Wayfinding Digital Signage: The Guide

Wayfinding signage is more than just a signpost leading you to a specific location. It can be an invaluable way of providing users with important information or helping them understand aspects of a space, as well as being able to navigate.

It's in complex environments like healthcare facilities and university campuses where wayfinding's usefulness really shines through. By simplifying navigation and communication, digital or interactive wayfinding can be used for guiding visitors as well as improving their overall experience.

If you're upgrading or installing wayfinding solutions in your location, let's find out why you should include digital solutions.

What is wayfinding digital signage?

Digital wayfinding signage uses digital screens to give directional guidance and information to people who need it. It’s a lot like using regular signs, except that screens can display a wider range of content. They can be updated in real-time to reflect changes – like when a meeting room becomes unavailable – or show dynamic maps, alert notifications, and digital directories.

Wayfinding digital signage is also highly adaptable, making it really useful in environments where information needs to be relayed, updated, and corrected in real time for different audiences, including in:

• Colleges with campus wayfinding signage
• Retail stores
• Healthcare
• Office buildings
• Airports and transit hubs
• Museums

The four types of wayfinding signage

Wayfinding signs usually fall into four categories, based on their function and the kind of information they share. Understanding what these are and why they are important can help you identify the exact kind of information the audience needs and cut out unnecessary details.

Identification signage

Identification signs tell you where you are, plain and simple. For instance, a digital sign at the entrance of a building may say "Entrance" or "Reception". Identification signage can also be used to highlight important features such as:

• Specific departments or offices
• Emergency exits
• Waiting areas
• Staff only areas
• Children's areas
• First class lounges

In an office complex or co-working space, identification signage can be used for specific businesses. Or in a logistics center, you might want to display signage for the loading area, drivers rest area or bathrooms.

Directional signage

These signs guide users from one point to another, typically in larger buildings such as office complexes, airports and transport centers, healthcare facilities, shopping malls and other expansive locations. A typical form of directional signage will include a waypoint name with a directional arrow, for example “Exit →” or “Meeting Rooms ↑” which show you the general direction you should head.

Digital directional signs are particularly important because they manage the flow of traffic efficiently, improve the visitor or guest experience and can be life saving in emergencies, where quick response is critical.

Using a digital wayfinding system can allow for quick updates to floor plans and provides real-time information to support in emergency situations or when quick reactions are needed.

Informational signage

This type of signage offers additional information that may be useful for visitors. For example, a digital informational display in a shopping mall could show store directories, amenities and facilities, and even business hours.

There are also interactive maps that provide high-quality, easy-to-read visual directions that allow users to understand where they are relative to their destination. With informational signage the goal is to help users make informed decisions based on accessible, real-time information.

Regulatory signage

Regulatory signs, as the name suggests, communicate rules, protocols and safety information. These may include “No Smoking” or “No entry beyond this point” signs. Regulatory signs are basically enforcers that tell users what’s accepted and what’s not in the area.

Mixed use and interactive signage

Static signs serve a purpose, with some signs best served by a simple plaque - for example a sign for the bathroom, or a 'Staff Only - No Entry'. But in some cases, a screen with multiple wayfinding applications or even an interactive experience can be a powerful tool.

As an example, you might have a display within a university campus that shows directions to certain lecture halls, the library etc. But by touching the screen, users can locate a specific room or see a list of events or class schedules.

The beauty of digital wayfinding signage, and interactive wayfinding, is that you can swap out different kinds of signs as the situation demands. An example could be:

• Showing meeting room directions during a conference
• Swapping to directional maps during regular hours
• Guiding the way to emergency exits when necessary

What are the benefits of digital wayfinding signage?

Cost-effectiveness

Although the initial investment may be higher than static signs, digital wayfinding can be cost-effective in the long run. It means you never have to print and replace your signages, and that you can use one screen for multiple kinds of signs.

Real-time updates

Digital wayfinding allows you to quickly provide real time updates, to ensure that everything stays current and accurate. This is particularly useful in environments where information changes frequently, and where enhancing operational efficiency is key, such as airports, hospitals, and event venues. Using digital signage software means you can also update this information remotely.

Flexibility and customization

Digital wayfinding systems also offer high flexibility and can be easily customized to meet specific needs. For example, content can be tailored for different times of the day, special events, or different audiences, improving its relevance and effectiveness.

Engagement and interaction

With interactive wayfinding solutions, your users can access a more personalized experience, such as navigating complex facilities, improving the overall customer or visitor experience.

Touchscreen maps play a crucial role in enhancing user interaction by allowing users to search for specific destinations or view detailed maps.

How to use digital wayfinding signage

Digital wayfinding solutions are simple to set up, and can even save you money when done right. In this section, we’ll go over some key steps you need to follow when setting up digital signage wayfinding in your building.

We also have a useful step-by-step guide on rolling out large digital signage deployments, if you need more technical guidance.

1. Assess your space

Start by mapping out the key locations where signage is needed. For example, you might want a welcome board in your main arrivals area, reception or foyer. But you might also need additional screens at strategic locations such as high footfall areas, waiting rooms or intersections.

You may also want to ensure that wayfinding solutions are accessible on mobile devices, allowing visitors to quickly find their bearing.

Features like QR codes can be very useful here. People simply scan with their own devices and can then access information on their phones, such as maps or schedules.

2. Identify wayfinding needs vs solutions

Understanding what your visitors are looking for is an essential step in creating your wayfinding solution. To do this, you'll need to ask what your visitors are doing when they are in your location, where they are most likely going, and what the barriers for navigating might be.

• Are visitors going from point A to point B, or are there other locations to visit?
• How easy is it to get from location A to any point on the map?
• Are there other wayfinding solutions being used (for example, floor markings, plaques, banners etc)?
• Do visitors need to wait before being moved to their destination?

As an example of this complexity, in an airport visitors might need to wait in a waiting area before being called to their gate. But, whilst waiting, they might want to visit the bathrooms, restaurants and shops, smoking area, visitors lounge or any number of other options.

As such, you might need to place interactive kiosks for visitors to identify and locate what they need.

Physical signage within this location might also still use static signage, as features such as bathrooms, gate locations and lounges most likely do not change.

Check out our Getting Started with Digital Signage eBook for more information.

3. Design clear and intuitive content

Wayfinding signs need to be clear, easy-to-understand, and user friendly; it’s important to keep these points in mind when designing your digital signs as well as static signage.

A brief list of key points to hit would include:

• Legibility: Ensure that the text is clear and legible from a distance.
• Contrast: Maintain a strong contrast between the text and background to improve visibility. Light text on a dark background (or vice versa) is often the best way to explain this.
• Color coding: Use color coding to help users quickly identify different types of information or areas.
• Consistency: Maintain consistency in design elements such as typography, colors, and iconography across all signage screens. 
• White space: Use white space effectively to prevent the screen from appearing cluttered and overwhelming. 

Read more: How to design digital posters

4. Updating and refreshing

Take advantage of your signage’s flexibility by updating the content regularly. This is a given with dynamic information like meeting times and room availability. But you also want to keep an eye on things like directories and directions, especially as things can change. 

Whether that's changes in business names, room uses or department locations - be sure to have a process to update and audit your signage content regularly.

5. Maximize signage use

Digital signage has uses beyond wayfinding. In an office environment, it can be used for employee engagement, training, and presentations. In healthcare, it’s great for conveying information in waiting rooms and employee break rooms.

There are many more use cases for digital signage.

Digital signage can also incorporate useful widgets such as the time and date, weather information or even breaking news.

And, so long as it doesn't impede the wayfinding experience, digital signs can also be used for promotional content.

Create wayfinding digital signage with ScreenCloud

With ScreenCloud there are several ways you can create digital wayfinding solutions. These include:

Building Directory

Designed as a go to for interactive wayfinding solutions, this app allows you to list your building or venue locations. Visitors can then scan a QR code to access an interactive map to get them where they need to go.

Notice Board

Our handy app designed for any type of signage messaging. Create room signage, protocol or regulatory reminders, or simple directional signs.

Meeting Rooms

Highlight availability of specific locations, such as meeting rooms, consultation rooms, office hot-desks or event or lecture hall schedules.

Canva

Create your own signage displays and upload quickly and easily to your ScreenCloud dashboard.

Transport

List public transport options nearby, including buses, trains, flights and more. Highlight departure times for visitors so they can easily get where they need to go.

Google Maps

Add maps and information from Google Maps, including traffic data or nearby points of interest.

Third party integrations

Adding other signage elements is also straightforward with ScreenCloud, although you do need a little bit of a technical touch.

If your space is especially large with many complex environments and visitors, you may want to invest in a wayfinding app like Purple.

Try ScreenCloud

ScreenCloud makes it easy to create and manage digital signage through a powerful CMS that gives you full control over your displayed content. For the best performance, reliability, and centralized management, you can set up and manage your wayfinding screens using ScreenCloud’s own hardware: The ScreenCloud PIXI, an affordable and efficient option for smaller setups, or the ScreenCloud OS Station P1 Pro, built for enterprise-grade performance and complex deployments.

If you prefer to use third-party hardware, you can find our list of recommended compatible devices here.

Sign up for a 14-day free trial to explore how easy it is to build and manage a complete wayfinding solution with ScreenCloud.