7 Questions to Ask Before Ordering Credentials for Holiday Hires

Holiday hiring can turn a simple staffing plan into a spreadsheet full of new names, departments, and last-minute additions. Employee credentials may seem like a small detail, but waiting too long can make onboarding more complicated than it needs to be.

Before ordering custom lanyards, badges, or badge holders for seasonal employees, ask these seven questions. Think of it as checking your credential list twice, just with fewer sleigh bells.

1. When do employees actually need their credentials?

Your deadline is not the beginning of the holiday rush. It is the first day of orientation or training.

Work backward from that date, allowing time to finalize quantities, gather artwork, approve a digital proof, complete production, ship the order, and distribute everything before employees arrive. The custom lanyard ordering process has a few steps, and none of them improve when completed in panic mode.

If HR, marketing, security, or multiple locations need to approve the order, account for that too. Holiday hiring already comes with surprises. Your credentials do not need to become another one.

2. How many should we order?

Start with your expected number of hires, then consider whether additional interviews or hiring rounds are planned. It can be helpful to order extras for:

• Late hires

• Lost or damaged credentials

• Temporary managers and trainers

• Vendors or contractors

• Employees transferring between locations

Ordering custom lanyards and badge holders in advance, even if personalized badges will be created as employees are hired, will set you up for success during the busy holiday season. Save your stress for the last-minute sick calls. Your credentials do not need to be another holiday surprise.

3. Do seasonal employees need different credentials?

Not always, but a clear visual difference can be useful.

Color-coded lanyards or badge designs can help identify departments, job functions, access levels, seasonal employees, or supervisors at a glance. This can be especially helpful in hotels, warehouses, entertainment venues, and large retail locations.

Only create a color system if it serves a real purpose. If you use one, explain it during training so everyone understands the formula. And if you are looking for a little extra holiday spirit, chek out our heat transfer lanyards. We have many differnt premade patterns to make your employee credentials stand out this season.

4. What information belongs on the badge?

Include what employees, customers, managers, or security personnel actually need to see. Depending on your workplace, that may include:

• Employee name and photo

• Job title or department

• Company or location name

• Employee identification number

• Barcode or QR code

• Access level or expiration date

Avoid overcrowding the badge. Important information should remain easy to read, and any barcode or QR code should be tested at its final size before the full order is produced. If employees need a magnifying glass to find their department, the design may be doing too much.

5. Which lanyard features fit the job?

The best lanyard is not just on-brand. It also works during an employee's shift.

Consider whether your team needs a safety breakaway, swivel hook, badge reel, platic buckle, or an attachment that keeps the badge facing forward. The right lanyard attachment is a tiny piece of hardware with an oddly large amount of responsibility. Employees working around equipment, children, patients, food service areas, or active attractions may have different safety and usability needs.

When requesting a quote, you can describe where the lanyard will be worn and how often employees need to scan or display their badges. That helps your lanyard whisperer recommend a practical setup instead of simply guessing.

6. Who gives final approval?

Credential orders can stall when feedback comes from several departments and no one has the final say.

Choose one person to collect feedback and approve the quantity, pricing, artwork, attachment, delivery location, and digital proof. Before approving, carefully check spelling, colors, logo placement, badge orientation, and printed information.

The digital proof is the easiest and least expensive place to catch a problem. Once a typo has been printed 500 times, it stops being a quick correction and starts becoming a team-building exercise.

7. Will we need to reorder later?

Seasonal hiring rarely happens in one perfectly organized wave. Keep the approved artwork, product specifications, colors, attachment details, and original order information somewhere your team can easily find them.

If hiring will continue throughout the season, standardize what you can. Custom lanyards and reusable badge holders can be ordered in bulk, while badge inserts can be updated as employees join the team.

Planning for the reorder while placing the first order is not overthinking. It is good operations. Reordering custom lanyards is also much easier when no one has to reconstruct the original order from a file named FINAL_v7_REALLYFINAL. You can also sign up for an account with usto have all of your previous orders saved and easy to reorder!

Make Holiday Onboarding One Step Easier

The right credentials should arrive on time, fit the work environment, and help employees feel prepared from day one.

To get started, gather your estimated headcount, first orientation date, artwork, preferred badge setup, and any workplace safety requirements. You do not need to have every detail solved before requesting a quote.

Lanyard Lab helps organizations create bulk custom lanyards and credential solutions with personalized support, clear quotes, and free express shipping on lanyard orders. Send us your estimated quantity, artwork, and required in-hands date, and one of our Lab Technicians will help you find the right setup for your seasonal team.