When many business owners think of signs for their company, they tend to consider the main business name sign on their storefront or on the street. Signs can serve so many varied purposes, such as indicating the location of a business, as a primary sign does, but they can also perform other functions, such as advertising, providing information on business opening hours, or pointing out discounts and sales. What many often forget, however, is another type of sign which can provide an invaluable service for your customers: wayfinding signs.
Pointing the Way
Wayfinding signs, as the name suggests, help customers and other business visitors find their way. This is vital, particularly in a large company with lots of departments or in a large shop with many rooms or levels. In a clothing store, for example, your customers want to know where they can find Men’s, Women’s, Kid’s, and Accessories and wayfinding signs will indicate these areas as well as guide shoppers to them. For a major organisation such as a hospital or university, wayfinding signs are an absolute necessity. These massive enterprises, often encompassing a sprawling campus or extensive network of hallways, floors, and units can only be navigated with many helpful wayfinding signs to help get visitors where they need to go.
A Better Experience
In large organisations and businesses, wayfinding signs are necessary to keep visitors, clients, and customers on the right path. But these signs also perform another important function: they improve the overall experience of the visitor. Well-placed, legible, and plentiful wayfinding signs allow the customer to feel a sense of security about your business or organisation. No one likes to feel lost or disoriented in a new location, and often this can even deter customers and turn them away! That’s the last thing you want. The value of wayfinding signs is clear but their importance is often overlooked. Don’t forget about including them in your place of business, as they add that professional touch and create a welcoming environment for all who enter.
Odds and Ends
So what types of wayfinding signs might your business require?
Signs pointing out entrances and exits, especially emergency exits
Signs pointing to the toilet facilities and signs indicating Men and Women
Signs pointing upstairs or to another region of the shop and detailing what may be found there
Hanging signs indicating departments or aisles
In a larger business, signs for floors, levels, and directions to the stairs or the lift
Signs pointing the way to car parks, and additional parking
Signs indicating the way to disabled entrances or disabled parking
Other Opportunities
Wayfinding signs are valuable not only for business locations and organisation campuses, but for other events as well. Business conferences, expos, and other large events can benefit from quality wayfinding signage. A large conference or expo can use wayfinding signs to point out different meeting rooms, share details of information sessions, and generally guide people in the right direction. Signs pointing the way to toilets and exits are also vastly important in these situations, as visitors are likely in an unfamiliar setting and these signs will support their comfort and safety. Even wedding ceremonies and receptions can utilise wayfinding signs. If a ceremony is in a rural location, wayfinding signs along the roadside can point the way for arriving guests. Wayfinding signs can indicate where guests can park as well, which is always very important. John Hills Signs offers reasonably priced corflute signs which are perfect for events requiring some temporary signage.
