9 Reasons to Implement a Photo ID Program

In the last decade, the implementation of photo ID badges at schools, government agencies, and businesses has become commonplace with the need to improve security and streamline operations. 

But keeping track of employees is only one part of the ID badge puzzle. Visitors and guests can present a challenge in preventing security breaches. The only way to limit these kinds of issues is to extend a photo ID badge program to all parties visiting a campus, from esteemed guests to service repair teams. In this guide we’ll look at 9 reasons to implement a photo ID program.

1. Imposter Issues

It happens everyday: nefarious parties impersonating other people. Unfortunately, without a rigorous ID badge program, this is easier to do than you may think. To avoid someone posing as an employee or visitor, businesses should implement an ID badge program, then insist on company-wide compliance. 

For example, Specialist ID offers a variety of visitor management tools. One option is to implement Thermal Printable ONEstep Quick Tab TimeBadges. These clever badges are super easy to use, but self-expire when you determine a guest visit is up. Valid for one full day, they display “VOID” after 14 to 16 hours of use.

2. Employee Confidence

Employees can’t do their best work unless they feel safe. Badges can give your employees a sense of community while also signaling that they’re part of a team. When someone is identified not wearing a badge, that can ring alarm bells. With a smart security protocols in place, employees can be trained on what to do in such a situation and take the necessary precautions to alert security.

3. Customer Relations

Consider a hospital. There are dozens of people walking around in scrubs and lab coats, but who is the professional you need to speak to? You could take a guess, or you could look at their ID badge and quickly find the right person. When it comes to customer relations, a robust ID badge program can help smooth communication so that everyone knows who to reach out to for a given request or concern.

4. Branding

ID badges aren’t just a place to put a name, they’re an advertisement for your company. And customizing them is key to putting your own unique spin on them. Fortunately, that’s easy to do with a Specialist ID. A leader in ID badge technology, Specialist ID can tailor your ID badges for all of your staff with products like Custom Printed Badge Buddy Horizontal and Personalized B-REEL Retractable Badge Reel. Have a logo you want to showcase? They can do that too, be it on a badge, badge reel, or lanyard.

5. Staff Accountability

If you have a big team and need to keep track of where people are, an ID badge program can be the answer to your HR woes. Many ID badges these days can include a magnetic strip used to clock in and clock out. By implementing this data gathering tool, you can know at all times who’s on shift and who is off. For teams that do implement swipe IDs, the Frosted Rigid Plastic Horizontal Half Card from Specialist ID is a great option to hold onto them. By only covering half of the ID, employees can easily clock in and leadership teams can keep tabs on who’s who.

6. No Need for a Uniform

In some industries, uniforms are used to identify employees. But that comes at a cost. Outfitting a large staff can be pricey, especially if you need to cover laundry services for the uniforms as well. Spare yourself the expense and use ID badges as uniforms instead. 

7. Access Control

Whether you run a high security government agency or a mom-and-pop diner, there are places in your business that you might only want to give certain staffers access to. An ID badge can double as a key to these areas, ensuring security while subtly denoting rank.

8. Promote Loyalty

Here’s a smart idea: use customer ID badges as loyalty or gift cards. Optimizing a loyalty program membership means establishing customer perks, and using an ID badge is not only a clever way to do it, it makes it easy for clients to enjoy. 

9. Team Building

With the numerous ways people decorate their ID badges these days, it turns out that these utilitarian tools are a great way to showcase one’s personality—or, better yet, build some team pride. You can use a photo ID program to encourage your staff to work on team building by decorating or accessorizing their ID badges to show they work together. Nurses have mastered this art and a quick search of Etsy will show just how creative one can get.