Since 2020, the number of coworking spaces worldwide has more than doubled from a little over 19,000 to approximately 42,000 today. It’s easy to assume the pandemic was where this massive growth came from but data shows the biggest inflection has been in the last 18 months.

With this trend, the opportunity to get more from life outside of work has grown significantly regardless of whether you’re fully remote, in a hybrid role, or you work for yourself.

As people prioritize where they want to spend their time outside of work, many small towns and tourist destinations have seen a significant increase in demand for shared offices. A coworking space that fits their needs means someone can extend the length of a vacation right through to allow someone to spend weeks or even months in a location while still getting their work done.

An example of this is Coworking Whistler (BC, Canada), which only has 14 desks and is located in a town of fewer than 14,000 people. Being a tourist town their offering extends to the nearly 3 million people who visit annually. That said, the majority of visitors arrive over a few months of the year. 

So, to make a small coworking office space like this more viable, these are seven tactics their owners use to drive their revenue year round. 

1: Offer seasonal dynamic pricing

Being in a resort community the majority of their revenue is made between December – April even though rent is the same each month of the year.

To best optimize revenue they implemented variable pricing for peak versus shoulder seasons to effectively capture revenue during peak months while also offering a lower barrier to membership the rest of the year. 

2: Engage with traditional media, be active on social media and build relationships with local government

Promotion of the space and their events is regularly shared online through social media groups within the community along with anything notable pitched to local media outlets. General awareness and smart SEO is available by constantly keeping both of these channels informed of the coworking space and what they’re up to.

Beyond media, forming a relationship with the local Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Board created opportunities to gain access to their databases while staying informed of upcoming local events, conferences, or other opportunities where coworking could help add value.

3: Build add-ons and diversify membership types

Their most valuable add ons come in the form of ‘storage’. In the winter it’s skis and snowboards with summer being mountain bikes. There is a massive convenience factor of having expensive gear securely stored a 2 minute walk to the mountain. This is something evaluated as not only an upsell for temporary members but also has become its own membership type in peak season.

They also work with members to offer desk sharing arrangements and ‘off peak’ memberships (i.e. after 5pm weekdays and 9-5 weekends only). Both of these arrangements drive more revenue per desk while raising awareness of the workspace with more members using the space regularly. 

Another opportunity for small spaces is looking to offer mail or package delivery services, if relevant.  

4: Offer worthwhile discounts for annual memberships 

To keep long-term members from looking elsewhere they offer a percentage cash back incentive based on the length of an agreement. Beyond that many of the add ons their visiting members pay for are included free or heavily discounted with a long term membership.

For example, Ski and Snowboard storage is included free in the winter while mountain bike storage is 67% cheaper for permanent members.

5: Host real-world events for the community

Operating a workspace is one thing, but being a recognizable face in the community is more valuable for many locals. In order to better engage with the local community they host a monthly social meetup to help foster better connections around town. 

They do this by hosting the event signup using Proximity and on their website. This also helps to get contact details as most people also register as a Community Member of the workspace (which is a $0 membership category).

6: Put your community first with locals-only deals

In shoulder season they offer “locals only” discounts and deals for all types of memberships.

The coupons are shared via their CRM, to Community Members along with posts to various social media accounts and groups.

7: Create an autonomous workspace for all types of remote workers

They created a space that works for everyone from a senior engineer from a FAANG company to someone building their first online e-commerce business. Lightning fast internet, great amenities and a well thought out design to their space means any member makes the most of their time both at the desk they’ve rented and in the rest of their daily life. 

Another key thing is autonomy in the space – being able to problem solve an issue if they aren’t in the office by implementing proper desk and door management hardware and software has been essential. To do this they use the best online software platforms and ensured they have the necessary integrations needed to keep admin to a minimum — such as connecting to Quickbooks, Stripe and Zapier. 

Lastly, having 24/7 access to the space means guests and members can work when they want. Coworking Whistler often has visitors from the UK and Australia working from the space at the same time but still from their native timezones. These remote workers can get a whole day of skiing either before or after their workday while taking little to no holiday time off to do so.