Someone walks into your building and you can't tell whether they belong there. That's the problem visitor management with lanyards and ID cards solves - instant visual identification without expensive software or hardware. 

Schools, corporate offices, hospitals, and event venues all deal with the same issue: tracking who's on-site and making sure unauthorized visitors stand out. Pairing custom lanyards with printed ID badges handles that at a fraction of what digital systems cost. 

We make it super simple and affordable here at CustomLanyard.net, too. Here's how the options compare and why visitor badges paired with lanyards are the no-brainer pick for most organizations.

What is Visitor Management and Why Does it Matter?

Visitor management is any system you use to track who enters your facility and when they leave. 

At its most basic, that's a sign-in sheet at the front desk. At its most involved, it's a networked platform with pre-registration and photo capture, plus automated alerts that notify the host before a guest even reaches the lobby. There are tons of options in between, too.

It’s not something you can afford to take lightly. There are serious liability implications - not to mention compliance in regulated industries. If an unauthorized person causes an incident and you have no record of who was in the building, that's an exposure problem. 

Schools in most states are legally required to log visitors. Healthcare facilities face HIPAA requirements. Corporate offices handle proprietary information that shouldn't be accessible to everyone who walks through the door. 

Visitor management with lanyards and ID cards addresses all of this - visibly and affordably - without a steep learning curve for your staff. But let’s help you weigh all your options below. 

Different Forms of Visitor Management

There is no shortage of ways you can handle visitor tracking. It really just comes down to budget and facility size, aloni with how many visitors come through on a given day.

Paper logbooks

The oldest method. a notebook at the front desk where visitors write their name and who they're seeing. Cheap and simple, but hard to search and easy to falsify. You won't know someone is in the building unless you physically check the book.

Digital sign-in kiosks

Visitors enter their info on a tablet or touchscreen at the entrance and get a printed name tag while the system logs the visit automatically. 

More organized than paper, but the hardware costs money and the software usually requires a monthly subscription. You’ll find the kiosk becomes a bottleneck if you have tons of visitors on a daily basis, too.

Visitor management software

Involves pre-registration and host notifications, photo capture and background checks. Platforms like Envoy and Sine handle all of this, but monthly fees of $100-300+ can cut into your bottom line. 

That investment makes sense for large enterprise campuses. It's overkill for a school or mid-sized office, though. There’s a better way…

Visitor lanyards and ID badges

Good middle ground between the paper logbook and digital systems. A visitor enters, signs in, and is handed a lanyard with a printed badge. Now, everyone in the building can immediately tell they're a guest. No subscriptions or hardware necessary!

You can color-code different types of lanyards by visitor type (guest vs contractor) so staff can identify who's who from across the room. Visitor badges stay visible the entire time someone is on-site, which paper logbooks can't do.

Why Visitor Management With Lanyards and ID Cards is the Best Approach for MOST Situations

Digital systems have their place. But for the vast majority of schools and mid-sized businesses, visitor management with lanyards and ID cards delivers the best balance of security and simplicity at a cost that doesn't require budget approval from three departments. Two reasons why: 

  • Immediate visual identification: A brightly colored lanyard with a printed badge is easy to see from across the hallway. Staff doesn't need to check a screen or ask. They see the visitor lanyards and know. Use a distinct color for guests and another for contractors, and your building has a built-in visual system that works even when the front desk is empty.
  • Almost zero ongoing cost: No recurring expense after ordering your visitor lanyards and reusable visitor badges. PVC badges can be used hundreds (if not thousands) of times before needing replacement. Compare that to $300/month for visitor management software!

Kiosks break and software subscriptions lapse - visitor badges on lanyards still work. Hand one out at the door, collect it when the visit ends. That simple.

The process stays the same whether you get five visitors a day or five hundred. Order more visitor lanyards as volume increases and the per-unit cost drops with bulk pricing.

Reusable visitor badges with your logo and facility name also carry more weight than a handwritten sticker. Visitor lanyards printed with “VISITOR” in bold text eliminate all guesswork. Match your brand colors, add a custom badge holder for the ID card, and the whole system looks like it belongs in a professional environment. 

Design Reusable Visitor Lanyards and Badges Today

Building a visitor management system around lanyards and badges takes less time than you might think. Start with the badges. Custom ID cards let you print your facility name and a “VISITOR” label along with any rules or instructions directly on the card. 

Custom PVC cards are the move for most businesses. They’re thick enough to survive hundreds of uses as reusable visitor badges without bending or cracking. Now, what are lanyards made of? You can’t go wrong with polyester.

You can weigh all your options here at CustomLanyard.net and get started today. We offer everything from basic polyester to dye-sublimation printed options with full-color branding. You can choose from a ton of different ID and lanyard card size options, and you don’t have to stress about how to make badge holders - we’ve got you covered there, too.

No MOQs, lowest prices online, and world-class customer service - what more could you ask for? We’ve been in business for over 15 years and have helped massive corporations, small businesses, and non-profits alike dial in their visitor management system. Let us do the same for you.

Final Words on Visitor Management With Lanyards and ID Cards

Most organizations don't need facial recognition or a $300/month platform to know who's in their building. Visitor management with lanyards and ID cards handles the same job without the overhead, and the setup is faster than you'd expect. 

We've helped over a million customers design reusable visitor badges and visitor lanyards tailored to their facilities. We can have everything proofed and shipped in days if you're ready to put yours together. Take the next step today!