Creating the perfect guest area at your office!
Offices though mainly are occupied by employees, do occasionally or may often have guests. If you have the type of office that is cramped with only work spaces, or have a set area but find it needs a little sprucing up. We're here to help and suggest a few ways on how to fix it.
First designate and separate an area off for guests to sit and chat. Make sure that the area is clearly visible to create a good atmosphere for guests making them feel welcome and part of one. This is extremely important. In making guests feel welcome always have an area ready to go for whenever they arrive.
We recommend a corner or an actual room.
Guest corner/ Meeting area
Pros:
- Cheap, will not use a lot of budget
- In an open area, promotes openness
- Relaxed atmosphere
Cons:
- Lack of privacy
- Layout may be too casual
- Not suitable for meetings
Depending on your office ambiance and what you aim to achieve through a having a corner designated to speaking to guests of the office will really define whether to go for a guest corner or guest room
Guest room/Meeting room
Pros:
- Complete privacy
- Suitable for meeting style conversations
Cons:
- Make create a closed atmosphere
- Guests may feel uncomfortable cut off from the rest of the office
Our recommendation, providing your office have enough space is to have both. Why not? Office guests don't always pop by for the same reasons so why not have areas separated ready for different occasions.
3 main things that we recommend to always have prepared no matter what are:
- Train staff to know what to do when the office does have guest
This is because you will never be able to fully control who your guests may stumble upon when visiting. It is best to make sure everyone is well trained to greet and/or take care of guests to ensure they feel welcome
2.Have refreshments ready for guests
It may sound silly and old fashioned but there is a reason why it works so well. When people talk they often talk more when there are refreshments near by as people tend to get dry throats. Knowing they have refreshments to make them hydrated works wonders.
3.Have clear directions/signs as to where the restroom is
Have you ever experienced not being able to find the restroom? Us too, try to prevent this problem at the office so that guests don't feel like they are a nuisance for having to ask. Some people also find it awkward to ask and would rather keep it to themselves.
Now that you have a few more ideas to add to your list, we hope that it helps in greeting people and making them feel welcome at the office.