When to Buy an ID Card Printer and When to Outsource Your ID Printing Needs

Your campus, facility, or organization needs ID cards or security badges. You might even need to print different badges for employees, visitors, contractors, vendors, volunteers, etc. How do you know when it makes sense to purchase an ID card printing solution with everything you need to issue badges on-site? Or should you outsource them to an expert ID card printing service? While there are several considerations for both sides of the equation, your decision ultimately depends on your specific needs.

Let's look closer at each option.

Outsourcing your ID cards

There are several considerations from financial issues to speed and volume. Here's what you need to know for each:

• Save on capital investments. Instituting an in-house solution requires a capital investment in equipment, staff, and inventory. For example, consider the cost of purchasing aprofessional ID card printer and the card stock and other supplies needed to issue badges. You also need either a designated staff member or a team depending on the volume of cards being printed.
• Charges are variable. You pay only for cards produced by the printing service. This means you can quickly and easily scale your production when demand increases such as changing the company logo without adding head count to handle the overload.
• Outsourcing ensures accountability and conformity. An outsourced printing service can give you detailed costing information so you can allocate it to the right departments. In addition, if you have several field offices, outsourcing helps maintain conformity across different locations.
• Most services turnaround outsourced cards in days. It takes over 2-3 days to research and purchase an ID card printing solution, set up and install all components, train employees, and issue cards. You can use an outsourced solution as a trial program before making the capital investment to set up your in-house ID card program.
• Leverage outsourced printing service providers' experience. These professionals likely have hands-on experience with hundreds of ID card programs. They can help you create highly professional, secure ID cards with a variety of technology advantages like barcodes, magnetic stripes, biometrics, and more.

Why train employees at various locations how to take photographs, prepare and design data in ID card printing software, and print out secure ID badges? A full-service ID card printing service can easily manage that process for you.

If, on the other hand, you need to print off thousands of personalized ID cards at a single location, an in-house solution may be more cost-effective

Printing your ID cards in-house

With an in-house ID card printing solution, you control every aspect of the printing process. From choosing the precise equipment you need to produce perfect ID cards to making sure your process is secure from forgers and counterfeiters, it's all under your control. Here are the benefits of handling your photo ID badges in-house.

• Test drive options before you commit. Sometimes, you're unsure about how certain ID cards might wear depending on how your employees or students use them. You can test drive different ID card styles before picking one to stick with. You can also test drive whether a technology like magnetic stripes or bar codes offer better functionality to meet your needs.
• Print replacement cards on demand. Lost cards happen. Why wait several days to get a replacement card mailed to you when you can simply print out a new one? You might have security needs that require everyone to have ID badges for access or tracking purposes. Here, employees or students can't be without their cards for days.
• Secure cardholders' identity and privacy. When you control your ID badging process in-house, you can secure your cardholders' personal information and their privacy. While most outsourced card printing services are highly secure, the only way you can completely control who has access to your cardholder data is by issuing your ID badges in house. If security is important, you can get an ID card printer that is only accessible with a key to reduce who has access to issuing cards.
• Save money over time. Upfront costs of creating an in-house ID card printing program are high. But when you compare costs over time, you'll see that an in-house program is more affordable in the long-term. An in-house program offers a much lower cost per card to issue than outsourcing. So, if you're looking at years of ID card issuance you can spread the initial capital outlay over, an in-house solution will save you money.

Final thoughts

Still unsure which route is the best for your needs? Contact an ID Expert at Idesco (212) 889-2530 to go over your options. You can also visit us at our showroom to test drive some of the printers. We have over three-quarters of a century helping companies just like yours find the right solution for your security and business needs. Not only can we offer you a variety of ID card printing solutions for your in-house needs, but we also offer custom badge printing services. Let us help you determine which makes more sense for your organization, event, or campus.