The results of the Coworking Survey
So…wow…we collected over 120 responses (including the first 11 via email that aren’t in the spreadsheet) and I spoke with quite a few people who said they didn’t get the chance to go take the survey, so I think this is representative of the fact that there is quite a bit of interest worldwide in coworking! Yay! Some great information, too…really telling us where we are at and highlighting people’s needs.
Some overview results for you:
| Country | Percent Total |
|---|---|
| USA | 58.18% |
| Unknown | 9% |
| Canada | 6.36% |
| Ireland | 3.64% |
| UK | 3.64% |
| Italy | 2.73% |
| Australia | 1.82% |
| Croatia | 1.82% |
| Germany | 1.82% |
| New Zealand | 1.82% |
| South Africa | 1.82% |
| Afghanistan | 0.91% |
| Finland | 0.91% |
| France | 0.91% |
| Poland | 0.91% |
| Portugal | 0.91% |
| Singapore | 0.91% |
| Spain | 0.91% |
| Switzerland | 0.91% |
NOTE: I’m guessing due to the anglo-centric discussions, we are getting much higher response in English speaking countries. This may present an opportunity for those in other countries to champion this movement themselves, by translating important text into their own language?
| Stage | Percent Total |
|---|---|
| Are currently looking for a space to work from (wanting to be coworkers) | 30.9% |
| Are interested in setting up a space (potential space owners) | 25.5% |
| Other | 18.2% |
| Are just watching the list (lurkers) | 10.9% |
| Are in the process of setting up a space (future space owners) | 10.0% |
| Are currently working at a coworking space (coworkers) | 2.7% |
| Are currently running a coworking space (space owners) | 1.8% |
NOTE: The trick, for me, is to turn the 10.9% lurkers (and the 18.2% others) into either future space owners or coworkers and turn those potential space owners into actual space owners so the people looking for spaces have somewhere to work!
| Features | Importance (out of 5) |
|---|---|
| Atmosphere | 4.5 |
| Community Feeling | 4.3 |
| Collaborative Environment | 4.1 |
| Location | 4.0 |
| Networking Opportunities | 3.9 |
| Excellent Coworkers | 3.7 |
| Meeting Spaces | 3.7 |
| Quiet Spaces | 3.4 |
| Security | 3.2 |
| 24 hr Access | 3.1 |
| Event spaces | 2.9 |
| Privacy | 2.8 |
| Personalized Space (own desk) | 2.6 |
NOTE: For those setting up a space, think of creating a really great atmosphere as the #1 thing to concentrate on. There is a great article here on seriously great workspaces. So, do you need art? Comfy chairs? Plants? Rugs? Flowers? Games? Yep. In the end, EVERYTHING was pretty important (nothing scored less than 50%), but Atmosphere and Comunity Feeling blew the others away.
So, how can we help the people trying to set up coworking spaces?
| Needs | Percent Total |
|---|---|
| Finding Space | 13.6% |
| Money | 10.9% |
| Partner | 7.3% |
| Space Management Tips | 5.5% |
| Coworkers | 5.5% |
| Structural Health | 4.5% |
| Networking | 3.6% |
| Other | 2.7% |
…if we could encourage the lurkers, maybe #3 (Partners) wouldn’t be such a big deal and they could help us find space (#1). Money? That’s a whole other issue. Anyone have good tips? For us, we decided to take fewer risks on the monthly rent (found a fix-me-upper that doesn’t have parking spots so the building rent is lower) to make for a better space and not as much pressure on us if we lose tenants…
| Benefits | Percent Total |
|---|---|
| Community | 16.4% |
| Advice | 14.5% |
| Support | 10.9% |
| Promotio | 8.2% |
| Mentor | 5.5% |
| Coworker | 5.5% |
| Other | 2.7% |
…aaaawwwww! Community, advice and support are awesome things to get out of this list and everyone should be proud of themselves for giving so much! 🙂
The rest of the answers are here: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pVSaj5ixYmAyYm–dbRhgXw in long form. I’ve removed all of the personal information as far as I know…(like IPs and emails)
Enjoy!