Wayfinder 4.8 is LIVE to include an updated UI and features for it's Kiosk and HTML Web Apps
Did you know that we regularly update our Digital Wayfinding and Mapping software, ‘Wayfinder’, to ensure it’s always delivering the best experience possible? As part of our ongoing effort to improve our digital wayfinding systems, the team here at Acquire Digital has been working hard and we are excited to announce the release of Wayfinder Version 4.8!
The new features are already being deployed to many of our global clients who receive the updates at no additional cost as part of our SaaS service. These features will also be implemented for new Digital Wayfinding and Mapping software client deployments moving forward. Check them out below!
KIOSK APPLICATION
User Interface Design Updates
The first thing potential users and your customers will look at is the user-interface design and functionality of the system. Given the importance, the overall look and feel of the Wayfinder user experience have been refreshed and modernized to provide a functional and clear experience for end-users. Some of the improvements include:
- The navigation menu design is newly updated to link all the controls together into a consistent and easy-to-navigate menu,
- Location buttons have been updated to be a dual-purpose "Where am I?" feature and compass for users to quickly orientate themselves,
- The floor selection menu has been refreshed to align it with the navigation menu – including call-out markers for the current floor and a marker and route for the destination if it is on another floor or in another building,
- Visually, all of the buttons and controls have been refreshed to be cleaner and sharper (especially in 4K resolutions), while the windows have a rounded edge on the corners for a modern look, including optional removal of the banner area to give more space to the map experience,
- Endpoints and store profile pages have been enhanced and cleaned up to provide a better user experience. With built-in controls, Wayfinder customers can add additional content like a storefront or product photo, opening hours and tags, product tags, and walking times.
Smart Search Features
One of the most important updates to the system is focused on the search popups, as we have updated these to enhance your visitors’ experience even more. Our SmartSearch feature has been enhanced to bring information to the visitor quickly to help users make an informed decision without having to browse too much.
More importantly for larger venues, the SmartSearch feature rapidly determines the travel times for each mode of transport and provides a sorted list for the closest and currently open destination. This gives our Wayfinder users options for viewing the list by distance, nearby, or all possible destinations.
Categories
In an effort to keep the list of destinations clean and functional for users, our categories are now separately placed in their own button. The newly added contextual search option allows visitors to quickly find what they are looking for by typing in a product or store into the Google-style search bar. On the backend, this has been enhanced using our new ‘Tags’ feature to allow users to quickly look for brands or products, even when sold in different locations.
System Enhancements
The system is hard at work calculating all of the routes and store statuses so when your visitors see search results, they can be shown details if the store is currently closed due to opening hours (or for other reasons), as well as a quick view of where it is located and how far away. These options can be turned on/off via the CMS and are defaulted to your current use.
Improved Performance
While the overall look of a Wayfinding solution is important, the performance is just as crucial. Everyone wants a premium mapping experience, which is fast, responsive, and intuitive, without lag or glitches. We’ve always ensured this is a priority with all of our solutions.
With this in mind, we’ve updated our internal plugin messaging system to streamline user inputs and allow a simpler configuration of skins and features. Wayfinder now runs leaner and faster, with lower latency on touch systems!
A big improvement to our system is an update to our UI renderer, which has laid the groundwork for further improvements in future 2022 releases.
HTML Web & Mobile API Enhancements
For those of you who are using Wayfinder Maps on your website, mobile, or application, there have been further enhancements for these endpoints as well.
Improved Map Rendering
While our digital web maps have always been one of the quickest in the industry to load, we’ve improved our map rendering to provide a web based solution that loads in under 5 seconds. This was a big focus for the Acquire team as we wanted to provide a good experience for mobile users or those on slower connections, all while providing a solution that doesn’t lower your website’s SEO ranking.
New Options
For our web-based platform, we have added a whole host of options for your web development teams to customize the experience. The Wayfinder API documentation has been updated with the latest enhancements to allow users to test the new functionality.
These options include:
- New routing options – zoom to start/end/whole route
- New label options – floating labels, overlay labels, with lots of choices
New Directory & Mapping Layout for a Web Experience
The new Destination information layout is clearer and shows more information than ever before, and the current status is based upon opening hours and temporary closure status. The SmartSearch function has been improved with a summary of the location for each destination in the search listing.
About the Author
Acquire Digital is a global leader in innovative digital signage software and interactive experiences. Since 1997, we have redefined the way in which people experience media-rich content in public spaces.
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