How to Use Floor Tape to Encourage Social Distancing

With no way to know when social distancing requirements will ease, durable, removable floor tape and signs can help customers, staff and visitors know you have their health and safety in mind. Clear visual cues also provide the information necessary to allow everyone to make the appropriate choices. These are some of the most useful tools for sharing restrictions, policy updates, and temporary workflow changes. No matter the facility, Superior Mark® floor marking tape is a durable solution to ease congested spaces and reduce the spread of illness.

Retail Locations

Signage and visual cues are key when it comes to changing procedures or traffic flow in grocery stores, shopping malls, and other retail locations. Regular visitors may be used to a specific routine and new shoppers want to easily navigate the store’s layout, be able to find essential locations like the customer service counter and understand the checkout process at a glance.

Use floor tape to designate traffic flow. One-way aisles help promote social distancing and keep traffic flow organized. Whether you use arrows, footprints, or floor marking tape with pre-printed or custom messages, you can improve organization and help shoppers keep a safe distance. In open areas where one-way traffic isn’t possible or beneficial, use floor marking tape to create walkways: This will encourage shoppers to stick to a specific, single-file path of travel to keep plenty of distance between others.

Communicate temporary policy changes. Whether it’s a restriction on reusable bags, masks-required or purchase or capacity limits, give customers plenty of opportunities to see the updated regulations. These notices aren’t only relevant in the entrances, either. Aisle floors are ideal places to offer friendly reminders of purchase quantity limits or that fitting rooms are temporarily closed, while reminders for suspended return policies or cash-free transactions are helpful at the checkout line.

Remind visitors of health requirements. Not only does signage remind shoppers to make healthy choices—mask-wearing, hand washing, social distancing, staying home when sick and more—it lets them know what to expect of your staff members, as well. Knowing the employees assisting them will follow the same requirements lets shoppers know you’ve got their wellbeing in mind. Provide visuals with tape or floor signs so customers know what to expect.

Create space at registers and counters. Visual cues help shoppers understand and follow the guidelines you have in place. Many locations are relying on painted squares or X-marks spaced six feet apart, but you can help customers visualize the appropriate distance through associations, as well.

Offer a better idea of what six feet looks like when you use floor marking tape printed with a ruler or durable floor signs reminding customers to keep two cart lengths between them. Customize the message to suit your location: A car dealership may recommend allowing the width of a pick-up truck, while a farm supply store may prefer to designate the distance as the length of a cow. Use tape to illustrate the concept, and combine custom graphics and text to help you stay on-brand while keeping safety top of mind.

In the Workplace

You’ve rearranged the desks, installed barriers and shields, and have implemented mandatory health screenings before all incoming shifts—is there more that can be done to make the office or other workplace safer for staff and visitors? As with limiting hazards and displaying day-to-day safety protocols, signage and floor tape are essential tools for implementing physical distancing in the workplace.

Encourage Physical Distancing in Break Areas. In addition to spacing tables and chairs appropriately, include highly visible markers on floors, chairs or tables to designate spaces that should remain empty in the cafeteria or breakroom. Other considerations include limiting foot traffic to one-way only, staggering break times or opening additional break areas to provide additional space.

Use custom messages for an updated workflow. If your Lean and 5S methods need adjustment to comply with social distancing guidelines, look to the same tool you use every day to share those changes: Visual reminders like floor marking tape or signs help communicate changes to processes or policies. Follow the same color scheme your employees expect so they can easily identify the message and take action. Durable floor tape stays put through heavy traffic and regular cleaning, but removes easily when your workflow or regulations change.

Mark required PPE where social distancing isn’t possible. In manufacturing facilities and close-quarters workplaces, social distancing may not be feasible. Use floor marking tape and signage as a reminder for masks, gloves or face shields, to communicate no-handshake policies or share essential health and safety information.

Install floor marking tape to communicate implemented procedures for pre-shift screenings. Whatever procedure works best for your facility must be communicated clearly—and often—for a more efficient, streamlined process. Designate spaces for staff to stand, mark six-foot distances, provide directions for mandatory screenings and remind staff to refrain from entering if they’re feeling ill. Our floor marking tape will stand up to regular foot traffic, and removes easily if processes or requirements change—without leaving residue behind. It’s an ideal solution for flexible spaces and changing policies.

Restaurant Locations

Welcoming guests to your restaurant location may look different now than in years’ past, but easy to understand messaging and visible guides can help make that transition easier. Some restaurants are taking a creative approach—filling seats with stuffed animals or mannequins, greenhouse-style partitions surrounding individual tables or bumper-car-style chairs have popped up across the globe. There’s no need to go that far: Signage and floor tape can help as you update your restaurant’s operations to comply with physical distancing rules.

Designate seats that should remain empty. Provide easy-to-spot signage so diners know which tables or bar stools may be temporarily off-limits. Removing tables from the floor may be problematic, or impossible in case of permanent seating. Instead, mark the floor with durable tape or signage stating the message of your choice, such as ‘Please don’t sit here,’ ‘This table unavailable’ or ‘Please choose another seat.’ Our custom printed floor marking tape stands up to heavy traffic in industrial facilities, so it’s a durable option that can withstand regular cleaning and chemicals in a restaurant setting.

Update patrons with new policy information. If your seat-yourself location now requires diners to check in with a host, custom floor signs can share that information right from the entryway. Display visual reminders for no-cash policies, mask requirements or new restrictions to minimize contact within the building. Signage ensures guests aren’t surprised by updated regulations.

Mark to-go lanes and designated waiting areas. Printed floor tape, in tandem with messages or symbols designating standing room, can help keep waiting areas and pick-up windows running smoothly, without crowding. Promote physical distancing with location-specific messaging, whether guests should wait outdoors until seated, stand in a line or only occupy every other bench. Create a “Order and Pay Here” line and designate a pick-up area to ensure patrons can find the correct line without confusion.

Clearly label updated sanitization processes for kitchen staff. If cleaning processes have changed, the kitchen staff will benefit from reminders of the new process. Use floor tape—shapes, color-coded or with graphics to replicate any current methods in place—to offer reminders for updated cleaning processes, new steps or temporary policies. Superior Mark® floor tape is a durable option for busy kitchen spaces and can withstand meticulous floor cleaning methods better than duct tape or other options, too.

Visual cues are effective, whether you’re in a factory, grocery store, gym or community building. Keep the messaging clear and consistent so patrons, visitors and staff can see and understand quickly. Color-coding, bold text, easy to understand graphics and placement are all important factors to consider when using floor marking tape in your facility. Make physical distancing easier with floor marking tape and signs designed for the job.