Visitor Badges

One of the most visible aspects of visitor registration is the visitor badge worn by guests. So taking some time to consider how you are using those badges will enhance how you are managing visitors and will allow you to improve visitor security at your facilities.

Here are some techniques to consider when using badge software.

Include the photo of the guest on their visitor pass. This allows you to quickly and easily identify the visitor and validate who they are.

Use alerts with your visitor system. This allows you to take certain actions based on visitor behavior, such as requiring a contractor to take a safety test when they are entering the facility after a specified number of times.

For an increased level of security use internal or external watch lists. Internal watch lists include people or organizations that you have identified as those you do not want in your facilities. External watch lists can include sex offender screening or Government Denied Parties lists. When someone on any of these lists attempts to check in at a lobby system, the attendant will be alerted within seconds. You can also have automatic alerts sent to others such as a security officer.

Regularly run reports from your visitor systems to monitor activity and take appropriate action to improve the check in process.

Color code visitor badges by category of visitor so that you can easily identify the type of visitor - contractor, versus temporary employee, versus day visitor - or whatever category of visitor you define.

Include barcodes on visitor passes, allow you to scan the badge for rapid check out.

Allow employees to pre-register guests. This saves time when a visitor checks in.

Integrate your visitor registration software with your access control system, allowing you to grant temporary proximity card access to guests.

EasyLobby provides all these features as part of our visitor management software, plus many others. Find out more about these features and others by registering for a free, customized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the visitor software features that are most appropriate for your particular requirements.

We are frequently asked about the risks associated with using a paper guest book for visitor sign in.

Frankly, it's our opinion that guest sign in should be conducted with professional visitor management software. The reason is that paper methods of visitor registration are simply unprofessional and provide little security.

They also pose a number of other problems, such as the following.

Names written in a paper guest book are often not legible, or are false.

In an emergency such as a fire it would be impossible to quickly determine who is still in the building. It's difficult to read the names and often check out times are not required or enforced.

Information regarding who has visited the company is readily available for everyone to see, but this information should be confidential.

The paper visitor log and hand written visitor badges present a poor image of the company as unprofessional and not caring about security.

Unlike the paper methods, EasyLobby ID card software is an effective way of managing visitors in any environment.

You can create a visitor pass easily and quickly. Furthermore, you can capture  accurate, detailed visitor information automatically by scanning a visitor ID such as a driver's license or business card.

Unlike a paper guest book, badge software keeps all visitor information confidential.

A variety of alerts can be created in our visitor system, allowing you to take action based on specific visitor behavior.

The creation of watch lists allow you to keep unwanted visitors out of your facilities.

The fact is, EasyLobby visitor software has a a host of features that allow you to customize it to fit your specific needs and requirements for lobby management.

Find out more by registering for a free, personalized online web demo,

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the many visitor registration software features that will allow you to create professional visitor passes for your organization.

A visitor badge is a visible and important aspect of any visitor registration system.

Requiring that every guest displays a visitor pass in your facilities not only makes it easy to identify and track visitors as they enter and exit your building, but it also creates a professional image and reminds guests, employees and vendors that their security and safety is a priority.

EasyLobby has a variety of visitor ID badge options to use with your lobby system - whether you process dozens of visitors a month or hundreds. We have affordable badges to fit your requirements.

Our black and white badges are perfect for using with a Dymo label writer thermal printer. We carry several styles, including our popular adhesive badges, self-expiring badges and non-adhesive badges. View our black and white badge options.

Our color badge templates work with any inkjet printers and options include fold-and-clip, self-laminating and adhesive. Our color badge options can be seen here.

Our badge software includes hundreds of badge templates, or you can design your own with our design tool.

So if you are still using a paper guest book for guest sign in, and creating handwritten visitor passes, you'll benefit by examining our visitor software and all the tools that will greatly enhance how you are managing visitors in your environment.

Find out more about the benefits of using an EasyLobby visitor system in your environment by registering for a free, personalized online demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the visitor registration benefits that are best for your specific environment.

Using alerts as part of a visitor system is an important aspect of managing visitors at any facility.

A lobby system should be able to create alerts simply and easily. Alerts can be used for a number of different reasons such as notifying either administrators, security officers or lobby attendants when they should take some action based on visitor activity.

For example, you may want the lobby attendant to know when to notify a contractor that they need to comply with a drug test policy, or take a safety exam, or complete an application or meet other requirements.

You establish the rules and our visitor management software takes care of the notification when a visitor is checked in or when an event occurs.

Another example of an event might a visitor badge that has expired but that visitor has not yet checked out. You may want to know about that particular situation so that you can investigate why a visitor is still onsite longer than expected.

Some of the other common alerts in our visitor software include the following:

Maximum Visitor Alert. This notifies the attendant when the maximum number of visitors for a host has been reached. In hospitals and Healthcare facilities this can be used to restrict the number of visitors allowed for specific patients.

Frequent Visitor Alert. This notifies the lobby attendant that a visitor has reached a specific number of visits. This can be used when a contractor needs to complete additional training or meet other requirements after a certain number of visits.

Time Based Alerts. These alerts notify the attendant when someone has visited after a specific number of days, and the required action to take. For example, you may want to inform a visitor that they must sign a non-disclosure agreement after a certain time.

Arriving Visitor Alert. This alert automatically notifies an employee when a visitor has arrived and is waiting in the lobby.

Programmable Alerts. This a a range of values that can be included in the visitor registration system that can be assigned to various actions. For example, when a lobby attendant has provided a proximity card to a guest so that they can access certain doors controlled by their access system, you want to be sure that the lobby attendant knows to ask that visitor to return the prox card during check out. An alert can notify the lobby attendant of those situations.

Any of these alerts can be used to improve lobby management during guest sign in. They allow you to manage guests more effectively.

EasyLobby visitor systems allow you to tailor the badge software to fit your specific needs and requirements. From developing badge templates to meeting your needs of customizing data you require during visitor sign in.

Discover additional ways to use visitor management in your facilities by registering for a free, personalized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the most effective ways to use visitor badges in your environment.

EasyLobby will be exhibiting our badge software this week at the annual ASIS Boston Security Expo 2012.

The conference will be held on April 12, 2012 at the Holiday Inn, Boxborough, MA. EasyLobby will be exhibiting in the HID Global booth #68.

We  hope you will visit the seminar to learn more about the current issues facing the physical security industry, and especially to view demonstrations of our visitor software and how we can help you improve lobby management and visitor security at your organization.

At this conference we will demonstrate the process of creating visitor passes by scanning a visitor ID such as a driver's license or business card. Our badge software allows you to customize badge templates, including the type of information and the visitor badge design that highlights the information that's most important to you.

We'll show you how to be managing visitors more professionally and improving lobby security with our visitor registration software.

The creation of watch lists in our visitor system allows you to screen individuals that you do not want in your facilities. You can also allow employees to pre-register visitors with our visitor systems.

These, and many more features of our visitor registration will be demonstrated at the conference.

So we hope to see you at the show. But if you are not able to attend, you can also learn more about our ID badge system by registering for a personalized online web conference.

During this 30 minute customized demonstration, you will learn more about how a visitor registration system can be effective in your organization, especially if you are still using a paper guest book for visitor sign in. Register today for our informative online demo.

Government organizations generally require a high level of visitor security and professionalism offered by visitor software.

That's why EasyLobby visitor systems are used by many Federal, State and Local government agencies, including many military and defense installations around the world.

By identifying each and every visitor to their facility and providing them with a visitor badge, these organizations can track exactly who has entered the building, the purpose of their visit and who they were visiting.

Reliability and ease of use of the visitor system is frequently a necessary component. But just as important is the ability of the system to accommodate their specific requirements for managing visitors.

A few of the common ways EasyLobby visitor registration supports specific government requirements include:

• Real-time, online screening of Government Denied Party Database, consisting of over 50 different government watch lists.
• The ability to read and process Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Cards
• Scanning and processing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) cards with an OCR scan.
• Read and process CAC cards with 2D barcodes.

 It's clear that government agencies can benefit from the use of ID card software in their facilities.

Find out more about the use of visitor badges in government environments by registering for a free, customized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the features of our software that meets your specific requirements.

Multi-tenant properties will typically employ visitor software to safeguard tenants and demonstrate that the property is professionally managed.

Such is the case with EasyLobby customer Trinity Real Estate.

Trinity Real Estate manages 14 commercial properties in Lower Manhattan, New York City. To protect the tenants in their buildings, Trinity provides security systems, including visitor systems.

From the outset, Trinity recognized that they wanted visitor management software that provided reliability, redundancy, and ease of use for the clients. The badge software is integrated with the C-Cure 800 access control system and turnstiles previously installed in the building lobbies.

The EasyLobby visitor registration software is used by Trinity in a way that requires employees to complete a one-page web-based pre-registration form on guests they are expecting. This data is then automatically sent to the front desk, where the visitor must present a visitor ID such as a driver's license to verify their identity.

The lobby system then prints out a visitor badge for the guest. Additional information is printed on the visitor pass, such as the destination and employee being visited. According to Lois Martano, security technology manager at Trinity Real Estate, it takes approximately 20 seconds for a person to be cleared at the lobby desk after the employee completes the entry form on his or her desktop computer.

Should a visitor lose his or her badge, security officers at the front desk can search in the visitor registration system for the name, verify the person's identity, and print another visitor ID badge.

If a visitor overstays the time allotted as noted in the visitor system, an alert highlights the fact on the security guard's computer. That lets security know to check with the employee who originated that visitor pass to see if it needs to be renewed. The access control system will not allow a person to enter on expired visitor passes.

The visitor tracking software also allows security officers to easily monitor how many visitors are in the building at any given time. "This is especially helpful for fire-safety issues," says Martano.

Another feature of visitor registration is a watch list that officers can use to flag individuals. For example, if a visitor leaves and is disgruntled, that person's name can be added to the list. If the person comes back in and tries to get in as a visitor, a warning will alert security staff, and the warning will provide customized instructions - ranging from checking with the employee's supervisor to denying entry.

Read the complete case study of Trinity Real Estate as reported in the April 2012 issue of Security Management magazine.

For more information about using an electronic visitor management system in your environment, register for a free, customized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will guide you through the visitor management features that are most appropriate to your specific requirements.

If you are a security professional, you know about ISC West. It's one of the premier security events of the year, featuring educational seminars and exhibits from hundreds of security organizations around the world.

As in past years, EasyLobby will be demonstrating our visitor software at the show. The conference will be held at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV on March 28 - 30, 2012.

This year, we will have a much different presence in the show. Rather than our typical 100 square foot booth, we will be part of the 3,600 square foot HID Global booth.

That means that in addition to viewing an EasyLobby visitor registration software demo, you are able to learn more about creating, using and managing secure identity solutions from HID Global and its key partners.

As an HID Global business, EasyLobby is part of an organization this is recognized around the world for a range of solutions including: multi-technology readers that make it easy to upgrade to contactless smart card technologies; high quality and reliable FARGO^® direct-to-card and high definition card printers/encoders; and genuine HID cards with lifetime warranty and a quality you can trust.

So if you are planning on attending ISC West, please come see us. Our booth number is 11051.

We'll be glad to demonstrate how you can create professional visitor badges and automate the guest sign in process using our visitor system.

Our badge software makes it easy to configure badge templates that are right for your needs.

At the show will will be providing demonstrations on our visitor management software, as well as our eAdvance pre-registration software and our EasyLobby eKiosk which allows guests to self-register using an Apple iPad or tablet. All our products allow you to manage visitor more securely and professionally.

And while you are at it you can learn more about HID Global solutions. We're sure you'll see the benefit of EasyLobby being an HID Global business.

If you're unable to attend the show, register for a free, custom online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the visitor registration features that are best for your particular environment.

Professional visitor management at college and university campuses starts with the ability to monitor and control all guests who are entering residence halls and other key buildings.

College residence halls are one of the primary locations for enhanced visitor security.

Our visitor systems can track students visiting another student's residence hall, and track and provide a visitor ID badge to all non-student visitors.

One of the key features of a visitor system for colleges is the ability to screen visitors on each states' registered sex offender database and to flag those visitors at the time of guest sign in.

Proper visitor registration is one of several important security safeguards that all colleges should address. Because most college campuses are an open environment, with many people moving about the campus, it is important that school officials monitor visitor and guest activity at all campus facilities.

Procedures that should be enforced include requiring all visitors on campus to wear a visitor badge that was issued when they were checked in.

Protecting students, administrators and faculty requires that educational institutions develop visitor management techniques that are secure, yet work smoothly and easily at a variety of campus facilities.

EasyLobby visitor software is used at many of the nation's leading educational facilities.

Find out more by registering for a free, customized web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the visitor registration system features that are best for your particular environment - whether a college or university, or other type of facility.

The latest copy of EasyLobby's visitor management newsletter has been published.

Containing articles of interest to those who use visitor registration software in their facilities, the newsletter is a great source of information to help improve how you are managing visitors in your facilities.

The March 2012 newsletter leads off with an article about our presence at this year's ISC West conference.

As part of HID Global, EasyLobby will have a much different presence at the event this year. The newsletter explains how our visitor registration system demonstration will be incorporated into the HID Global trade show booth.

EasyLobby is also demonstrating our visitor registration in the Lenel Systems Partner Pavilion. Read more in the newsletter.

This issue also examines the use of our visitor system at a new technologically advanced tower in Miami's financial district and the publication of an EasyLobby article on school visitor software in an industry publication.

Read the March 2012 newsletter about EasyLobby visitor software.

Sign up here to receive future issues of our newsletter about visitor badges and our ID card software.

And for more information about using badge software in your environment, register for a free, customized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the visitor management software features that are most beneficial to your specific requirements.

Brickell World Plaza, also referred to as 600 Brickell, is a 40-story structure in Miami's financial district. With state-of-the art electronic security systems, it includes EasyLobby visitor registration software as an integral part of the overall solution.

The installation of the visitor system was led by EasyLobby partner Gallagher with its Command Center (formerly branded Cardax) access control system.

The integration between visitor registration and Command Center is real-time, such that when a visitor ID is scanned into EasyLobby and checked-in, the data is sent to Command Center so that that the visitor is issued an active visitor badge with the specific clearance needed for that visit.

The EasyLobby visitor registration system allows visitors access to optical turnstiles and floor-by-floor elevator controls. Each visitor that is checked in receives a visitor pass that allows access to specific locations in the building.

Each visitor is checked in and a badge issued in less than 40 seconds, with visitor badges automatically expiring per the programming.

A complete audit trail of the visitor's movement is recorded in Command Center for historical reporting, and the visitor ID badge - not the historical data - is removed from the database when the visitor is later checked out.

Here's how visitor registration works: A visitor arrives at the front desk and hands the security guard their driver's license, which is then placed on an optical scanner. The visitor's information flows onto a screen, no typing is required. The guard navigates through simple menu screens to designate the days and times when access is granted to specific turnstiles, elevators, floors, and other areas of the tower, even bathrooms.

In an industry once notorious for being stubbornly proprietary, Brickell is a shining example of how separate components of a facility or security management system can be brought together as an integrated solution.

For more information about the features and capabilities of EasyLobby visitor tracking software, register for a free, customized web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the capabilities of our system that are best for your specific requirements.

Many K-12 schools use visitor registration software to both improve security and to manage visitors more professionally and efficiently.

Screening visitors who may be listed on a states' sex offender database is one driving force for K-12 schools to use visitor software. During guest check in, if a visitor is listed as a registered sex offender, a warning will alert the lobby attendant within seconds and an automatic email or text alert can be sent to school administrators.

Because of this feature alone, many schools have done away with a paper guest book for visitor sign in and replaced it with a professional and secure approach to visitor registration.

When using a visitor system, all guests entering the school would be required to present a visitor ID such as a driver's license. The license is scanned to capture the guest information, including the photograph, and it is used to create a professional visitor badge.

In addition to sex offender screening, a visitor registration system can be used to create a watch list that allows the school to flag known individuals or organizations that they do not want entering the building.

Along with screening for unwanted visitors in schools, visitor management software allows the school to manage the issue of parental custody and which parent or caretaker is allowed to pick up a student during or after school. This is a particularly sensitive yet critically important issue and all K-12 schools need to take proper steps to manage effectively.

A number of additional visitor tracking software issues can also help the school better manage visitors and students leaving the school. For instance, being able to track the time of school volunteers as well as to create a different style visitor pass for them is helpful.

Being able to track and monitor students who are on field trips or who left the school grounds for open lunch or free periods is another good way to monitor and account for all students.

So there are many reasons to use badge software in schools beyond the most obvious advantage of screen out unwanted visitors.

For more information about the use of EasyLobby visitor systems in K-12 schools, read our case study of the Ballston Spa School District, or read an article and view a video from, TV station KIMATV about an EasyLobby ID badge system used at the Union Gap School District.

If you are interested in improving visitor security and managing guests more professionally at your school, or other type of environment, register for a free, custom online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the features of our software that are best for your particular needs.

Hospitals and healthcare facilities have unique issues when deciding how to improve visitor security.

Because of the openness of their buildings and the normally large number of visitors, they have a number of considerations when managing visitors and using a visitor system rather than a allowing free entry.

First they must address the importance of knowing who is in their buildings and the reasons why. Every organization, hospitals included, face growing concerns over unwanted and uninvited visitors. To address the safety of employees and other guests, many organizations have replaced their paper guest book with a more effective visitor registration system.

This allows the organization to identify who has entered the facility, determine if their visit is warranted or justified, and keep out individuals they do not want entering.

Like other organizations, once a hospital has decided that it is best to track and manage who is entering their buildings, they usually want visitor registration software that is not obtrusive or cumbersome when processing visitors for entry.

There's the issue of integrating visitor software with a number of other hospital systems such as HL7 for real-time patient feeds, Status Blue for pre-registering approved vendors, and access control integration to provide temporary proximity card access to specific guests such as contractors or temporary employees.

Many hospitals also want the option of screening unwanted visitors such as screening against each states' sex offender database or creating their own watch list of undesirable visitors.

Automatic alerts incorporated into visitor systems allow hospitals to better manage visitors. For example, a maximum visitor alert notifies lobby staff when a limit has been reached for the number of guests to a specific patient.

Flexibility is another key ingredient for hospitals, such as the ability to create a long-term visitor badge for family members that will be visiting a patient frequently over a period of time. Guest sign in and check out is thereby simplified. By using a barcodes on the visitor badges, these guests can be checked in and out with a simple barcode scan.

EasyLobby visitor management software is used to create visitor passes for millions of visitors every month at hospitals throughout the country.

For more information about using EasyLobby to create a safer, more secure environment at a hospital, or other type of facility, register for a free, custom online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the badge software features of our lobby system that are most applicable to your particular environment.

Many multi-tenant facilities use visitor registration software to improve security and enhance the professionalism of managing visitors at their facilities.

Both residential and commercial multl-tenant buildings can benefit from visitor software to enable facility managers to identify and  know exactly who is visiting the building, who they are visiting, the purpose of their visit, and when they checked in and out.

Much like other types of facilities or other industries, badge software has specific benefits to the multi-tenant building.

Visitor tracking software can work smoothly and easily with a variety of different tenants in the building.

Used at some of the largest multi-tenant buildings in the country, EasyLobby ID card software improves visitor security and lobby management at these facilities, and enhances their image as a professional, well-run facility.

Regardless of the size of the facility, EasyLobby visitor registration can be used to improve the guest sign in process.

Our electronic visitor management system can be used to customize badge templates, allowing administrators to customize badge designs. Visitors to a particular organization in a commercial facility will receive a visitor badge that is customized to that organization. These unique visitor badges can include the tenants logo, company name, floor number, and any other specific information that is necessary.

Many multi-tenant properties also use our visitor system to track delivery of packages and other assets that are delivered to or loaned out from the front desk.

An added benefit of our software is that individual tenants can pre-register guests that they know will be arriving, simplifying visitor sign in. In some cases the pre-registration is a requirement of check in.

Like other types of facilities using our visitor registration system, our software captures visitor data from a driver's license, business card, or passport scan, including capturing the visitor's photo.

Read the EasyLobby success story of our visitor management software at use in a residential multi-tenant property at Plaza South Condominiums in Fort Lauderdale.

For a commercial multi-tenant environment, read about our installation at One Gateway Center.

For more information about our ID badge system and how it can be used in your specific environment, register for a free, custom online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the capabilities of our system that are most pertinent to your specific requirements.

Food distributors are required to monitor and track all visitors who enter their facilities. These requirements are the result of FDA regulations on the protection of the nation's food supply under the Bio-Terrorism Rule.

Consequently, many food distribution companies use EasyLobby visitor software to closely monitor and keep accurate records of every truck and driver entering their facilities.

At many of these organizations our visitor systems are used at both corporate and the distribution facilities. In corporate buildings our visitor registration software provides a professional approach to managing visitors. In distribution facilities, our systems monitor the arrival and departure of trucks and drivers.

By being able to control access to their facilities our ID card software plays a major role in helping food distribution companies effectively comply with these regulations. They are able to record and report on all guest sign in activity and record the individuals and vehicles that have entered and left the facility.

A visitor log in our software records all this activity, plus any additional information that may be relevant to that facility or organization.

An added benefit is a reduction in costs. By monitoring the exact arrival and departure of each truck, these organizations are able to often dramatically reduce detention fees typically charged by third-party shippers for drivers that were delayed at the facility.

By using visitor registration these facilities are able to challenge any unwarranted detention fees.

Read our case study about how EasyLobby visitor management has helped a national food distributor.

Discover more about using a visitor system in your environment, whether a food distribution environment or another industry. Register for a free, customized web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the badge software features that are most pertinent to your specific requirements.

We like to periodically remind people that following us on LinkedIn and Facebook is a great way to keep up-to-date on the latest news about visitor software.

We hope you will join our followers on one of these sites.

You can read about updates to our visitor registration software and new visitor pass techniques.

We regularly write about topics such as how to use our visitor system and a number of the reasons to replace a paper guest book with professional visitor registration.

Thousands of customers can testify to the many advantage of using visitor badges and improving security with our visitor tracking software.

So if you are responsible for visitor management at your organization, be sure to follow us on one of these social networks.

Here's our LinkedIn page, and here's our Facebook page.

For more information about using visitor passes with professional visitor management software, register for a free, customized online web demo.

In about 30 minutes we will demonstrate the features of our software that are best for your particular requirements.