In the past, companies tracked visitor badges and collected them at the end of each visit. This resulted in a burden for those responsible for collecting badges and tracking them as visitors moved around your facility. While this is one visitor badge management option, it's difficult to use and offers a less secure method of tracking visitors.
You have alternatives to collecting and tracking visitor badges that makes monitoring easy and helps you identify visitors beyond the classic, "Hello. My name is…" badge. It might not be immediately clear, but the kind of visitor badges you choose helps you identify who belongs and who doesn't. They provide safety and security for all on-site employees or students.
Let's look at a few options that might make sense for your visitor management solution.
Self-expiring badges
The latest, greatest technology brings you self-expiring visitor badges that show at a glance when someone's visit has ended. Self-expiring badges use a high-tech migrating ink technology that shows over a specific period when the badge as expired. For example, you can get expiring badges that over a specified period of time show "Expired," "Void," or red lines through the badge to show when it expired.
You can choose from a half-day self-expiring badge all the way to a month-long badge that shows fully when the badge has expired. This eliminates reuse of expired badges and is an easy-to-use visitor management system.
Non-expiring badges
While the most affordable option, non-expiring badges leave nothing to prevent these simple badges from being reused in the future. If security is important, non-expiring badges can create potential security issues.
The least secure non-expiring badge is a simple hand-written badge. While they're quick and easy to administer, they can be seriously unprofessional and leave you open to security risks.
A mid-secure option is to print customized visitor badges that includes variable information impossible to duplicate. Printed visitor badges are much more professional but can be more expensive since they require software and hardware.
Pre-printed role badges
For organizations with a substantial number of visitors, you may need to identify the visitor wearing the badge. For example, you may need to distinguish between visitors, contractors, vendors, temp workers, and more.
You can get pre-printed "title" badges to help you differentiate between type of visitor for tracking. For example, you can choose a different color badge with the printed title of "CONTRACTOR" and another one for "GUEST" to identify who the cardholder is and where they belong.
Hospitals might use pre-printed role badges to easily distinguish between staff and visitors based on colors and other identifying features.
Adhesive vs. Clip-on visitor badges
How visitors and employees wear their badges can also help you distinguish between guests and those on staff. For example, adhesive visitor badges are easy to identify at a glance, and clip-on badges make employees stand out.
Adhesive visitor badges lose their stickiness over time, making them unreliable for reuse. On the other hand, clip-on badges are more secure than adhesive badges and make more sense for your employees or students.
It's easy to tell the difference between a guest or visitor wearing an adhesive badge and an employee or student with a customized clip-on badge worn on a lanyard or badge reel. Immediate recognition can help boost your organization's security exponentially.
Final thoughts
Visitor badges can be as simple or as detailed as your organization's security needs dictate. Easy-to-use adhesive self-expiring visitor badges make it simple to identify as a glance who belongs and who doesn't. You can also distinguish between types of visitors like volunteers, student, visitor, substitute, and more to help you keep track of who's on site.
The most cost-effective visitor badge option is self-expiring adhesive labels. Self-expiring badges take the "Hello, my name is…" functionality and marry it with an easy-to-identify way to spot when someone's time in your facility is up.
Contact an Idesco ID Expert at 212-889-2530 to discuss your options and chose the right one that fits your security needs and your budget. We'll help guide you to the right solution that meets your diverse organization requirements. And we'll make sure you find a solution that meets or exceeds your security issues and fits in your budget.