‘First impressions count…’ is an expression that goes back decades. So when it comes to your HQ, how do you ensure it stands out and sticks in visitors’ memories for all the right reasons? Our graphic display specialist Dale Broadhead offers five simple tips…
1. Think about immediate impact
With the pace of daily life becoming faster than ever before, attention spans are dwindling. So, whilst the goal should be to create memorable surroundings, it is important that your HQ has an immediate impact too. Walk through your front door and try to assess – with a fresh pair of eyes – what you see, hear and feel within the first seven seconds. That’s probably how long the average visitor will subconsciously take, before they start to form their opinions about your brand.
2. Transform your reception space
It’s not just a space that welcomes people to your HQ – the chances are, visitors may also spend some time in your reception too. So, think about what you could do to transform these surroundings. From whole wall graphics to a branded lightbox suspended from the ceiling, the options are endless. Even the reception desk could be illuminated with your brand colour. But it’s not just about introducing high quality displays into this area – front-of-house colleagues need to be as professional as the interior design!
3. Showcase your products and services
If you’re a manufacturer, distributor or retailer of products, what better place to have them on show, than your HQ? Our product walls are proving popular for this very reason – they place the spotlight on the goods that you’re renowned for and display them in all their glory, against the backdrop of striking, illuminated brand graphics or photography.
The creation of this focal point will act as a mini showroom for your brand – great for when new or existing customers come to visit. It will also instil a sense of pride among the people behind the products – your staff.
Providers of less tangible services may find this ‘showcase’ difficult to create. Alternative suggestions therefore include the display of impactful testimonials, brand straplines or images of colleagues doing their job. All these things help to tell the brand’s story, and they may stand out a little more if installed on a more unusual space, like a floor to ceiling pillar.
It is often difficult to choose exactly what to display of course – which could be considered a nice problem to have! The simplest way to navigate this issue is to invest in a display system such as a lightbox with interchangeable graphics, which staff can switch themselves without any support from the graphics provid
4. Think about your brand’s personality
Customers are becoming more and more discerning in both B2B and B2C environments. They are increasingly looking to work with and/or buy from organisations with a sense of purpose, or at least a strong cultural identity. So, when it comes to making your HQ stand out, don’t be afraid of injecting your personality. Many companies think so carefully about the professionalism of their surroundings, that their space can unfortunately feel almost clinical or soulless as a result. This means it may stand out for all the wrong reasons, so don’t be afraid to be yourself!
One of the easiest ways to do this is through colour, which also helps to set the mood. You could even think about a display within which the colour transitions from one hue to the next, to capture attention and help people destress.
5. Remember the people that matter
We’ve talked a lot about creating a wow factor for new and existing customers who may attend a meeting at your HQ. But don’t forget the other important people, who come in and out of your premises on a daily basis – colleagues.
Too many brands concentrate so much on the customer experience, that they overlook the individuals who perhaps matter the most. If employees feel demotivated, uninspired or unappreciated, every ounce of effort to make a great impression is likely to simply fall flat! So, think too about what might give your staff a boost, as happy colleagues may have the biggest impact of all on your brand image.
If you have found this content helpful and are interested in more interior tips, catch up on our ‘How to make your office pop’ blog…
