A big hurdle that small businesses must clear when starting is how to deal with physical payments. Then layer on top of that the fees credit cards charge your business for each transaction (looking at you AMEX) and you have to wonder why it is still such a hassle to get a system in place.

But thankfully for small businesses everywhere, a physical payment revolution is gaining momentum. It’s roots lie in the introduction of Paypal long ago. Paypal integrated a payment system with the internet and now we are beginning to see that basic system branch out into mobile devices with the introduction of credit card applications for the Iphone and other mobile devices. Currently PayPal is playing catch up with other integrated web payment applications and is pushing hard to get developers to begin using their API and Software Development Kit (SDK) to create payment applications for the web that integrate with PayPal on the back-end.

Recently, the payment revolution was taken a step further with the introduction of Square, a mobile payment system that allows you to swipe credit cards with the “Square” hardware and any internet connected device that has the most ubiquitous input device around, the headphone jack. The innovations don’t stop there; Square also creates instant paperless receipts and supports cool instant payer verification feature that shows a picture of the person who owns the credit card being used.

Square is being brought to life (still in beta, so not quite “alive” yet) by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey as a way to simplify the process of accepting credit card payments. The service will be incredibly useful for small businesses that need to keep costs low and want to avoid the expensive initial and monthly cost of credit card payment equipment. Usually a credit card terminal will cost at minimum around $200. With Square, the hardware will be given away for free, yes, free. The cost of the hardware will be made up for by a small fee on each transaction; a portion going to the banks, a portion to square, and if you want a penny of each transaction to a cause of your choice.

What really separates this device from other credit card terminals is that there is no subscription fee, you don’t need a merchant account and it also shows the amount that the credit card company will extract from the transaction in real time. This is pretty valuable for businesses who usually have to wait until the end of the month, which is when the banks usually come in and take their cut for credit card transaction fees. Being able to settle to net in real time is pretty valuable to a cash strapped small business who is very budget conscious.

Seriously, this is going to be huge. Imagine being at an electronics store. You found exactly what you wanted right away, and now you have to wait in line to check out with one measly item. But wait! There is a random associate roaming the floor with a Square plugged into his or her smart device. “Let me ring you up right here sir/ma’am”, done. Or you just sold an expensive item on craigslist but the buyer doesn’t have cash. Well, you’ve got square and you take plastic! Done. No monthly fee, no merchant account, no expensive equipment, no problem.

It can be difficult to know exactly what information to include in your available listing, but we thought we would share some tips. Our customer service team spoke to nearly 1,000 small businesses in October who were searching for space and we thought we would provide some real time feedback for the best way to market available space to these businesses. Below are some tips:

 

·      Price: Absolutely, 100%, every time, price your listing every where on line. The small business understands that if they ask for improvements, the price might increase. If you want to get qualified inquiries and more inquiries, price your listing. The theory that you might get a business to tour by un-pricing a listing and then they will fall in love with the space regardless of the price does not work!

·      Square Footage: List each square footage that you have vacant separately so businesses with specific needs can find your available space. If you have a space that is 3,000 square feet but is divisible, list each square footage that it is divisible to.

·      Pictures: Interior and Exterior and the more the merrier.

·      Floor plans: For both office and industrial users, a floor plan is requested very frequently. If you don’t have a floor plan, describe the layout in the description

·      Description: In the description, discuss the positives of the space and the location. Discuss nearby amenities and companies in your building. Call out specific business types that would be a good fit for the space or who have leased the space in the past. If the building is a great fit for therapists of a gym, add that to the description.

·      Video: There aren’t that common yet in commercial real estate, but more and more businesses are viewing videos already on Rofo.com. It saves everyone time and makes a space stand out. If the space is run down, show it describe the improvements that you would be willing to do. If the space looks great, show it off and help it lease quicker.

·      Reviews: Have your tenants review what its like to be a tenant in your building. Small businesses like to hear from other small businesses and this advice has been consistently asked for by our audience.

Do you work independently or freelance, but occasionally reminisce about the cubicle neighbors you left behind, even though they sometimes annoyed the hell out of you? Does freelancing get a little lonely, or do you wish you had someone to bounce ideas off of and collaborate with? Then Coworking might be for you. Brad Neuberg, a computer programmer in San Francisco, started the Coworking movement in 2005 as a middle of the road solution between working for a soul crushing corporation and working independently. Instead of clicking away at the keyboard on the couch in your undies, Coworking spaces bring likeminded freelancers and independent contractors together into communal offices.

Coworking provides the camaraderie, structure and social interaction usually missing from the freelance lifestyle. The offices usually implement an open floor plan with desks and a few cubicles. Most usually include a communal meeting room and some kind of kitchen area. The prices range from $10 per day to around $400 or $500 per month for your own personal desk space, with many options in between.

It’s a great solution for people who don’t want to commit to an extended office lease since most Coworking spaces operate on a month to month agreement. If you are a freelancer, contractor or consultant, a Coworking space offers an alternative to the sometimes stodgy office suites.

The movement has been catching on, fueled by an increase in freelancers, a prevalence of vacant office space and the grassroots nature of the movement. The whole movement is very connected and the Coworking wiki and blog help foster development of new Coworking spaces. Although the movement began in San Francisco, Coworking offices continue to spring up around the world and exist in most large cities. The basic model is very altruistic and flexible with some spaces allowing people to hang out for a few days before making a commitment. The main idea is to build a tight knit community, where people work and interact, through the shared space.

View Coworking in a larger map

Rofo was recently included in a story about the market for San Francisco office space.  The story line is still the same - doom and gloom for the landlords and professionals who rely on commercial real estate transactions to make money.  To sum it up: as a business/entrepreneur you are in the driver’s seat.  You can now succeed at getting a short term deal, cheaper rents and other concessions like free rent and allowances.  But obviously the deals are attractive because the overall business climate is in the dumps.  So what to do?  If you have a lease expiring in the next 12 months now is a good time to start evaluating your options.  Just like its a very good time to hire its also a very good time to either negotiate and lock in a low rent in your current office space or shop around and upgrade your diggs.

San Francisco Commercial Real Estate is a Buyer’s Market in Downturn from VidSF on Vimeo.

No matter if you are an entrepreneur, a startup business, a small business or work for a larger corporation in a satellite office location, executive office suites are often the best solution for your office space needs.  Executive suites offer turn-key services beyond the office space and furniture.  They often have mail services, secretarial services, voice and data services as well as shared conference rooms, kitchens and break rooms.

While you often pay a higher rent for these office suites they also tend to include many products and services and eliminate the ‘hassle factor’ of coordinating those services.  Also, they tend to offer monthly lease terms which can be a huge benefit especially when your business is new and the future is unknown.

Rofo has aggregated all of the executive suite office spaces in one place in order for you to do a real side by side comparison for the best space, location, amenities and services for your business.

Besides negotiating the rental rate for your new commercial space, there are other creative ways to minimize your overall financial commitment  in your lease agreement.  I recently had the opportunity to contribute an article to Gigaom highlighting 8 of them.  It ranges from capping operating expenses to obtaining flexible subleasing rights.  Naturally a lot of this depends on market conditions and available commercial real estate listings.

For most entrepreneurs and business owners the process of finding a space for your business is an important, critical and THANKLESS task.  We went through it recently as a company and it really is a distraction from focusing on your business.  So, if you’re flying under-the-radar of real estate agents, how do you do it efficiently on your own?  Speaking from experience my number one piece of advice is to plan well ahead and allow plenty of time.  Commercial real estate in general is a slow moving business - you will not miss opportunities because of spaces being quickly snatched up.

We recently revamped our real estate advice section to help you out.  We’re trying to arm you with enough information to get started and not overwhelm you with the detailed terminology that you may or may not encounter.

Our guide to common commercial leasing terms is a very good start.  Always feel free to contact us if you have some sound advice of your own.

I read one of the few silver lining stories today on the weakening US economy.  Reuters ran a story today about the commercial real estate leasing opportunities created by the fall out of many national retailers.  Starbucks was one of the bigger stories earlier in the year where they actually planned to shutter a bunch of stores.  That certainly does not bode well for the landlords - but that also really depends on the terms of lease.

The weakening overall retail demand has supposedly created opportunities for the Mom & Pops who typically compete and lose out to the chains.  This part makes sense.  The part that doesn’t make is that the weakening economy is likely having the same or similar impact on the Mom & Pops.  And when that happens these companies tend to retreat a little and refrain from making real estate commitments.  However, in soft markets you will see companies upgrade their space via subleases.

That all said, this company seems to be capitalizing…

I look forward to getting Rofo launched in that market so companies do not have to rely on calling on signs.

Ever wonder what it looks like inside the Facebook HQ? How about Flickr and Google? Maybe you haven’t. But the guys at Office Snapshots have assembled a great portfolio of tech company office spaces.

The Craigslist bathroom was probably the most original…

and then there’s the Google slide…I believe this is their San Francisco office which they now plan to occupy through 2015 according to the Business Times.

Let us know if you’ve seen better.