When creating identification cards for your organization, there are four factors that you should consider before beginning your design. There are many uses of ID cards throughout the world and being in the industry and developed cards for thousands of customers, we have seen and experienced several of the benefits and downfalls of their use. Regardless of your reason for creating a photo ID card these factors should at least be reviewed.

Landscape VS Portrait

The first thing to consider when it comes to the orientation of your card is what will be its primary method of being used. If the card is going to be stuck in a wallet only displayed for specific events or functions, then doing a landscape card allows more information be placed on the card. When using a landscape format, you have more room for lengthy titles or the personal information of the carrier.

If your staff will be wearing their identification on their jacket, lapel or worn with a lanyard, then it’s best to go with a portrait setup. When the card is setup portrait, it doesn’t seem to get in the way as often as compared to a landscape card. Although when you are planning on your staff wearing their badges, then it should be a large enough font to be easily read by another person without having to study the card. Another item to consider when creating a card that will be worn is what information should be on their credentials.

Individual's Personal Information

When it comes to the information you want your staff to have on their photo id cards, it should be limited to the information you want the readers to have access to. If your purpose is for the person to wear, then it’s best to keep the information limited to the individuals name and title. If the card will be carried in a purse or wallet, then you can put more information on the card since the card will only be displayed when the person chooses to show the ID card. Items such as height, sex, and weight can help better describe the carrier.

If you are working in an industry that has mandated or suggested that your staff have company identification, then you should be sure to check their guidelines. An example of this is for police identification cards. Legislation has dictated what is required for law enforcement officers in several states. Another example is for individuals doing contract work on another’s premises. Commonly these organizations have some suggested guidelines that should be followed. Be sure to check any requirements set or suggested by these organizations.

Overall, we suggest that you limit the amount of personal information for corporate identification cards. The exception is for individuals that need personal information in case of an emergency such as fireman, police, or any hazardous industry or profession. In these cases, we even suggest placing any pertinent medical information that would be useful in the event of a medical emergency.

Back Side of the ID Card

The back side of the card can be used as valuable real estate that many do not use wisely. If the card is formatted in a landscape fashion, many organizations choose to put additional personal information about the carrier. If the card is going to be worn, then it can be used for the company’s mission statement or the company’s statement of purpose. Even adding the company’s mailing address to the back of the card can be beneficial in the event of loss. We have seen the post office deliver cards just because someone dropped the card into a mailbox.

Other things we have seen this real estate used for are things such as important phone numbers, barcodes for job tracking or time clock tracking.

Other Uses

Before you begin to design your card it’s best to consider what other uses you might be able to make of your companies new identification cards. There are time clock applications that can use the cards by adding a simple barcode. There are more sophisticated solutions that have to do with access control, but this commonly adds a much larger investment for the hardware to read the cards and unlock access to secure areas.

In summary, it’s most important to start with the primary reason you need identifications cards for your organization. Their benefits come in many ways ranging from corporate reorganization and branding, to having critical medical information available for individuals in hazardous industries.