Visitor Management

Security First: How VMS Strengthens Workplace Safety and Security

Workplace safety and security incidents frequently make the news, with reports of data breaches and physical violence on the rise. Some state or municipal governments are passing Panic Button laws intended to keep employees safe in potentially dangerous situations. …

Beyond the Paper Logbook: 4 Compelling Reasons to Switch to a Digital Check-In System

Ah, the paper logbook. Seems pretty innocuous, and usually not something you ever really think about or pay much attention to.  But what about that time you needed to find out who checked in at 2:50 p.m. on Aug. 13,…

How to Prepare Your Office for a Visitor Management System

In many businesses, the front door or lobby is one of the most inefficient (and overlooked) parts of the business. From front desk staff tasked with multiple job duties to long lines forming when a guest’s host can’t be located…

Distractions 101: How to Spot Them and Avoid Them

What does it feel like when you’re “in a flow?” Flow: focused, productive, fully immersed in your task. Headspace describes a flow state as “that sense of fluidity between your body and mind, where you are totally absorbed by and…

Streamlining Operations: How Logistics Facilities Can Leverage Technology

Logistics facilities are bustling hubs of activity, and tracking and accounting for all of that movement—from trucks to people to materials—is no small feat.  To keep operations running smoothly, there are systems and processes you can put in place that…

Where’s Your Visitor?

In your manufacturing facility, you likely have areas—such as receiving, production, and shipping—that are off-limits for certain personnel and visitors. Depending on what you produce, you may also have clean rooms, climate-controlled areas, or storage for hazardous materials.  What’s more,…

Visitor Management System Best Practices

Visitor management systems improve the flow of visitors through your office while also reducing the administrative burden and increasing security. Here are seven best practices for implementing a visitor management system. Choose a user-friendly visitor management system Yes, a visitor …

4 Time Wasters in Your Small Business

Small business owners often have little margin for error when it comes to time. They have to manage it all — products or services, employees, expenses, marketing, sales, and growth. Simply put, they can’t afford to take their eye off…

Using a Visitor Management System at Your Chiropractic Office

As some spine surgeons say, “once you’re part of the bad back club, you can never cancel your membership.” Perhaps that’s one reason why chiropractic offices are so busy! A Gallup poll found that, as of 2018, more than…

Directing Warehouse Traffic With Ease

Logistics facilities are a constant flurry of activity. Drivers arrive with deliveries while others prepare to take off with a loaded truck or trailer. Warehouse managers check loads in and out. Workers move freight from truck to warehouse or vice…

Upsides of Working with a Dedicated VMS Company

People love bundles, especially when it comes to apps. And for good reason – different software solutions all packaged together with one price sounds pretty appealing. You get multiple functionalities and only have to pay one provider.  But if you’ve…

How Inefficiency Impacts Your Financial Advisory Office

Interruptions, manual data entry, and poor collaboration cause the average American worker to waste roughly 25 percent of their day.  Inefficiency isn’t just a problem that can derail your flow. It also costs organizations 20-30 percent of their annual revenue.…

Leveraging the Offseason to Grow Your Tax Prep Business

In the United States, February through April marks the unofficial “tax season,” but any seasoned tax pro will tell you there’s still plenty of work to be done in the remaining months.  While a tax preparer’s work is never truly…

5 Reasons You Need a Digital Receptionist Even If You Have a Real, Live Receptionist

We sometimes hear comments like, “We already have a receptionist. Why do we need a digital check-in system?” That’s a great question. The answer is that despite being known as “The Receptionist for iPad,” we aren’t actually suggesting that this…

7 Tasks a Visitor Management System Can Take Off Your Receptionist’s Plate

Perhaps one of the busiest employees in your organization is your receptionist. They’re constantly handling important duties such as answering the phone, greeting people who walk in the door, and ensuring deliveries go to the right person, among their many…

How Tax Prep Offices Can Use a Visitor Management System to Ease the Tax Season Crush

When the calendar flips over from December to January, accountants and tax preparers enter their busiest time of year. That’s right, it’s everyone’s favorite time: tax season. While some tax preparers work from home and complete their clients’ taxes virtually,…

Maximize The Receptionist For iPad With These Popular Features

The Receptionist for iPad is here to make your life and your visitor experience easier by automating repetitive tasks and letting you — a human — do what you do best.  That means making sure you have all the information…

Visitor Management Software Simplifies The Check-In Experience

First impressions are crucial in so many aspects of life. It’s why we get concerned when we think we have lettuce in our teeth. For many businesses, the check-in experience is the first point of contact with their visitors, and…

Implement These Essential Visitor Management Tips at Your Behavioral Health Practice

Looking to improve your visitor experience at your behavioral health practice? Check out these top visitor management tips.

How to Create the Best Visitor Path in Your Office

How do you develop the optimal visitor path in your office? In this post, we share tips on how to map out a great path and experience for your visitors.

How to Use Your Visitor Management System to Improve Future Visits

What are the best strategies for improving future office visits? In this post, we share tips on using a visitor management system successfully.

14 Things to Look For When Choosing Visitor Management Software

What should you look for when choosing a visitor management system? In this post, we share a list of top features to consider.

7 Affordable Technology Updates to Modernize Your Office

What are some affordable technology updates to make in your office? In this post, we share 7 exciting ways to modernize your office

Does a Visitor Management System Hurt Your Human Connection?

How do you use a visitor management system without hurting or losing your human connection? In this post, we share essential tips you need to know.

4 Ways to Optimize Your Pre-Registration Process

Let’s discuss how you can optimize your pre-registration process. Use these tips to improve your visitor’s experience.

Are You Making One of These Common Visitor Check-in Mistakes?

Looking for ways to improve your visitor check-in process? In this post, we look at common visitor management mistakes and how to avoid them.

How to Use Empathy to Improve Your Customer Service

How do you use empathy in customer service? In this post, we share best practices for improving your customer service by being more relatable.

Should You Use Video to Improve Your Customer Experience?

Can you use video to improve your customer experience? In this post, we explore how you can incorporate video to build trust with your customers.

10 Essential Tips for Checking In Your Visitors

What are the top tips for checking in your visitors? In this post, we share ways to improve your visitor’s check-in experience.

A Guide to Using Text Messages to Impress Your Office Visitors

Should you use text messages for office visitors? Absolutely! In this post, we share why and how to send effective text messages to your visitors.

8 Tips to Impress Your Office Visitors

Looking for tips to impress your office visitors? In this post, we share time-tested best practices for welcoming visitors to your office.

20 Creative Ways to Use The Receptionist for iPad

Check out these unique ways to use The Receptionist for iPad in your organization. Tips include Zapier integrations for check-ins and check outs.

COVID-19 in the Workplace: How to Continue to Protect Your Employees and Visitors in 2022 and Beyond

In this post, we share tips for protecting your workplace post-pandemic. Here’s how to keep your employees and visitors safe in 2022 and beyond.

The Benefits of Using a Visitor Management System in a Post-COVID Workplace

Why use a visitor management system? In this post, we look at the top benefits you’ll receive by using a VMS in 2022 and beyond.

5 Ways to Use Email for Visitor Management

In this post, we share visitor management tips, specifically how to use email to improve your visitor’s experience and increase your office security.

How to Use Visitor Data to Improve Your Business’ Day to Day Operations

Are you collecting visitor data? If not, you could miss the chance to optimize your workflow and increase security. Here’s how to use visitor data:

5 Myths About Visitor Management Systems

Look, we get it. We understand that you might have heard some myths about visitor management systems.  What message will it send to your guests and customers? Will it confuse people? Will someone lose their job? We hear you and…

12 Creative Ways to Use Your Visitor Management System

Let’s take a look at the various ways you can use your visitor management system to improve your security and visitor experience.

Here’s Why You Need Wayfinding Digital Signage in Your Office

Should you install wayfinding digital signage in your office? In this post, we look at the benefits of using this modern technology to guide your visitors.

A Guide to Safely Reopening Your Business to Visitors

Looking for tips on how to safely reopen your business after COVID-19? In this post, we share essential tips and best practices to follow.

9 New Technologies to Improve Your Waiting Room Experience

Looking for ways to improve your waiting room experience? In this post, we look at 9 exciting tools to use that will enhance your visitor’s experience.

9 Benefits of Paperless Visitor Registration

What are the benefits of paperless visitor registration? In this post, we explain why you should recycle the paper and opt for a digital check-in process.

14 Lessons Learned From COVID-19 That Will Continue to Affect Office Management

How has COVID-19 changed office management? In this post, we look at the top lessons we’ve discovered about office management during the pandemic.

4 Best Practices for Offering Guest WiFi at Your Office

Make sure that when you offer WiFi to your office guests, you do so in a way that doesn’t compromise security or convenience.

5 Ways That Visitor Records Can Satisfy Regulatory Compliance

Visitor records can play an important role in regulatory compliance, especially if your company is in certain industries or is responsible for handling certain materials.

The Future of Visitation Policies at Long-term Care Facilities

Here’s how long-term care facility visitation policies will change in the future as we move forward with the knowledge gained from the COVID-19 pandemic.

4 Signs Your Office Isn’t Ready for a Digital Guest Check-In System

Your office isn’t ready for a digital guest check-in system until you’ve established who will be responsible for making sure the program is updated and easy to use.

5 Types of Visits Your Office Should be Tracking

Collecting office visitor data can seem like a low priority, but it comes in handy in many unexpected ways. Consider tracking these visit types to get insights into office design, employee resources, and more.

Technology vs. People in the Reception Area: Here’s When to Use Each Resource

In our latest blog post, we break down which office lobby tasks are best handled by technology, and which are best handled by a live front office staff.

3 Misconceptions About Visitor Management

You may have assumed that visitor management doesn’t deserve much attention at your office. However, that all depends on what you think the term “visitor management” actually means. Read on as we debunk the top three visitor management myths.

How to Design Your Office Visitor Log

Office visitor logs have taken on more importance in light of pandemic-related health concerns. Does your office log need an upgrade? Take these steps to design the perfect visitor log for your office.

Unstaffed reception areas can offer certain advantages over offices where every lobby visitor is greeted in person by a live receptionist.

The Top 5 Benefits of Unstaffed Reception Areas

Unstaffed reception areas can offer certain advantages over offices where every lobby visitor is greeted in person by a live receptionist.

How to Execute Contactless Office Check-In for Visitors

Reducing the risk of disease transmission in your office lobby requires removing the human interaction and the need for visitors to touch shared check-in tools without creating security risks.

What Schools Should Change About Visitor Check-In When They Re-Open

Wondering how school visitor check-in will change in light of the novel coronavirus pandemic? Here are a few of the ways to change the ways you welcome visitors into your educational institution.

Contactless check-in — a message from The Receptionist CEO Andy Alsop

Last week we sent out a customer survey to better understand the challenges our users are facing as stay-at-home mandates begin to relax and businesses re-open their doors. So far, we have received tremendous feedback. To those who took the…

Incubators vs. Accelerators vs. Coworking Spaces: What’s the Difference?

Many business accelerators and business incubators offer communal office space in addition to other assets for business owners. But what makes them different than a coworking space? We’ll explain how different organizations are using these terms and what they mean for your organization.

How to Build Your Office Visitor Access Policy

An office visitor access policy is a crucial part of keeping your office safe and secure. Here’s exactly what yours should include.

3 Easy Ways for Small Businesses to Grow Their Mailing Lists

Small businesses can use these easy email list-building tactics to grow their list and land more customers.

5 Types of Common Distractions to Eliminate From Your Office Today

Are your employees suffering from these common office distractions?

Visitor Management and Marketing: A Winning Combination

Visitor management marketing can be a powerful tool for businesses who want to make a good impression on visitors.

Does Your Front Desk Staff Need Emergency Response Training?

Office emergency training can be a powerful tool for your front desk staff. These administrators are uniquely suited to help act in emergency situations. Training can keep both the administrators and the rest of the office safer.

Actual Scripts to Use When You Follow Up With Facility Visitors

If you want to improve your office visitors’ experience, don’t stop when they leave. Follow up using these scripts.

4 Best Practices for Prioritizing the Privacy of Your Office Visitors

Office visitor privacy is something that your staff needs to consciously prioritize. Here are four ways to do just that.

4 Easy Ways to Make Your Reception Area More Welcoming

If you want to welcome office visitors the right way, you need to make them feel right at home. Here are a few easy ways to do that.

How to Handle Disruptive Visitors at Your Care Facility

What in the world do you do with disruptive visitors at your care facility? The solution lies in de-escalation and more importantly, prevention.

What to Look for in Long-Term Care Facility Software

Long-term care software can be a very important tool for residential care facilities. Here’s what to consider in your search.

How to Make an Impression that Office Visitors Will Remember

Want to really impress office visitors? Incorporate more than just visual cues in the lobby. Consider adding inviting scents, sounds, and more.

Visitor Management Software Pricing: What Do I Get for the Money?

Confused about visitor management software pricing? For the best ROI on visitor management software, look for a program that automates the entire visitor check-in experience.

5 Companies That Do Visitor Experience Right

Businesses of all shapes and sizes can benefit from using visitor management tools to improve the office visitor experience. Just look to these five companies for proof.

6 Questions You Should Ask When Evaluating Visitor Management Software

Choosing visitor management software is an important job. Before you make an investment, get the answers to these questions.

6 Best Visitor Management Practices for Therapy Clinics

The best kind of visitor management for therapists puts a priority on visitors’ emotions and on their confidentiality.

Your Comprehensive Daily Visitor Management Checklist

Make the job of visitor management at your organization a little easier with this comprehensive list of daily tasks. Our visitor management checklist contains everything you need to know for scheduling, planning, and maintenance.

Paper Visitor Logs Are More Expensive Than Visitor Registration Apps. Here’s Why

Traditional paper visitor logs may seem simple and affordable at first glance, but they come with significant costs. By comparison, visitor registration apps offer features and advantages that can save offices more money.

Want to Try Visitor Sign-In Software for Your Office? Avoid These 4 Common Mistakes

Visitor sign-in software should make your front desk run more smoothly, but without proper planning, the transition could cause some disruptions.

Expecting a VIP Guest at Your Office? Here’s How to Impress

Make an extra effort for important office visitors. A little planning and some simple reception tactics make a big impression.

Visitors Shouldn’t Have to Wait to Check In: Here’s How to Eliminate Lines in Reception

There are several simple steps you can take to make sure your company’s guests are never kept waiting in the reception area.

User Experience Basics for a Visitor Check-In System

If your visitor management system isn’t pleasant to use, it could backfire on your branding and automation efforts. Here’s how to test its usability.

How to Build Your Company’s Own Visitor Management System

If you’re considering having a visitor management system built specifically for your company’s needs, here’s what to keep in mind.

Why You Need to Categorize Your Business Visitors

Every visitor management system should start with an analysis of who comes through your organization’s doors. Here’s what to consider.

The Best Customer Support is All About Real Relationships

Authentic relationships between your customers and staff are at the heart of the best customer support teams.

The 6 Ways Business Receptions Can Get Awkward (And How to Avoid Them)

We’ve all been in reception areas that give off weird vibes. Don’t let it happen at your company.

How to Design Your Visitors’ Badges

Visitor badges aren’t complicated — not at first glance. It might seem like designing one would be easy: Choose a template, fill it out, and move on. However, poorly designed visitor badges can cause problems When the information on these…

Who Has Access to Your Food Facility? How a Visitor Management System Can Help You Comply with FSMA

Implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is in full swing. And now that the food industry is becoming more confident in its ability to meet the food safety requirements of the Preventive Controls Rules, many companies are turning…

3 Types of Software Modern Manufacturers Should Invest In Today

You already have ERP software, inventory software, and supply chain management software. But what about the non-production aspects of your business? Do you still use handwritten logs and ledgers? Do your salespeople still keep lead and customer information in their…

New Features: Pre-Registration and Returning Visitor Check-In

A few weeks ago, we launched The Receptionist for iPad version 3.0. (Missed the announcement? Check it out here). But today is the BIG announcement! Today, we’re rolling out two huge new features to make your visitors’ check-in even…

The Receptionist for iPad Version 3.0: More Customizable Than Ever!

While you were hopefully enjoying a relaxing summer vacation on a tropical isle, the Engineering team at The Receptionist was hard at work making your office check-in process even more awesome. Version 3.0 includes many more button options so that…

Visitor Management and Regulatory Compliance: What You Need to Know

We write a lot on this blog about the benefits of visitor management systems for today’s offices, focusing mostly on productivity, brand image, and security. But for companies in some industries, a visitor management system isn’t just…

Are Your Competitors Using Your Visitor Log to Spy on You?

We all know that a visitor log is crucial for office security. But could a written log threaten the privacy of your customers? The answer is “yes”! Imagine this: You’ve been developing a breakthrough product in a competitive field.…

How We Grew Our SaaS Business by 4x in 15 Months

By Andy Alsop, The iPad Receptionist President and CEO I became President and CEO of The iPad Receptionist in April 2015. Since then, business has exploded, with both the number of locations using the software and our MRR (monthly recurring…

Adding That Wow Factor to Your Front Desk Experience: An Interview with TripAdvisor’s Jessica Moore

In this series, The iPad Receptionist users share their experiences. Jessica Moore, from TripAdvisor travel planning and booking site, reflects on how The iPad Receptionist saves employees time and impresses office visitors.   Why did you first consider using The iPad…

Got Answers to These 10 Visitor Management Questions?

Do you collect data about who visits your office? If not, you could be missing out on information that could help you understand what happens in your company on a daily basis. Here are 10 important questions you should try…

7 Best Practices When Using a Visitor Sign-In Sheet

Your office reception area is the first impression of your company that you give your visitors. This includes the way you demonstrate to your guests how you’re managing the time they’re in your workplace. And walking up to a paper…

5 Major Office Security Fails That Could Have Been Prevented

We recently conducted a survey of receptionists and office managers. Almost 50% of respondents said their offices have no form of visitor sign-in required for entry to their buildings. A visitor sign-in system may not stop a criminal mastermind, but…

5 Reasons Your Visitor Management System Belongs in the Cloud

You’ve taken your accounting to the cloud with QuickBooks Online, your communication into the cloud with Gmail and Slack, and your customer service into the cloud with Zendesk. And now, it’s time to send your visitor management process to the…

7 Costly Mistakes Your Business is Making

Are budget leaks slamming your bottom line? Are you spending money on things you aren’t sure are valuable? No one likes to waste money, especially in business, where it can mean the difference between Christmas bonuses and Christmas layoffs. Watch…

5 Ways to Improve Your Visitor Experience and Make the Most of Your iPad Receptionist

The experience your visitors have when they arrive in your office can make or break your reputation. Here are five ways to use your iPad Receptionist to improve your visitor experience, delight your guests, and reduce distractions in your office.…

How Secure is Your Office? (And How a Visitor Management System Can Help)

What are you doing about office security? I’m not talking computer security or network security (though those are certainly important!). I’m talking people-walking-into-your-office-and-taking-stuff security. Many companies today aren’t doing enough about security, particularly companies with open office plans, where employees…

5 Ways Visitor Management Systems Save You Money

For startups, small offices, and even large companies that don’t have receptionists, visitor management systems simplify visitor processing while providing an enhanced level of safety and security. On top of all that, they are enormously friendly to your bottom line.…