Want to make your office a showcase for all your company stands for? Office branding can be a great way to do so.
What is office branding?
Quite simply, it’s the art of shaping an office space into one that reflects your company. It doesn’t just have to be a case of painting the office in company colors and sticking your logo up about the place (although of course this would be a great start). It’s a process that takes in everything that might have an effect on your office environment and what that says about your company.
For example, the process includes big decisions such as whether you go with cubicles, partitions or make your office completely open. You’ll also have to consider more personal touches; these are things such as breakout areas, color schemes, artwork and even the little touches like adding creative blackboard walls. All of these features can build to create a space that is uniquely yours.
Why would I want to consider office branding?
Firstly, it’s a great way to encourage employees to live and breathe your company. Furthermore, working in a unique, dynamic space could have real boosts to productivity. Who really works best in a plain or boring office.
It could also boost the image your company gives potential clients and customers. Branding your office is a way to show you really know your brand and are intensely proud of it; a message that can resonate with those you seek to impress.
How do I go about office branding?
This is the tricky one, as every business works in a different way. It’s often good to tie the process in with either an office move or a company rebrand; moments when you’re thinking about what you want to be as a company or what kind of space you want to occupy. The following are our four key considerations that we hope help you on the path to a successfully branded office:
- Going solo vs. getting help: Getting a company to design and fit out a new office saves time. But, who knows more about what you want from an office than your own staff? They are often the best people to execute an office rebrand.
- Do you go for the often more collaborative open-plan office or an insular but potentially more productive partitioned or cubicled layout?
- Ask what sets you apart: Think about what sets your business or your office apart and try and reflect this in the design process. When we designed the new Genie offices we took inspiration from many things, but particularly our new riverside location which inspired this mural.
Common wisdom advises us not to judge a book by its cover, yet the appearance of any object tells us much about its contents or purpose. Office spaces hold to the same concept, as the look and visual “feel” of a workspace communicate a company’s purpose and dedication to visitors. More importantly, however, a workspace’s appearance helps to shape the identity and culture of a business as it develops to its full potential. Having a creative office space brand is critical for the success of your endeavor and the direction in which it naturally grows.
The Broad Brushstrokes of Office Branding
When designers mention the word “branding”, it often conjures the mental image of a company’s logo displayed in prominent places in the office. This represents the broadest of brushstroke in the greater picture of office branding. Company emblems and the conspicuous display of your business’s mission statement both position your brand in the fore.
Utilizing the company’s colors in the workspace can also give your office a distinctive feel without oversaturating the area with logos. Nuanced utilization of shades which speak to your company’s brand provides a visually interesting backdrop against which more subtle signs of office branding will stand out.
While highlighting the company’s logos and colors, it is important to keep in mind the ultimate goal of office space branding. An over-abundance of the company’s emblems, or substantial usage of the business’s colors, can undermine the effect you desire. Branding that relies heavily on gimmicks may give an impression you don’t wish to convey.
Office Space Branding: The Devil is in the Details
Effective office space branding molds both the composition and behavior of the employees who work within it. Prospective staff members consider the space in which they will work while they make their decision to seek employment. Good branding can help you build a creative and collaborative office space which will attract the type of individual you would like to work for your company.
Consider the small touches which present imagery of your corporate identity. A sporting goods company might place sports-related pictures on the walls or a basketball throwing game in the break room. Businesses which specialize in communication might highlight the ability to work anywhere in the office, and choose not to tether employees to designated workstations.
Spaces designed to promote the habits you hope to cultivate in your employees will assist in organically shaping your corporate culture. Such spaces also make statements about your brand, and what it brings to the marketplace. The incorporation of fundamentals relating to your business will keep the minds of both employees and clients on what your organization represents. Wes can assist you in creating an office space that brings out the best in your corporate brand. Our goal is to create workspaces that inspire, while maintaining the functionality you desire.
