Although most offices and co-working spaces have since opened, solopreneurs and fully remote workers have in many cases opted to continue working from home, noting that they know this does not compromise their own productivity levels. In part, this can be attributed to the luxuries we’ve come to associate with working from home.

Working from home has given us the chance to set the heating to our preferred temperature, play our favourite music as loud as we wish, and tackle life-admin chores alongside work - all whilst cutting down on commuting time. However, with an uncertain economic outlook ahead, the situation has changed dramatically.

According to the National Institute for Economic and Social Research, low and middle-income households are set to suffer a financial hit of up to £4,000 this year. This news, coupled with the recent arctic blast that hit the UK between January and February, has further exacerbated the concerns and made working from home particularly challenging for freelancers and 100% remote workers. With the rising cost of living continuing to put a strain on the UK economy, remote and freelance workers are seemingly turning to small businesses for a warm and cost-effective place to work. With that in mind, it doesn’t come as a surprise that fully remote workers are keen to take their laptops and move to a local hospitality venue such as their local cafe, pub, or restaurant to work.

To understand the impact the current economic climate is having on freelance professionals, and their expectation of SMEs to support, Sky Connect recently conducted a survey which explored freelance and 100% remote professionals working preferences. More freelancers and fully remote workers feel that they need to turn to alternative working spaces due to the increasing cost of living (48%). And while this opens up an opportunity for SMEs to support these workers and bring more customers in, business owners need to first understand the demands and biggest concerns of freelance professionals when it comes to remote working conditions.

Pulling remote workers in

With an uncertain economic landscape, remote workers could be the much-needed lifeline for many SMEs within the hospitality sector. Sky Connect’s research revealed that nearly half of freelancers and remote workers have felt compelled to work from an alternate location, such as their local cafe, pub, or library, at least once due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Although working from home has many benefits and for many feels the most comfortable and convenient, freelance and fully remote workers have significant incentives to leave their homes and visit their local venue. The main reasons for turning to these alternate hospitality locations cited by the respondents were saving money on heating costs (57%), saving money on energy bills (70%), avoiding commuter costs (27%) and not having to pay for expensive co-working spaces (27%).

While these numbers paint a positive picture for SMEs, there’s a caveat. In spite of relying on these alternate venues, unreliable connectivity has been a big concern when choosing where to work from.

The research found that 72% of those surveyed expressed concerns about unreliable connectivity when working from these alternative locations which suggests that connectivity will continue to have a huge influence on most people when deciding to work in publicly accessible places. Not being able to smoothly connect to WiFi and staying online without disruption for hours at a time could deter a worker from coming back to the SME and, in turn, cause a revenue loss.

Enhancing the customer experience through connectivity

To increase chances of having a loyal remote client base, SMEs should look into broadband priorities among those workers. When asked about important features of connectivity in public venues, the majority of respondents pointed towards reliability (57%) and extra layer of security (56%). These were closely followed by a simple log-in process to guest Wi-Fi (42%) such as not having to input personal details.

One way SMEs can take note and improve the customer experience for a growing freelance and fully remote working client group is by providing fast, secure, and easy-to-log-on WiFi services that increase customer loyalty when remote workers and SMEs alike need more support. This can be achieved by investing in reliable and robust connectivity solutions, such as automatic 4G back-up and advanced cybersecurity layers for guest WiFi. Such solutions not only help freelance professionals protect their work from malicious threats, but also improve trust in the chosen venue increasing chances that the person will likely visit again.

Furthermore, to deal with any issues that may arise with the connection you are supplying, having access around the clock to your broadband's customer service team will come in handy to quickly tackle any internet bugbears you have, showing your customers that you’re on hand to help.