badge holders - Influencing Identity

Hey Day, Name Tags and Becoming Friends

Hey Day celebration has become a tradition at Auburn University. While to most people across America, this day represents a gathering of cultural exploration and historical treasury, Auburn University in Alabama has a different idea of what the celebration means. Hey Day at Auburn University is one of their oldest traditions and dates back to World War II. Originally, this holiday began as a welcome back to students who had fought in the war. Today, however, the day is meant to showcase Auburn University’s friendly atmosphere.

hey day name tags name badges reusable badges

And what Hey Day wouldn’t be complete without the presence of name tags! Layton Dyess, assistant director for the event at Auburn University stated, “Even though (it is) centrally located at the Greenspace, you can’t escape campus without getting a name tag.”

In an excerpt from The Auburn Plainsman, the campus newspaper, Kris Martins writes, “Though the entertainment for each Hey Day stays similar, every year the theme is different, according to Jacob Coley, assistant director for Hey Day and sophomore in biomedical sciences. This year’s theme is ‘Saying Hey Beyond Today.'”

What is Hey Day?

“It’s all kind of about depth and making a friend on Hey Day,” Coley said. “We want people to come into Hey Day and meet somebody new and have some deep conversations and allow that to carry over beyond Oct. 7. That’s the goal this year.”

Jacob Tofani, director of the holiday, hoped the event would encourage new relationships. “We have conversation cards on all the tables,” Tofani said. “Hopefully that will get students talking around to each other. We’d really like people to make new friends and actually have meaningful relationships past Hey Day.”

Adhesive name badges and reusable name badges are great tools for meeting, and remembering, new people. Not only are they easy to use, but they can be used over again or recycled. They are an inexpensive way to provide personal identification to those in a group or other surrounding that are new to each other and need to get to know one another, and possibly become life long friends.

To read the full article, visit The Auburn Plainsman.

Business Ethics and Name Tags

The point of this article is to show how important it is to wear proper personal identification (i.e., name tags and name badges) when building business ethics. Without name tags, people can be left in the dark in situations at a bank or a grocery store.

Business Ethics

And without a name badge, Scott Ginsberg wouldn’t be who he is today. To quote Scott, “Everything I needed to know about business, I learned from that name tag!”

Anecdote 1: (from every day life)

Adhesive name badges in four colors: red, yellow, blue and green with a handwritten name.

Have you ever walked into a store and wanted something specific but there was no one in sight to help you find it? We’ve all experienced this. We’ve all wandered a store looking only to, desperately and at the last minute, find someone who can help. And, typically, this person isn’t wearing any identifiers, especially a name tag or name badge, that would have suggested he/she could help in the first place.

Anecdote 2: (from Scott Ginsberg)

Scott Ginsberg the name tag guy with a my name is name badge and who is about using name tags to define business ethics.

“So there I was, sitting in the audience at a seminar. Surrounding me sat hundreds of us wearing one of those little, handwritten, adhesive name badges. When the event was over, we all filed toward the exit. I approached the door and noticed a small trashcan filled to the brim with used name badges. And that gave me an idea. A crazy idea. Maybe I should keep my name tag on all night! About 10 minutes later I met up with a friend of mine at a local ice cream shop. And that’s when it all started. That’s when the silence was broken. People began to say hello. Random students walked up to me and started conversations. Even complete strangers yelled “Hey Scott!” from across the room!”

Business Ethics Anecdote 3: (from someone required daily to wear a name tag)

“The only purpose of the name tag is for a customer to be able to refer to the name tag wearer in the context of a compliment or complaint. I wear a name tag every day and find that it isn’t a huge thing for me. However, I will say that name tags are generally considered appropriate in this particular field (banking). I do give credit to the executives here as everybody wears one, not just the peons.”

A name tag is merely a symbol that represents several core values that Scott holds close to his heart. “The truth is; my name tag and my values are one in the same. You see, my name tag represents friendliness, approachability, fun, creativity, uniqueness and casualness. Let’s face it, if you wear a name tag all day, every day, wherever you go, you will stand out, and people will notice.”

Attending a Networking Event with Name Tags

Badge holder with a printed insert and matching lanyard and imprinted badge ribbon to help make connections at a networking event.

Lanyards, name tags, reusable badges and even signs are useful tools for any conference or convention. And the corporate event name badge is one detail that has been overlooked too much. For years people have been dealing with this awkward situation over and over again at event after event. As such, setting the stage is just as important as attending a conference or networking event. However, there are many roadblocks along the way.

Here’s the scenario:

“You’ve just arrived at your weekly, cookie-cutter networking event, and after walking up to the registration table, you proceed to search across a sea of identical plastic name badges with tiny print for the one with your name and company printed on it. You’ll affix this name tag to your shirt at the least awkward angle you can finagle, and proceed into a crowded room of people all arching their necks to scope out the people worth chatting to while trying not to stare at someone’s chest for too long. (And most likely many have chosen to position the name) tags to be hidden in the folds of jackets or flipped around entirely making them impossible to read. Good luck with that one.”

Let us help you with finding the perfect solution to this problem. We offer products that facilitate networking and promote making those important connections. Our name tags and reusable badges are perfect for use with our lanyards and other fasteners.

For many people, the idea of wearing a name tag evokes the stale idea of the epic “Hello, my name is…” variety you might find at an awkward mixer or high school reunion. But a name tag is a valuable tool and, when used in fresh and creative ways, it can be an effective tool in helping people at a networking event and when interacting with each other.

Still not convinced on wearing name tags at a networking event?

Here are some creative ways to use any name tag or reusable badge to help eliminate any awkwardness while at a networking event.

Try omitting titles and company names. Use this as an effort to associate people more with what they love to do, or excel at, than what they do for a living. Focus on the individual.

Move beyond the work domain. Try using reusable badges with a catch phrase or other conversation starter to get people to mingle.

Incorporate a theme. It doesn’t matter what the theme is, just as long as it’s geared toward getting people flowing through the masses. After all, it’s about making those important connections.

Impressions of a Name Tag; Stefan Hiller

In expansion on the topic of impressions of a name tag, many have been talking about whether or not it is important for those in service positions to identify themselves by wearing a name tag or name badge. Stefan Hiller, founder of Sky Touch; Global Hotel Security Consulting, has provided a security point of view on the topic.

“I think it is important that staff can clearly be distinguished from guests. While general staff in uniform is a big help, name tags completes identification and adds a personal touch,” Hiller states.

In Hiller’s article, titled No name tags; a forward or backward step?, he suggests that by not wearing a name tag in a service position lessens the quality of the customer/consumer experience. While his article is based in the hotel industry, many things that he discusses can also be looked at in any service position.

Name tags and name badges not only provide this personal touch, but they also provide that much needed personal identifier. By using personal identification, a hotel or any other retail establishment, gives a sense of security to not only the consumer, but also to the employee.

Hiller provides the following anecdote.

“Twenty years ago when I was an apprentice, I remember we were always told by the maître d’hôtel to wear our name tag for quality purposes. ‘Apprentice’ was written underneath my name. (While) we, the apprentices, gained our first experiences as service staff and were by no means fully trained yet, the name tag signaled that we were still a staff member in training, and in most cases guests had sympathy and excused little mistakes.

“From a marketing point of view, it reflected also that the hotel invested in young people, which certainly provided a positive image. Without the apprentice name tag, guests would not know if a staff member was still in training or not. Wearing our name tag protected us from high expectations of guests. Guests found it easier to use our name when having a conversation. It also helped us to identify ourselves with our new job.”

“Personally, I see no benefit in not using name tags,” states Hiller. “I have seen it produce unwanted guest frustration. Not using name tags lowers the quality of service and contributes to unwelcome risks.”

Name tags, name badges, lanyards and any other form of personal identification are much needed parts of any uniform. Make them part of yours today by visiting www.nametag.com.

Donation Spotlight: St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Houston Youth Adult League

Once again, we’d like to say thank you to all of our customers by highlighting our most recent donation activities. We were contacted by Tiffany Antony of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Houston Youth Adult League. Antony is the DYA Regional Coordinator for the church. Here are some wonderful details about the organization and how we were able to help!
Tiffany Antony, DYA Regional Coordinator, said “(The church is) a new and upcoming diocese. The mission of the Diocesan Youth Apostolate is to unite all young people of the Diocese in response to the Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ by encouraging the formation of a deep interior life that overflows into genuine service to the Church and to the world.”

Name Tag, Inc.: If you could describe your organization in three words, what would they be?
“Passionate, United and Spiritual,” said Antony.

History of St. Joseph Catholic Church:
In 1879, the Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament founded a school near (the church) site to serve Houston’s Sixth Ward. One year later, St. Joseph Parish was founded …to serve the school and surrounding community. This Romanesque Revival structure, designed by Patrick S. Rabbit and built in 1901, replaced the earlier sanctuary (that was) destroyed in the great hurricane of 1900. http://www.stjoseph6thward.org/

Black Woven Badge Lanyards,

Economy Vinyl Badge Holders,

and Badge Inserts were donated to St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Houston Youth Adult League.

Name Tag, Inc.: How will it help your organization?
Antony said, “We are hosting a leadership conference for all the youth in the Texas and Oklahoma region this summer. The donation will help (the church) to be able to provide an easy way for people attending our conferences to meet one another and get to know one another. The name badges will have also have cabin and group numbers so that people will know where to go.”

“(Coller Industries) has helped us to make our church events so much better and we are so excited and thankful for their generous donation. We are so so so eternally grateful for this donation! You have truly helped us out so much,” said Antony.