The very first thing that your visitors, clients, and investors see when they enter your office is your reception area. That’s why it is one of the most important parts of your entire office space. It’s no longer enough to have a decent area to receive guests – you have to value their comfort too.
Having a harmonious reception area can provide your guests with a level of belonging that not all businesses can offer. If they can find themselves becoming a recurring client, that means that your service made a huge impact on them. To elevate your reception area to a whole new level, follow these tips:
Hire a Kind Receptionist
Aside from the reception area, the first person your guests will be speaking to is your receptionist. That is why your business needs to have a friendly and professional receptionist who is easy to approach.
Having a point person to address your concerns to and inquire about relevant updates from creates a friendly atmosphere. Wouldn’t you rather your guests be cared for in the best way possible instead of leaving them clueless and unaware in your waiting room?
A good receptionist is polite and inquisitive, but only to a certain extent. They should also know when to offer refreshments to the guests and create small talk when needed.
Use a Digital Sign-in Process
If your office does not have a full-time receptionist, then you should at least utilize a digital sign-in process that can easily be used by your guests. Having the standard logbook and pen is such a hassle for both you and your guests, as opposed to keeping all the necessary data compiled through the devices.
There is a variety of applications online that can allow you to collect data from everyone who logs in, as well as keep track of when they log out. This data can come in handy should there be anything out of the ordinary after your guests have left.
Offer Refreshing Drinks
To make your reception area more comfortable for your guests, you can place a table for refreshments in one corner. Here, you can place a small selection of refreshing drinks like citrus-flavored water, cold fruit drinks, or coffee for guests that might be perched during their wait.
This can also be a great way to show your guests that you care for their welfare without doing much. But to make this clean and orderly, your receptionist or other staff should come by the table once in a while for refills and tidying.
Add Indoor Plants
A touch of nature is always a good way to liven up a place. Adding indoor plants to your reception area can be a strategic way of brightening up the space with some color. Plus, having plants inside can make the air circulation a bit better.
Indoor plants also give life to a bland reception area. But before you go and buy whatever plant you see, be sure to research the best plant types for indoor settings, preferably ones that are low maintenance and can thrive even without sunlight.
Invest in Good Furniture
You’ll want your guests comfortable on the seats they are on, but not so much that they sink into the couch. And you also won’t want fake leather couches that rip apart after a few months of wear and tear. In that case, you’ll want to invest in good furniture.
Good doesn’t immediately pertain to expensive, so you have to be smart about where you’re buying your furniture. Ask around and make an informed decision about where to buy good and long-lasting furniture that can make your reception area look amazing.
Play Ambient Music
To create a relaxing atmosphere in your waiting area, you’ll need to provide some sort of entertainment for your guests. And while a television can do the job, most of the time, it just ends up creating noise. For that, it will be better to play ambient or light jazz music instead of opting for a TV.
You can think of it like your guests are in a cafe setting. Soft music plays in the background, and they can have the mental capacity to think to themselves instead of being bombarded by the television’s noise.
Provide Access to Books
There’s nothing worse than seeing outdated and wrinkled magazines sitting in a pile under the coffee table in a reception area. Not only does it scream disorganization, but it also means that the owners are too occupied to bother to update the magazines for their reception.
To make sure that this doesn’t happen to your business, you can opt to offer books instead of random magazines. These books can be about the industry that you belong to or by iconic personalities that wrote literature about your field.
Caring about how your guests are welcomed into your office can go a long way in delivering good service. If your investors see how much you value your clients, they might be more likely to work with you too. Upgrading your reception area isn’t just for your guests, but also your business as well.
