If you hear the term “environmental graphic design”, your mind might take that to mean “environmentally-friendly graphic design”, leading you to wonder how something that involves designing logos and the layout of promotional products impacts the environment. While understandable that your mind would go that route, environmental graphic design actually refers to the usage of graphic design elements such as typography and imagery to provide visual cues that inform people about how to navigate through a space.
Environmental graphic design is a key part of the interior design of a building, way-finding, and more. It does indeed impact the environment, but not in the kind of environment you may initially think. The goal of environmental graphic design is to implement graphics that ensure it’s easy for people to make their way around a facility, be it a stadium, museum, conference space, public transportation, and more.
Factors Involved In Environmental Graphic Design 
It’s one thing to know the purpose of environmental graphic design, it’s another entirely to make effective ones. There are several essential factors involved in this type of graphic design that go hand-in-hand with traditional graphic design. You need to understand the intention of the people who will visit that environment, and what their experience there should be. A person’s experience in a place will be dictated by whether they are there to complete a task, to be social, to explore, to be entertained, or to learn.
Once you understand the purpose of your intended audience, you’ll be able to create a design that both speaks to their purpose, and yours. This includes:
- Your unique brand personality
- What sets you apart from the competition
- Designs that create value for your customers
Environmental graphic design is more than just imagery that speaks to your brand identity, but that also conveys your values, your purpose, your vision. Good designs combine the customer experience of those who experience your environment with your brand, why people should do business with you, and garner an idea of what working with you will be like.
The Different Types Of Environmental Graphic Design
As you can see, environmental graphic design is incredibly broad, so we’re going to break it down to some of the most common types that you’ll encounter.
Way-finding
As the name suggests, this refers to designs that make a path throughout an environment that help people navigate an unfamiliar space. Way-finding utilizes icons, aspects of interior design, such as arrows, and placement of branding elements that both guide customers throughout your space and are consistent with your brand.
Environmental Branding
Plain walls and blank environments work in some cases to cultivate a minimal atmosphere, but they likely won’t help people move through your space. Environmental branding refers to utilizing graphics, such as your logo, to bring your space to life and set the tone for your space and your business. This gives people a sense of your brand while helping them navigate the space.
Signage
This works in tandem with way-finding, but can be set apart. Way-finding can use signage to assist people in finding their way, but signage not only identifies a place, but delivers information, and can be found on company vehicles, temporary mounted signs, and more.
How Environmental Graphic Design Helps Your Business
Just like the user experience is one of the most essential components of website design, environmental graphic design works in a similar way, through making the customer experience walking through a space more positive and higher quality. Architecture influences human behavior in curating specific environments and atmospheres that tell people how they are expected to behave in a space; environmental graphic design influences people in how they think of your brand, how it makes them feel, and whether or not they’re inclined to want to work with you.
Good environmental graphic design will create a positive experience that both informs and guides people in a way that remains true to your company brand, values, and mission. With how vital it is, it’s essential to ensure that the designs you have are high quality and professional, which one of the expert graphic designers at Performance Driven Marketing can make for you.
Do You Need Environmental Graphic Designs?
Performance Driven Marketing has several experienced graphic designers in house who can both help you come up with a brand identity and come up with designs for your website, promotional materials, environment, and more that help generate you more business. We also offer digital marketing services such as SEO and web development. To learn more about how we can help you, don’t hesitate to contact us today!
