Flex That Worx

How to Make Your Coworking Marketing Stand Out with Garry James | S3 EP5

Baseworx Season 3 Episode 5

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0:00 | 21:08

A lot of coworking marketing looks the same. The empty office shot, the square footage, the desk you could rent tomorrow. Garry James, CMO at FOUNDRY, came into the industry from tech, entertainment and journalism and that outside eye is exactly why he notices the sameness. 

His marketing leads with people rather than property, because a space is something you belong to long before it is something you pay for. This conversation, recorded live at GCUC UK in Manchester, is full of grounded thinking for any operator trying to stand out without a big team or budget behind them.

Garry talked about splitting effort between filling a space and holding onto the people already in it, weighting it towards acquisition in the early days and towards retention once the space is full. He made a strong case for taking back control of how members find you rather than handing that relationship to a broker. 

The part that might land with single-site coworking operators is what he said about knowing your local area. You do not learn a place by looking at a map and throwing a dart. You learn it by being there, talking to people, working out what makes the area tick and what would put your kind of member off. This is local space's unique factor for success over large sites. 

Key Takeaways For Coworking & Flexible Workspace Operators

  • Lead with people, not empty space. If your marketing feels like everyone else's, the fix is showing the human side of your space rather than the floor plan.
  • Think about filling and holding separately. Leaning into finding new members early, then into keeping them once you are full, gives your marketing effort and budget a shape.
  • Enquiries through your own marketing channels often cost less than a broker and keep the relationship yours.
  • Knowing your area is your real edge and it comes from showing up. Time spent talking to people locally tells you what no map ever will, including what would put members off joining your space.

These conversations are brought to you in collaboration with GCUC UK.