, and increase your chances of getting coverage when you need it.
  • Publish and pitch social media press releases with Prezly. Prezly is the glue that will hold all your other PR efforts together. Prezly gives you everything you need to create and distribute beautiful, mobile-friendly social media press releases, send pitch emails with media previews, manage your contact database, and track email response rates.

Embrace automation, and it will set you free

When it comes to repetitive PR tasks, automation = liberation. Anything that lets you spend more time getting creative and less time in Excel hell is a beautiful thing. Jokes aside, automating the boring stuff means you’re free to focus on telling great stories, strategizing campaigns, and building strong influencer relationships. That’s the best stuff, by far.

If you liked this short PR crash course, I hope you’ll give Prezly a try. As I’ve mentioned before, coworking space owners and managers can use our software free for 3 months. Just sign up for the free trial on our website, then email us with the name of your coworking space.

If you have any remaining questions, please feel free to find me on LinkedIn. I’d be happy to help in any way I can.

January 11, 2015

How a Good CRM Can Help You Improve Your Coworking Media Relationships

Hi everyone, it’s Fred at Prezly with a few more PR tips to help you promote your coworking space. So far, we’ve covered social media press releases, creating great visual content, and sending effective pitch emails. These are basic building blocks for any PR campaign, and they’re really important.

But ultimately, PR isn’t about creating press releases or sending emails. It’s about building strong relationships. Luckily, you don’t need to be a master networker to do this well. You do, however, need a good CRM, or Customer Relationship Management system, to help you manage communications of your coworking space and keep track of important information about your contacts. I know that Ramon, the author of the coworking handbook, just spent a long time choosing a CRM. He might chip in in the comments with recommendations for a CRM.

Knowledge is power (and power is a good CRM)

When it comes to forging great media relationships, knowledge is power. The more data you can gather and store about your media contacts, the more power you have to understand what they care about, remember past conversations, and recall important details. All of these data points will help you build trust and create stronger relationships.

Of course, lots of data can quickly become difficult to manage, especially if you use Excel to keep track of your contacts. There’s no shame in relying on a spreadsheet for this purpose. Most PR people do. Keep in mind, though, that Excel is designed to make calculations and graphs, not help you manage a database. That’s where a CRM comes in. A CRM is much more than a glorified Excel spreadsheet. Among its many advantages, a CRM can help you:

  • Document emails, phone calls, and even social media conversations with every influencer. Many CRMs will even let you send pitch emails directly from the platform.
  • Search for contacts by name, communication history, beat, PR campaign, or any number of tags that are important to your business.
  • Measure the impact of your efforts with thorough reporting on response rates and new PR opportunities generated.
  • Share knowledge across your company by keeping it in a universally accessible platform, rather than a spreadsheet saved to your hard drive.

Getting started with CRM

CRM systems range from simple and relatively cheap to sophisticated and very expensive. Whatever CRM you use, don’t sweat your choice too much. The important thing is getting a system in place to help you manage your data. This allows you to focus on the human side of PR: creating and cultivating great media relationships.

December 23, 2014

How to Send Pitch Emails that Get Results

It’s Fred with Prezly, back again with some fresh PR tips to help you promote your coworking space. Hopefully after my first two posts, you’re feeling pretty well-equipped to start creating social media press releases  and visual content.

But it’s not enough to create a press release; you have to pitch it effectively, too. With that in mind, let’s talk about the pitch email, one of the most powerful tools in your proverbial PR toolbox.

Right Email + Right Audience

There are two parts to a successful pitch email – your target audience, and the email itself. While it might be tempting to email your entire database, your childhood friends, and maybe a distant cousin or two every time you have something new to say about your coworking space, don’t do it.

In the PR industry, we call that S.O.S. (sending out stuff), and it’s never a good idea. Instead, send a highly targeted email to specific influencers for whom your press release is relevant. For coworking spaces, this might include influential members of the local tech and freelance community. You’ll get better response rates, and your contacts will thank you for not spamming them with irrelevant emails.

The Anatomy of a Great Pitch Email

A well-crafted pitch email can quickly and effectively open new doors, strengthen media relationships, and increase your exposure. A bad pitch email, on the other hand, can alienate influencers and permanently damage your credibility.

So what distinguishes a great pitch email from one that fails to get results? Luckily, it’s fairly straightforward. Let’s walk through the anatomy of a great pitch email, piece by piece:

  • A Specific From Line: Your From line is probably the first thing your reader sees. It should clearly and concisely communicate who you are as the sender. I typically use the From line “Frederik from Prezly”, which tells you who the email is coming from, as well as which company I work for… all before you even open my email.
  • An Irresistible Subject Line: Your subject line should be relevant, timely, and evoke just a little bit of mystery. Include a tidbit about your story that relates to your influencer’s interests and inspires enough curiosity to make them want more. Example: “New study: Everything we thought we knew about the freelance economy is wrong.”  Here’s a great list of best practices for subject lines, drawn from MailChimp’s analysis of over 200 million emails.
  • A Brief, Relevant Introduction: Start your email with a 2-3 sentence introduction that states who you are and why you’re reaching out. Tie your message to something personal that you know about them, which shows that you’ve done your research and understand what they care about. Example: “I saw your tweet about freelancers and thought you might like to learn the surprising results of a new study.”
  • A Compelling Value Proposition: Once you’ve made your introduction, get to your point quickly. Remember that in order to get a response, you need to demonstrate value for your contacts. Ask yourself, how will a journalist benefit by covering your story? Always keep your pitch about them and how they stand to gain, not about you. Example: “Your latest article about the freelance economy got a lot of buzz. Sharing the results of this study would be a great follow-up for your readers.”
  • Supporting Multimedia Previews: Don’t just tell influencers and journalists about your story. Your pitch email should also include previews of all the multimedia assets in your social media press release. Don’t send attachments or links. They’ll take forever to download and lack the visual impact of an embedded preview. Instead, use a tool that automatically generates media previews in your pitch emails.
  • A Clear Next Step: Make it as easy as possible for your contact to follow up with you. Include all of your contact information (phone number, email, Twitter, Skype, etc.), and suggest a clear next step. Example: “I’d love to answer any questions you have about the study I sent you last week. Can we talk for 15 minutes tomorrow or Friday?”

Don’t Forget About Tracking

It’s tempting to send pitch emails from Gmail or Outlook, but what you gain in speed, you lose in trackability. Use a tool that allows you to track opens, clicks, and responses to your pitch emails. You can also A/B test subject lines and messages to see what works best.

Prezly can help you with all of the above and more. If you own or manage a coworking space, your first 3 months of Prezly are free – no strings attached! Just sign up for the free trial on our website, then email us with the name of your coworking space.

Till next time.

December 15, 2014