Onboarding is a critical part of your member experience and can set the tone for the relationship going forward. It’s a bit of a delicate period after a person decides to join your coworking space. As a community manager or owner/operator, you want them to fit right in, feeling comfortable and integrated as quickly as possible.
But at the same time, there are processes, expectations, resources, and functionality that new coworking space members need to know and understand in order to get the full value of their membership with your space.
We asked coworking managers and owners to share their best practices.
“We try to let new members settle in and not bombard them with all the tech and tips at once — it can come with some time,” said David Brown of Good Space in London.
“We have an automated email campaign that sends daily emails for the first week, introducing them to our culture. This helps our newest members level up on their own time. We introduce them to our technology (primarily Coworks) but try to demystify it as much as possible. Which helps because Coworks is simple and intuitive!
For Brown, the goal is to have an onboarding process that matches the space. “If your space is really relaxed like ours, your onboarding should feel like you are being introduced to a new friend. But if your space is more corporate, it should feel that way, to reinforce who you are.”
For Julie Donlan, co-owner and manager at Blue Mind Coworking, onboarding was a learning experience for her members and for herself. “I learned when I sat down with new members to go through the checklist that, 9 times out of 10, they weren't really listening. I shortened my spiel and made myself available for any and all questions, issues, or thoughts.
Julie likes to keep it very simple, realizing her members are more anxious than anything. They want to get in and get working. “I let new members know that they will receive three emails from me. I show them the Coworks App on my phone, and have them install it. And I show them the security app we use. Coworking is a great way to bring people together who have different careers, thoughts, and interests. Everyone learns differently, so I have adjusted to meet each member where they are at the moment.”
Verity Ahlin is Member Services Coordinator with Startup Virginia. She found the many people kept asking about the link to Coworks so they could book rooms, and so created a flyer to post around the space. She created a custom QR code on the flyer, and happily shared with us for inspiration.
Both David and Julie mentioned email as a way to deliver information. Coworks platform lets you customize the welcome email each new member receives so they download the app. We also have a PDF you can share with your community about getting started with the app.