The importance of a strong wayfinding strategy
A wayfinding strategy can be defined as an integrated set of visual cues that aim to help people navigate their way through a specific venue or facility.
While wayfinding signs are often directional by nature, their effectiveness can extend far beyond helping people get from point A to point B.
CV Signage outlines how wayfinding signs can help increase sales and drive brand awareness.
Here are three reasons why your business should implement a wayfinding system.
- Create sales opportunities
Ever wondered about the psychology behind IKEA’s layout?
While their stores have been the subject of many urban myths, people still subscribe to the idea that IKEA outlets are designed in a way that will make people get lost.
While this theory is not completely accurate, IKEA’s actual strategy is just as interesting.
Essentially, the Swedish giant utilises a complex in-store wayfinding strategy which encourages consumers to take a clockwise adventure through the whole store, and therefore view almost every product in the process.
Predictably, this encourages impulse buying, and results in many people leaving the store having made a purchase that they did not intend to make.
It is important to note that IKEA does not force consumers to tour the whole store.
While there are shortcuts available, the business banks on the knowledge that humans generally employ a herd mentality and will more often than not just go with the flow.
In essence, IKEA aims to use human behaviour to their advantage.
IKEA’s incredibly unique case is proof that a well thought out wayfinding strategy can be used as a means to drive sales.
- Boost brand awareness and exposure
While wayfinding signage does, at its core, serve a functional purpose, that is not to say that it cannot also add value to your brand.
Today many companies use wayfinding systems as a means of demonstrating personality.
This is often achieved by using infographics, fun messages, and storytelling.
Brands can build exposure and differentiate themselves from their competition by adding these extra elements to an otherwise purely functional piece of signage.
Wayfinding systems continue to be an effective tool that many businesses use to pursue target markets and build relationships with customers.
- Promotes convenience and enhances simplicity
While convenience was once a shopping luxury, consumers now demand it as a necessity.
With more people continuing to chase a wild, fast-paced lifestyle, it is unsurprising that 83% of consumers agree that convenience is more important now than it was five years ago.
This statistic suggests that the modern business should be placing a big emphasis on creating a customer journey that is both frictionless and simplistic.
An effective wayfinding system can help decongest high traffic areas, and in turn, ensure that a business is able to consistently function at an efficient level.
This translates to a seamless and enjoyable shopping experience for consumers.
The bottom line
It is important to remember that the main purpose of a wayfinding system should always be to help people get to where they want to be.
With this being said, the effectiveness of wayfinding systems can extend far beyond the functional purpose that they serve.
Modern wayfinding systems have the capability to drive sales, boost brand awareness, and promote a simplistic consumer experience.
For more information and advice, do not hesitate to contact the author at CV Media & Signage.
