4 ways landlords can attract new tenants to their commercial property

With many cities and urban areas notably in the UK, with more empty spaces than prospective tenants; landlords are now under extreme pressure to develop more ways to attract new tenants to their commercial property.

To simplify the issue, we’ve put together this list of 4 ways in which property owners can attract their commercial space to a new potential tenant.

Improve the exterior and interior

The majority of new tenants are genuinely drawn towards more modern and clean looking buildings, which is why it’s important for landlords to focus on the appearance of both the interior and exterior of their commercial property.

The exterior of your property is one of the first things your prospective tenants will see: in order to make the best first impression, landlords should consider hiring a professional gardener or landscaper to improve the outside of their property.

Designing an attractive exterior doesn’t have to break the bank but will involve a significant amount of planning and organisation.

You want prospective tenants to feel comfortable and welcome – aim to create an environment they can see their business and employees thriving in.

Before designing your commercial property, it’s important to understand what purpose your building will serve to tenants.

Modern buildings, for example, often offer themselves to start-up businesses who are looking to make a big impression.

Design features such as art, statement walls, living walls and overall interior choices will make a huge difference to your property’s overall appearance and feel. You should make sure that they appeal to the kind of tenant you’re hoping to attract: start by choosing the main focus point (something large or significant, such as a wall mural or statue) and build your ideas around that.

Landlords can save money by buying products in bulk and can often getter better deals on products such as commercial flooring and furniture if they place a large order.

Make your property energy efficient

According to Government figures, there could be up to 285,000 properties in need of urgent work.

By making your property energy efficient not only is your property more appealing but you could run the risk of being fined. You can make your property more energy efficient with the following steps:

• Double Glazing – not only will this keep your tenants warm come the colder winter months, but it will also add points to your property’s energy score, pushing into a higher band.
• LED light bulbs are undeniably the more energy efficient choice when it comes to choosing the lighting for your commercial property. As well as being the more energy efficient choice compared to their standard counterpart, they also provide a crisp light, unlike a standard yellow hue bulb.
• Costing around £5 per square metre, insulation is an extremely cost-effective way to boost the energy efficiency of your commercial building.
• In some cases, landlords are eligible for tax credits that can help with the costs of improving the energy efficiency of their building. It’s always a good idea to contact your local energy company for more information.

Understand your target market

In order to attract and maintain tenants, it’s important to understand their wants and needs. This can be done by performing various types of market research and will help you target the improvements according to the feedback you receive.

It’s better to gather this information yourself rather than taking it from the internet – the location, size or age of your property can drastically change the demographics of your potential tenants.

For example, if your building is in a more tech-heavy area you will need to focus on factors such as internet speed.

However, if your market employs a wide range of parents, you will need to consider on-site or nearby childcare facilities.

Build relationships with local businesses

Build relationships with local businesses or vendors who would be open to offering tenants discount or other benefits. This can be anything from cafés, taxi companies or gyms – companies that your tenants are likely to use repeatedly.

Landlords should consider negotiating discounts with as many vendors as possible: this way they can devise an impressive list of recommended local amenities to show prospective clients.

Make sure to create relationships with local vendors who offer amenities that could be beneficial your tenants, such as coffee shops, catering vendors, dry cleaners, or business data specialists, rather than those who offer niche or unnecessary services.