Congratulations on finding the office of your dreams. Now it’s time to notify your clients, suppliers, and other partners that you’re moving.
When it comes to communicating a change of address for your business, clarity and timing are critical.
We recommend sending your relocation notice to clients a minimum of 3 weeks in advance of your expected move-in date. This will allow them enough time to update their contact information, collect their thoughts, and form any questions they might have about your upcoming move. It’s not so far in advance, however, that they will lose site of the date.
Layout for a Relocation Notice Letter
Opening
Begin your letter with a clear opening statement or headline that lets the reader know what’s coming. Consider something like:
New Office Announcement.
Body
Your business moving announcement wording will vary by audience. You will need at least two versions.
The version you give to your suppliers, bank, and insurance company will be brief and factual. Focus on when and where you’ll be moving. When notifying these contacts, it’s also helpful to include your account number, so they can easily update your profile.
A moving notice to clients on the other hand, will require a little more detail. You’ll want to touch on the reasons behind the move, and how it will benefit your clients. If your new office location won’t benefit them in any way, then at least reassure them that their account service will remain unchanged.
Clients, in particular, will need to know about changes to your business hours, temporary closures, and re-opening dates. When writing a business relocation letter to clients, you can also include information they’ll find helpful in visiting you at your new location:
- directions
- parking
- building access and hours
- where reception is located
Depending on the nature of your business you may even want to host a grand opening in your new location. You can include details about this in the body of your relocation letter as well.
Closing
Close your letter with a friendly call to action for the reader to update your contact information. While this may seem obvious, remember: people are busy and their attention is often divided, so openly suggesting next steps is always helpful.
Formatting a Business Relocation Letter for Clients
Highlight your new address by using bold type so that it’s clear and easy to identify. Or centre it.
Use lists. Providing phone number and extension changes in a list format makes this information easy to scan and digest.
At a minimum your business relocation letter to clients will need to include:
- Your complete address and phone number
- Any service interruptions (down phone lines, shipping delays) well in advance so clients can make alternative arrangements
- A company contact for follow up as necessary
Note: Avoid moving your office during your busiest times of the year if possible. If a deadline conflict can’t be avoided, you may want to provide key clients with alternate methods of communication. E.g. mobile phone numbers. Or use a nearby hotel conference room as a temporary workspace during the move.
It’s also wise to issue a “we have moved” letter to remind your business associates that you are in a new location.
More Tips for Issuing a Business Relocation Notice
Plan to communicate
Don’t issue a last minute email. Show how much you value your business relationships and take the time to issue thoughtful communication.
Share the excitement!
Stakeholders should view an office move as a positive step in your company’s future. So go the extra mile and get your partners as excited about the upcoming move as you are. Look for any aspect of your new location that will benefit them.
- Will moving closer to your supply chain reduce lead-times, shipping costs, or improve quality control?
- Will you be moving to a new building with better amenities like additional conference rooms?
- Are you moving to a larger facility so you can hire more staff to improve your customer service?
Choose the right person to communicate your progress
Don’t make the mistake of leaving this important task to a junior staff member. This news should come from the top. Once an officer of the company has formally issued a business relocation letter to clients, keep your partners in the loop by providing brief progress updates. These can come from your moving management team. The tone and frequency of these updates will be largely informed by your company culture.
Don’t over do it.
Gauge how important your business and its daily undertakings are in the minds of your customers and use this as a guide for how much they need (and are interested) to know about your move.
Here Are Some Other Ways to Tell Your Clients You Are Moving
Communicate an Office Move With Social Media
If appropriate, post pictures of your packing party or the new facility on social media. Use this opportunity to encourage customers to join your social networks. Sharing the occasional moving hiccup can be fun too. It can promote a more human understanding of service delays or mix-ups. But overall, your company must appear in control and keep business as usual, as much as possible.
New Outlets
Make your move newsworthy. Draft a press release and email it to your community news websites and magazines.
Website
Announce it on your website. Don’t forget to update your company website, and if appropriate, post a notice on the site during the move – especially if customers could experience temporary changes to their service.
Communications
Include it on all business communication from email signatures, to invoices, and letterhead.
And remember, anything can happen in the world of real estate. Be sure your plans are finalized before communicating the details of your office move to avoid potential embarrassment.
You are responsible to notify your staff before anyone outside of your company. Get information on how to write an office relocation letter to employees. Relocation managers can advise you on the best way to handle your office move. For experienced move management, and help planning and executing your next move, call us.
