Using a coworking broker to help you find the right flexible office makes a lot of sense but up until now no office broker directory has existed to help you choose the right one.

Brokers add value to the office search process by aggregating the market on your behalf and coordinate things in a single place – they do the research, recommend specific properties, book the viewings (sometimes they attend with you), gather proposals and help you negotiate the best terms so that you can confidently enter into a serviced office contract.

Many clients believe that registering with more than one strengthens their position. The thought tends to be that the more agents you approach, the better you will be able to cover the market because some might have properties on their books that others won’t.

But this is not the case.

Use just one broker

Using just one makes the most sense, as we explain below. And Flex Engine have created a directory which allows you to find and connect with an agent that meets your needs best using a combination of professional and personal strengths! You can see it here.

In the past, when the flex space agency market was in it’s infancy, those with the largest inventories of office space had a huge competitive advantage over everybody else because it took so long to build their databases and smaller competitors didn’t have the resources to keep up.

These days, however, many tech platforms have sprung up that allow brokers access to the whole coworking market without the need to build their own inventory lists. For a small monthly subscription, an agent can see the whole landscape through a single search platform.

We’ve put together a very simple visual for what happens when you register with more than one broker and are looking for an office in a specific location.

The range of options will be the same and each agent will introduce your requirements to that pool of flexible office providers. They will do this because the act of introducing you to the offices means they can secure a fee position as long as they are the first to make the introduction (this is how brokers get paid, which is why they are free for you to use).

So if your search has 10 clearly-suitable office buildings that meet your criteria, they will all get your details / introduction from each broker you register with.

Office broker directory: eliminate confusion

This creates a lot of confusion and a lot of competition between the brokers – because all of a sudden there are multiple companies trying to get a fee by placing you in an office. A lot of the time they will involve you in this conversation – which detracts from your primary goal: to find the right coworking space at the right price.

So using just the one flex space broker makes the most sense.

The goal then becomes to identify one that specialises in the location you are after, that likes dealing with clients of your size, that knows your industry sector and has done business with companies like yours… and that actually matches with you on a personal level.

When a connection of this kind is made, the search process becomes smooth and easy. Most clients go from one broker to another in an effort to find the one they ‘like’ the most, that gives them a level of confidence that they will be well looked after and get the support they need.

We have created a unique office broker directory to give clients a tool with which to find the right person to speak to from the outset.