How to Create Great Office Wayfinding

The office space can be a complex place. Whether it's booked out meeting rooms, co-working space availability or simply finding the bathroom, a good office wayfinding system is more than just a nice to have.

And wayfinding signage goes beyond simple directional signs, as we'll find out in this guide.

What is office wayfinding?

Office wayfinding is the group of strategies and tools businesses use to help employees and visitors find their way within the office. This can be both navigating the office space, and making sense of the services, amenities and schedules within.

Office wayfinding usually includes a combination of:

• Location signs
• Maps and directions
• Floor markings
• Reception and information desks
• Directories
• Meeting room availability
• Business signage and branding
• General information such as lift maintenance notices or change of meeting room announcements

An obvious form of wayfinding signage is signs to the bathroom, or emergency exit signs and information relating to fire muster points.

But, increasingly, wayfinding signage is starting to include digital elements such as touch screen sign in for visitors and meeting room availability screens.

Why is office wayfinding important?

Office wayfinding goes beyond simply highlighting a location, or even making visitors feel welcome and comfortable – even though these are both important.

Effective office wayfinding helps navigate complex spaces like expansive, multi-floor buildings with several offices. It's increasingly important in co-working offices or startup incubators, but also within complex workplace setups like universities, medical or research facilities or financial services.

Some of the benefits of effective workplace wayfinding signage includes:

Productivity and efficiency

Ever spent half an hour trying to find a free meeting room? Or found that you'd booked a conference room only to find out it was double booked? This is something that digital wayfinding signage could easily solve.

Displaying room availability on screens outside can help everyone understand when they're free. No more running around with a laptop trying to find a place to jump on that important call!

Workspace availability

Whether it's a co-working office or a hot desk situation, sometimes finding a desk to work from for the day, or an available meeting room for a call can be a headache. Especially with more people than ever working on hybrid work schedules.

Add an interactive map, a directory or meeting room signage and that problem goes away. The signage can help employees find their way quickly, allowing them to locate workstations, navigate to meeting rooms, and reserve desks efficiently.

Visitor experience

From visiting clients to new hires, visitors may be experiencing the space for the first time - and so helping them make sense of their busy surroundings is a great way of creating a welcoming atmosphere.

Effective office wayfinding helps visitors navigate the workplace, ensuring they don’t become disoriented and frustrated in an unfamiliar environment. Some simple examples of this are:

• A touchscreen login kiosk which explains where they need to wait or where to go
• Digital maps that highlight important locations such as the restrooms, kitchen and communal areas
• Screens explaining safety protocols or procedures

Any salesperson will tell you how important it is for potential clients to be given a stress-free welcome, and kept informed about any upcoming meetings.

Safety

Wayfinding strategies ensure that people can quickly find their way in case of emergencies. Signs pointing to emergency exits, first aid stations, and fire extinguishers can be life-saving in these situations.

Static signage is usually used to highlight these. But digital signage can also be used to flash up a warning during fire drills, or even when it's not a drill. For example; 'This is not a drill. Please exit the building'.

Aesthetics, design, and branding

Done right, office wayfinding signs can add to the visual appeal of a space and reinforce a company’s brand identity.

Signs and visual elements like color schemes, fonts, logos, graphics, symbols, and pictograms can lead to a consistent and recognizable brand identity.

Plus, since it can take up to 7 impressions to create brand awareness, your signage will have another chance to earn its keep.

Using digital signage for office wayfinding

There are certainly several ways to do office wayfinding signage, from printed signs like arrows and text to floor and building directories.

While there are definitely some things that should remain static, digital signage significantly improves office navigation by providing real-time updates and interactive maps. They all have their advantages, but several businesses favor digital signage wayfinding in addition to using screens in their office communication systems, and here’s why.

Lower decision making

We all hear how the world’s most productive CEOs and entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg pick one outfit and stick with it because they want to reduce one of the decisions they have to make every day. 

In the same vein, digital wayfinding can help to make decision-making much faster. Say you arrive at the office earlier than usual. There are four different spaces you can choose to work in, but you see on the digital signage screen that only one of them is open - saving you the time and frustration.

This kind of real-time update wouldn’t be possible with regular wayfinding signage.

Better use of time

Offices that are clearly signposted help make better use of an employee’s time. When you effectively use digital signage wayfinding on each floor or central meeting point, employees and visitors can quickly locate essential meeting rooms, significantly improving the flow of your space.

Just like a well-sign-posted road, direction helps everyone to navigate more easily and with less build-up. Over time, this can reduce congestion and ensure a stress-free office environment.

Less confusion

The beauty of digital wayfinding, over say, printed building plans, is the speed at which it can be updated. For example, when you use our Building Directory app, you can re-open the directory you created, change a room name or floor, save it, and the screen showing the directory will automatically update. 

You don’t have to be anywhere near the screen in question, too, which means someone in any particular department can change the screen from anywhere. This reduces confusion and a pile of people turning up to a room that is no longer in use.

Fewer questions

Digital signage wayfinding reduces the need for multiple questions. One university study found that digital signage had a positive impact on students, reducing a commonly frustrating experience when they couldn’t reach their destination. 

The study also highlighted that some factors created effective interactions, primarily campus wayfinding systems designed to reduce mental workload and increase simplicity. 

The need for effective design in digital signs is clear but when offices implement this successfully, fewer questions are needed for employees to successfully get to where they need to go.

How to create an office wayfinding system

If you’re looking to create an office wayfinding system, here are some strategies to get you started. We recommend a combination of traditional and digital signs to get the most out of your set up.

1. Optimize with digital signage

Digital signage has flexibility and dynamic content capabilities that static signs cannot match. They can display real-time information like meeting room availability, event schedules, or emergency alerts. Interactive touchscreens can also provide detailed directions and maps. 

Implementing office digital signage for wayfinding can be as easy as setting up screens in high-traffic areas where real-time updates are most beneficial. For example, place digital directories in the lobby and interactive maps near elevators. 

You can also integrate digital signage with other office systems. For example, connect conference room displays with your booking system to show current and upcoming reservations.

2. Clear and useful directional signage

Clear and useful directional signage is the backbone of any wayfinding system. You want your signs to be in straightforward language and easily readable with large, legible fonts. Avoid jargon and use universally recognized symbols where possible. 

Here are some examples:

• Exit: A running figure with an arrow pointing towards a door or an open door icon
• Restrooms: A simple stick figure, styled for gender
• Elevator: A square with two figures inside, with arrows pointing up and down
• Stairs: A series of steps with an arrow pointing in the direction of travel (up or down)
• First Aid: A simple cross, often in green or red
• Information: A lowercase "i" inside a circle or square
• Accessible/Handicap: A stick figure in a wheelchair

While setting up your directional signs, it’s important to do a thorough walkthrough of your office space. Identify key decision points where people are likely to need direction, like near elevators, stairwells, and major intersections. At each of these points, install directional signs that provide clear guidance.

Another thing to consider is the placement height and angle of your signage. Signs should be at eye level and visible from a distance, ensuring that anyone can read them without straining. 

3. Provide clear maps and directions

Whether you're creating campus wayfinding signage or office wayfinidng, maps and directions are key. They help people understand the overall layout of the office, making them some of the most important wayfinding tools.

A well-designed map should be easy to read and understand, highlighting key areas such as conference rooms, restrooms, exits, and departmental zones.

You may want to incorporate landmarks and use a “You Are Here” marker to provide context. Additionally, digital signage maps can be incredibly helpful here because they can be easily changed, depending on changes in the office space.

4. Always reassess your wayfinding signs

One of the only ways to ensure your wayfinding signs stay helpful is to reassess them often. As your space evolves, and different departments come, go, and merge, your signage needs to be updated accordingly. 

You may want to: 

• Conduct periodic reviews of your wayfinding system
• Solicit feedback from users to identify areas for improvement
• Update signs to reflect any changes in office layout
• Stay informed about new wayfinding technologies and best practices

Here’s another area where digital wayfinding shines through – you can always update the signs to suit your new office layout. You might even move your screens to areas where they might be more useful, and simply pop into your Building Directory app, create new slides, and the signs are good to go!

5. Incorporate color coding and theming

Color coding is an effective way to visually differentiate different areas within your office. By assigning distinct colors to various sections, anyone can make navigation more intuitive and reduce confusion.

The key here is to develop a color scheme that is easily distinguishable and aligns with your brand’s aesthetic. For example, 

• Blue for finance
• Green for marketing
• Red for human resources
• Orange for meeting rooms

Once you’ve established a color system that works, apply them consistently across all wayfinding elements, including signs, maps, and floor markings.

6.  Prioritize accessibility and inclusivity

The most effective wayfinding systems are also accessible and inclusive of everyone, including people with disabilities. They adhere to ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) guidelines and consider the needs of individuals with various impairments.

A great place to start is ensuring that all signs are accessible for those with visual impairments; using large fonts, high contrast, and tactile elements such as braille. 

For auditory assistance, you can consider integrating audible directions or cues in key areas, such as elevators and main entrances.

This can also extend to accessibility for people with mobility impairments. Provide clear signage for ramps, accessible restrooms, and elevators.

7. Incorporate success elements

When it comes to creating wayfinding, four factors are critical if you’re going to create signs that are useful and helpful.

• Simplicity: Digital signage wayfinding should use a simple design that aims to get the appropriate information to the viewer as quickly as possible
• Relevance: Ensuring that the information displayed is both relevant to the space it is in and that it’s updated to show real-time information
• Flexibility: Wayfinding should be used to highlight the options open to employees. For example, a simple icon system could be used to show whether a space is best for group collaboration or more focused work
• Placement: Ensure your wayfinding signage is visible and accessible to everyone.

Creating office wayfinding signage with ScreenCloud

Setting up digital office wayfinding is not as complex as it sounds. All you need is consumer grade TVs which can connect to your internet, whether that's using a smart TV or device such as Chromecast or Amazon's Signage Stick.

You then simply network these devices and manage the content with digital signage software.

ScreenCloud’s digital signage software is designed for workplace communication and is perfect for wayfinding. Whether it’s a single screen or multiple digital displays spread across your office, or different locations, ScreenCloud gives you the power to design great content that is user friendly, flexible and engaging.

Get started for free with a14-day free trial orschedule a demo to see all the tools and features ScreenCloud has to offer.