Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

By Henry Brown

Your employees spend all day at your office, and it’s likely that you will host clients there sometimes too, so it should look nice. Unfortunately, a lot of business owners don’t really think about how inviting their office building is and they let things slip. This has disastrous consequences because an uninviting work environment puts your employees in a negative mindset as soon as they step foot on the property in the morning, which means that they won’t work effectively. It also sends a very bad message to any clients that come to the building because, if you don’t put effort into your office building, are you going to put effort into your business relationship with them?

Take a look around your office, what do you see? If it’s looking a bit rough around the edges and you don’t think it’s particularly inviting, here are some simple changes you can make.

Start with the outside

People are already making judgments about your office and your business as soon as they approach the building. If the exterior and the surrounding area are not well kept, people have a negative impression right away and it doesn’t make them want to go inside and learn more about your company. So, check out some local landscaping companies and call somebody in to redesign and maintain your outside areas. A well kept lawn and some nice plants go a long way towards making your office look more inviting.

You should also consider washing the exterior walls with a pressure washer or even having them painted if they haven’t been done for a while. Years of built up dirt and grime doesn’t exactly look inviting.

Keep on top of clutter

If your office is a bit chaotic and there is clutter everywhere, you need to get into a regular routine of tidying it up. A cluttered office can feel overwhelming and negative for your employees because they feel like they’re being buried by their work, sometimes literally. When a client comes in, it makes you look very disorganized and unprofessional. So, make sure that you have a good filing system in place to start with. You should also communicate the importance of tidiness to your employees and let them know that they are all responsible for keeping their own desk area neat and tidy.

Create inviting meeting spaces

Trying to find a clear space at the end of your desk and pulling up a chair from somewhere in the office isn’t the way to welcome visitors to the office. If you want your office to be inviting, you need to create dedicated meeting spaces that are comfortable and conducive to productive work. This should be a priority when you are choosing office space because it benefits your employees while also giving you a great space to meet with clients.

If you are looking to hire someone to manage these meeting spaces then your best bet is a receptionist. Hiring a receptionist may add to your workplace budget but it will free up your own time for other things. When it comes to hiring people you don’t want to end up with a high employee churn rate. This is common in workplaces that don’t offer any incentives or chances to climb the career ladder. It might help you to work with a recruitment agency to find yourself a receptionist. They will have people on their books that have the relevant receptionist skills that you are looking for.

If you haven’t thought about how inviting your office is you are probably putting people off without even realizing it. But take these 3 simple pieces of advice on board and you can make a big difference.

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Henry Brown is an online marketing executive. When he isn’t talking shop, he’s roaming the streets of London, uncovering the extra-ordinary in the ordinary.