Getting Your Office’s Lobby and Reception Area to be More Welcoming

Every business, regardless of size and industry, has only seconds to impress clients and business partners. This is why the appearance of the lobby and the reception area matter.

The reception is the first thing that people see when coming for a meeting or a purchase. The cleanliness, the furniture and even the demeanor of the receptionist are all so important. If you have a lobby or a waiting area, you’ll have to think about their appearance, as well.

Don’t know whether your reception area is up to par? Worry not, we’re here to help!
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Get Inspiration

You don’t have to buy or create something incredibly innovative and unexpected in order to make the reception great. Getting design inspiration from other companies that have the perfect reception or lobby can help you create the ambiance that your clients will love.

A reception area could be minimalist, featuring warm natural materials like wood, modernistic or even rustic. Just choose the style that will contribute to enhancing the corporate image you’d like to enforce.

Branding, Branding, Branding

Whether your business is just getting established or you’ve been around for decades, you should use every opportunity to make your brand identity more recognizable.

Branded furniture is fun and cool. You can also feature decorative elements on the wall that highlight the company’s logo. Keep the interior design in the same color scheme as your marketing materials (like your logo and your company website). Such stylistic choices create consistency and help set your identity apart.

Keep it Clean and Cozy

The reception area, lobby or waiting room can all be ranked as high traffic areas. There will be dozens of people passing through these parts of the office on a daily basis. As a result, your lobby can quickly get dirty.

It will get particularly bad on rainy and snowy days.

Make sure that the lobby is cleaned thoroughly at least once per day. If it’s raining outside, you’ll probably have to get the floor cleaned a couple of times.

The simple placement of welcome mats in front of the entryway can reduce the amount of mud and moisture that guests bring inside. Another simple trick that will enable you to keep the lobby clean involves a minimalist design. Having fewer accessories and decorations means having fewer items to wipe from dust.
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Plants

A bit of greenery in the waiting areas will quickly improve the atmosphere.

Plants are particularly great for minimalist receptions and the waiting areas that are decorated in neutral colors (white, black, grey and beige). They will provide a natural contrast and a couple of interest points.
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Multimedia in the Lobby

If you want to make your reception area even more innovative, you’ll definitely benefit from multimedia presentations. Relax, they’re very easy to do.

All you need is a flat screen TV. Record videos of your employees speaking about their job and why they love it. Alternatively, you can create slideshows that present work process pictures, diagrams and other information visitors could potentially find interesting.

While waiting for a meeting, visitors have nothing to do. This means you have a captive audience. Why not acquaint this audience with your business? The investment in such multimedia presentations is minimal and they can be quite impressive.
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Have Beverages Available

Even if they don’t have to wait a lot for a meeting or to make a purchase, people love getting something extra. This something extra could come in the form of a beverage or even candies.

Water and tea don’t cost a lot but they’ll keep visitors refreshed. Quite often, these little signs of attention are the ones that matter the most.
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De-Clutter Periodically

In many offices, the reception turns sooner or later into a storage area. This is a big no-no, even if you’re pressed for space. If things tend to accumulate in areas like the lobby, you’ll have to get in the habit of periodical de-cluttering.

Such activities can happen once per month. Look for boxes and office supplies that don’t belong in the reception area. Throw out old magazines and promotional materials, replace those with fresh media. Files and documents should also be kept out of sight, creating a nice place for the people that are there to interact with your employees.

A cool reception area doesn’t demand a major investment. You simply have to think about comfort and a good presentation. Keeping the lobby clean at all times will also be sufficient to please visitors and create the right first impression. Next time you enter the office, reconsider the importance and the appearance of the reception. Chances are that you can do at least a couple of things to make it better.​