I knew if I wanted to feature my whiteboard, then it had to be framed. Lucky for me, JustBoards sells beautiful framed glass dry-erase boards, ready to hang.

Second, I wanted a board that would be as lovely to use as it was to look at. Glass whiteboards are all that and more. They provide an unparalleled user experience. I just had to have it in my working life.

Third, I needed the board to match my existing decor. As much as it was going to be a focal point, I couldn’t have it sticking out like a sore thumb. JustBoards to the rescue again! Their glass whiteboards come in a truly staggering range of colours, so I was able to match my board to my brand.

How my framed glass dry-erase board became crucial in running my business

I know what you’re thinking: it’s just a whiteboard. And I’ll admit I was in your shoes even as I was buying the thing. What I came to discover was just how integral a simple whiteboard can be to the running of a business.

The importance of visual thinking

Visual thinking is an oft-overlooked strategy for solving complex problems. It’s essentially the act of intentionally harnessing visualisation to find answers that can’t be reached through verbal thought.

As an interior designer, I know well the power of visual thinking. We humans are visual creatures. Did you know that your brain processes images 60,000 times faster than it does text? Or that 90% of all information transmitted to our brain is visual? There’s a reason my industry works in visual mockups!

Imagine my delight, then, when I realised just how well our office whiteboard facilitated visual thinking. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise really. Brainstorming sessions are often led by whoever has a whiteboard marker in hand. There was just something special about using our big beautiful glass whiteboard  that encouraged strategic visual problem-solving among my staff and clients.

Perhaps it was the aesthetics at work? The boards really are beautiful! Maybe it was their ease of use? Whatever the reason, I couldn’t have been more stoked with the outcome of some of our whiteboard meetings.

The benefits of the watercooler effect

We started using the whiteboard in work-in-progress and brainstorming meetings to great effect. My two off-siders are able to map ideas visually as they occur to them, resulting in more constructive meetings and a better outcome for the clients. It was when the board wasn’t being used in meetings, though, that things got interesting.

I’d read about the watercooler effect before. It’s a phenomenon observed in workspaces that have informal communal areas that encourage interpersonal communication. The space around the watercooler is the classic example and where the phenomenon gets its name, but these spaces can be anything from the coffee machine to the office noticeboard.

What I started to notice happening around our office whiteboard was pure “watercooler”. When it wasn’t in use in  meetings, our whiteboard took up an ad-hoc noticeboard role in the office. Employees routinely wrote down social plans, encouraging messages and other informal notes.

Mondays quickly became meme day – employees would brandish their funniest memes from over the weekend and the office would vote on whose was the most hilarious.

I honestly couldn’t have been more stoked to see the watercooler effect at play in my own office. Studies show that it can increase worker productivity by up to 15% but more importantly (to me at least) our humble whiteboard was proving the focal point that drove office cohesion.

My framed glass dry-erase board is the star of the office

When I was shopping for a whiteboard, I thought I was shopping for a simple office resource. What I got instead was a beautiful interior focal point, an indispensable problem-solving tool, and a driving force in positive office culture. I couldn’t be happier with my purchase from JustBoards.

Get in touch today! Great service, great prices and Australia-wide delivery to your door. Call us today on 1800 654 917 or send an email to info@justboards.com.au. 

You can photograph anything from your morning coffee to your swaddled baby in this style. The limit really is your imagination and letter boards make ideal props. They’re a great way to introduce text to an otherwise purely visual style.

How do you keep a felt letter board clean?

Because letter boards are made of felt they do like to collect dust. To clean a board that’s collected this type of dirt, simply run a lint roller over the surface. For more stubborn dirt, you can spot-clean your board with a damp cloth.

Another common issue with felt letter boards is pilling – where fibres knit themselves into tiny pill-like bundles on the surface of the felt. Similar to de-pilling a sweater, you can remove pilling from your board with a razor.

How do you keep your letters organised?

Sorting through a big bag of letters is never fun, particularly if your message is a long one. This is where storing your letters separately can come in immensely handy.

You should opt for a compartmentalised plastic container with separate compartments for letters, numbers and punctuation marks. From there it’s a simple case of separating your letters into alphabetical piles and storing each one together in an individual compartment.

Organising your letters this way ensures the next time you need to change your board, you’re not spending half an hour looking for a lower-case l and only finding an upper-case I.

How do you know what letters to order?

Letter sets or number sets are additional to your felt letter board purchase. In the sets you will have more and less of certain letters, marks and numbers. Just like Scrabble, you will get lots of letter E and fewer of letter Q. Also, the larger the letter/number size, the fewer in the pack. Here’s how it works out.

Note well: Letter sets and number sets are sold separately, but each contains various common punctuation marks.

If you require extra quantities of a specific character, JustBoards can help you out. But how will you know what letters you’ll need to order?

The best plan is to sit down and decide what use your letter board will have. Are you looking to use it as a menu board? If so, list out your current menu items and see if there are any words or numbers that make extra use of particular characters. If all your prices end in .99, you’re going to need a lot of number 9!

Or, perhaps you want to signpost your business? Look at your business name and determine which letters you might require more of.

If in doubt, opt for ordering more letters than you think you need. There’s nothing worse than picking out a message on your new felt letter board only to realise you’re one letter short. Suddenly, using a lower case l where you need an upper-case I becomes very tempting.

Buy your own felt letter board today

So, now you know everything there is to know about letter boards: what they are, the story behind the Instagram trend and how you can get the most out of your own purchase.

Want to experiment with a felt letter board of your own? JustBoards can help you there! Here\'s more information on our special page Changeable-Letter-Menu-Boards

Get in touch today! Great service, great prices and Australia-wide delivery to your door. Call us today on 1800 654 917 or send an email to info@justboards.com.au

And why is a Porcelain Whiteboard a good option?

1.You Will Defuse Your Fear

Let’s face it, everyone in society is worried about the coronavirus (COVID-19). Which is completely normal and understandable. 

But business owners have an additional fear to contend with - the fear that they will not take full advantage of the available government stimulus packages and tax write-offs. 

You can defuse the fear by not allowing your fight or flight response to influence your spending decisions, by not letting the situation panic you into making a hasty decision or paralyse you into making one too late or not at all. 

Calmly look at making purchases that aren’t influenced by fear, but rather by sound business principles - like a Porcelain Whiteboard from the Whiteboard Wizard at JustBoards. 

2.You Will Be Making A Sound Financial Decision

Staying calm during a decision making process is only the first step. It’s also important to have all the required information in order to make an informed decision that will bring you the best possible outcomes.

You’ll then be in a position to make sound financial decisions that are essentially risk-free, and purchase items with long life and low-maintenance, items like a porcelain whiteboard. 

And who should you buy your whiteboard from?

Ask the Wizard, the Whiteboard Wizard.(aka Greg Appleby from JustBoards.com.au)

There is no smarter choice in these frantic times than Porcelain whiteboards with a warranty of 25 years and the best customer service available in the marketplace today.

See the Wizard for all your whiteboard needs! 

Looking for Australia’s best when it comes to whiteboards? Then look no further. You can count on the Whiteboard Wizard at JustBoards to meet all of your whiteboard requirements. 

For Australia wide delivery, competitive prices and outstanding customer service, call us now on 1800 654 917. Or email us at: info@justboards.com.au