Alan Steppe
An office waiting room isn’t simply an area for visitors and guests to kill time; it’s the first chance you’ll have to make a positive impression on them and start their experience with your organization on the right foot. This environment should be welcoming, comfortable, and laid out in an efficient and organized manner.
Every piece of décor and furniture, from a café table to the seating, should be strategically selected to create a relaxed and inviting atmosphere. This space should offer versatility and charm, while also being functional. To help you set up the perfect waiting area for your office, we put together this comprehensive guide with tips from our style and design experts:
The Purpose of Your Waiting Room
While the short answer is obviously that a waiting area is a place for guests to wait until they can be helped by one of your employees, the fact is that different types of businesses have different purposes for their waiting rooms.
For medical or health professionals, it may be a space where guests need to fill out paperwork. In that case, you would need a surface they could write on. If you offer some type of service for children, you’d likely want to set up a play area with games and toys to occupy them while they wait.
The Design and Flow
Using your space efficiently is crucial in the layout of any waiting area. Consider the amount and type of traffic that will be going in and out and make sure that the pathways are open and unobstructed. Arrange the seating in a manner that allows for both social interaction and privacy.
Use Comfortable Seating Options
Speaking of seating, comfort should be the highest priority when deciding how to furnish your waiting room. Choose chairs, benches, and sofas with ergonomic designs and soft, plush cushions and backrests to offer your guests maximum comfort and relaxation in the event they have to endure longer wait times.
Integrating a Café Table
Café tables provide a practical and unique element to an office waiting room while also being highly functional. They offer adaptability and versatility to any space, providing a multi-purpose surface for everything from working on a laptop to placing refreshments to simply hosting casual interactions and informal discussions.
Decide which design materials such as metal, wood, or glass are best suited to complement the other décor in your waiting room. Adding decorative elements like floral arrangements or table runners also increases aesthetic appeal.
Waiting Rooms Should Never be Cold or Unfriendly
There are many ways that you can make your waiting area a place where guests feel comfortable and relaxed. Consider things like offering complimentary refreshments such as tea, water, and coffee in self-serve stations or having a member of your staff dedicated to seeing to visitor’s needs.
However you ultimately decide to lay out your waiting room, just remember this is often the first impression people will have of your organization, so it’s important to make it a good one.
