Can visitor management software notify the host when a guest arrives?

Yes. With Visitor Connect the visitor picks who they are visiting when they sign in, or the host is set when the visit is pre-booked, and that person is notified as soon as the sign-in is saved. Reception does not have to phone round the building, and the visitor is not left standing in the foyer.

The same sign-in prints their badge and puts them on the live list of who is on site, which is what your fire marshals work from if the alarm goes off.

How a visit works, from booking to sign-out


  1. Pre-book the visit

    Reception or the host books the visitor in with an expected arrival, a host, a site and an assembly point. Tick a box and the visitor is emailed a QR code.


  2. The visitor arrives

    They scan their QR code on the tablet, or tap New visitor and sign themselves in. Anyone who visited in the last 14 days can find their details instead of typing them again.


  3. They answer your questions

    Reason for visit, vehicle registration, a signature, a photo, your site rules or an NDA. A critical answer stops the sign-in there and raises a warning for a manager.


  4. The host is told

    Their host is notified straight away and a badge prints on the paired printer, with no one at reception needing to do anything.


  5. They are on the roll call

    From that moment the visitor is on the live on-site list and the fire roll call, tagged with who they are visiting and their assembly point.


  6. They sign out

    On the tablet, or reception signs them out from the web. Anyone still signed in after 18 hours is signed out automatically with a note, so last week’s visitor never haunts today’s roll call.

Visitor Connect on two reception tablets, showing the welcome screen and the visitor sign in screen with New visitor, Visited in last 14 days and QR scanner

It keeps working if the wifi drops

The tablet carries on signing people in without a connection and sends everything through when it is back. Anything it cannot match up automatically is listed for reception to check, rather than quietly lost.

One reception view across every tablet

A tablet on its own only knows about the person standing in front of it. The reception view in Syncro Connect brings every tablet together, so the front desk, the hosts and the fire roll call agree about who is in the building. Reception can also book or sign someone in from the web when the tablet is not to hand.

Today

Four counts at the top, due in, currently in, warnings and sync conflicts, with the next arrivals and who is in the building side by side.

Expected

Every booking still to arrive, overdue ones first. A booking 15 minutes late can be marked as a no-show, and amending or cancelling one emails the visitor and kills the old QR code.

On site

Everyone signed in now, with the answers they gave. Sign someone out from here if they left without using the tablet.

Warnings

Sign-ins stopped by a critical answer. A manager overrides with a note, which signs the visitor in, or dismisses it so they are not shown as on site.

History

Recent signed-out, blocked, dismissed and no-show visits, with every answer still there if anyone asks what a contractor agreed to.

Ask what you need to, and stop the sign-ins you should

Every site has different reasons for signing people in. Choose from the built-in questions, add your own, and decide which answers mean someone should not be let in without a manager seeing it first.

A question can carry a PDF or image, such as your site rules or an induction sheet, which the visitor reads and accepts on its own screen. The acceptance is recorded against that visit, not on a form in a folder.

  • Built-in questions: company, reason for visit, host, job role, email, phone, vehicle registration, DBS checked, signature and photo
  • Your own questions as free text, single or multiple choice, number, signature or policy acceptance
  • Critical answers block the sign-in and raise a warning for a manager to override or dismiss
  • Returning visitors can skip questions they answered in the last 14 days
  • Turn walk-ins off so the tablet only accepts pre-booked visitors
  • Your logo and colour on the tablet’s welcome screen

An evacuation list you can trust

The reason most businesses move off paper is the moment the alarm sounds. A sign-in book cannot tell a fire marshal who is still inside. Visitor Connect feeds Fire Connect directly, so visitors are on the same live list as staff.

Visitors tagged with their host

Each visitor appears with who they came to see and the assembly point for the tablet they signed in on, so marshals know who to ask.

Forgotten sign-outs handled

A visitor still signed in from yesterday is flagged on the roll call to check in person, and anyone signed in for 18 hours is signed out automatically.

Staff without a clock

Staff can mark themselves on or off site at the reception tablet with their PIN, so they are on the roll call too, even where there is no clocking terminal.

Door access that ends at sign-out

With Access Connect, a visitor can be given a door card for set doors and a set time. It stops working when they sign out.

Why replace the paper visitor book?

A paper book is slow at the desk, unreadable a month later, and cannot tell you who is in the building when the alarm goes off, which is the moment it matters most. We compare the two side by side in visitor management software vs paper sign-in books.

It also shows every arriving visitor the names, companies and car registrations of everyone before them. That is a disclosure of personal data you did not mean to make. Digital sign-in keeps each visitor’s details to themselves and lets you apply a retention period. The ICO’s UK GDPR guidance sets out the principles.

Paper sign-in book compared with Visitor Connect
Paper book Visitor Connect
Privacy Every entry visible to the next visitor Each visitor sees only their own details
Host Reception phones round Host notified automatically
Evacuation Someone has to fetch the book Visitors on the live fire roll call
Forgotten sign-out Unknown until the book is checked Flagged, then signed out after 18 hours
Site rules A form in a folder, if signed Accepted on the tablet and recorded
Records A shelf of old books Searchable, with a retention period

Who uses visitor management software

The reason for signing visitors in changes by sector. These are the ones we most commonly support.

Manufacturing

Contractors accept your site safety rules on the tablet before they set foot on the floor, and appear on the roll call if the alarm sounds.

Warehousing and logistics

Drivers and delivery contractors sign in and out through the day without tying up the office.

Offices

Visitors pre-book and scan in, the host is told they have arrived, and reception is not the bottleneck at nine o’clock.

Healthcare

Contractors, agency staff and external visitors recorded separately from patients and staff, with details kept private.

Construction

A workforce that changes daily, with inductions and site rules as part of signing in.

Retail

Contractors and temporary staff going into stock rooms and back of house are recorded rather than waved through.

Schools

Visitors, contractors and supply staff signed in and badged, with a DBS checked question if you want one. See our school visitor management guide.

What Visitor Connect costs

£495 a year excl. VAT, flat. The same price whatever your headcount, however many visitors you have and however many sites and tablets you run. Most of the market charges per location, which gets expensive across several receptions.

It runs on Syncro Connect. If you only want visitor sign-in, it can run without the time and attendance software, so the £495 is the only software cost.

You supply the tablet, and a label printer if you want badges. Ask us before buying a printer, as not every model is supported.

Why choose Computime?

Most visitor systems are standalone sign-in apps. Visitor Connect is a module on the workforce system you may already run, so visitors sit on the same records as your staff, including the fire roll call and time and attendance.

If you do not run a workforce system and do not intend to, a standalone app is a fair choice and there are good ones. We would rather tell you that than sell you the wrong thing.

Leeds based since 1989, supporting more than 800 UK businesses, and rated 4.4 on Trustpilot. Using Realtime? Visitor management is available there too, so talk to us about your site.

Visitor management FAQs

What UK businesses ask before replacing the sign-in book. If yours is not here, call the Leeds team on 0113 350 9043.

Can visitor management software notify hosts when a guest arrives?
Yes. The host is chosen when the visit is booked, or by the visitor when they sign in, and that person is notified as soon as the sign-in is saved. Reception does not need to phone round the building, and the visitor is not left waiting in the foyer.
What happens if a visitor forgets to sign out?
Two things stop it spoiling your records. A visitor who signed in yesterday and never signed out is flagged on the fire roll call for marshals to check in person, rather than counted as either safe or missing. And anyone still signed in after 18 hours is signed out automatically, with a note on the visit saying why. Reception can also sign someone out from the web at any time.
Can we stop someone signing in based on their answers?
Yes. Any answer can be marked as critical, for example someone saying they have not completed an induction or are carrying something they should not. A critical answer stops the sign-in and creates a warning. A manager then overrides it with a note, which signs the visitor in, or dismisses it so they are not shown as on site.
Can visitors agree to site rules or an NDA at sign in?
Yes. A question can carry a PDF or image, such as your site rules, an induction sheet or an NDA, which the visitor reads and accepts on its own screen before going any further. The acceptance is recorded against their visit rather than on a form in a folder. On manufacturing and construction sites this is often the reason people move off paper in the first place.
Does the tablet work without wifi?
Yes. It keeps signing people in without a connection and sends everything through when it is back online. Anything it cannot match up automatically is listed for reception to review, so nothing is quietly lost. Put the tablet where the wifi is reliable anyway, so hosts and the live list hear about each visitor straight away.
Do badges print automatically?
Yes, once a label printer is paired with the tablet, a badge prints when the visitor signs in. Reception can also print one when signing someone in from the web. Ask us before buying a printer, as not every model is supported.
Is a visitor sign in book a legal requirement in the UK?
No law says you must keep a visitor book specifically. What the law does require is that you can account for people on your premises in an evacuation, under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 in England and Wales, with equivalent legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Signing visitors in is how most organisations meet that, and your fire risk assessment should say how you do it.
Are paper visitor books a GDPR problem?
They can be. Every arriving visitor can read the names, employers, car registrations and sometimes phone numbers of everyone before them, which is a disclosure of personal data you did not intend. Old books also sit in a drawer for years with no retention period. That does not automatically breach UK GDPR, but it is hard to justify if anyone asks. The ICO’s guidance sets out the principles that apply.
How long should we keep visitor records?
There is no fixed period in law. UK GDPR says personal data should be kept no longer than necessary for the purpose you collected it for, so set a retention period and stick to it. Many organisations choose somewhere between a month and a year, with longer where contractor records matter. A digital system lets you actually apply that rule, which nobody does with a shelf of old books. Our guide to UK visitor management compliance goes through the rules in more detail.
Do visitors need to download an app?
No. Pre-booked visitors get a QR code by email and scan it on the tablet. Anyone arriving unannounced taps New visitor and signs in, and anyone who has been in the last 14 days can find their details rather than typing them again. Nothing to install and no account to create.
Can staff sign in on the visitor tablet too?
Yes. Staff can mark themselves on or off site at the reception tablet with their clock PIN, which puts them on the fire roll call. It suits offices and smaller sites without a clocking terminal. Where you do have terminals, staff carry on clocking there with your time and attendance and appear on the same list.
What does visitor management software cost?
Visitor Connect is £495 a year excl. VAT, flat, whatever your headcount and however many visitors, sites or tablets you have. It runs on Syncro Connect, and if you only want visitor sign-in it can run without the time and attendance software, so the £495 is the only software cost. You supply the tablet.
What hardware do we need?
A tablet at reception and an internet connection, plus a label printer if you want badges. You supply the tablet, and it is paired with your account using a six digit code from Syncro Connect, so reception can be up and running quickly. If a tablet is lost, it can be revoked so it stops working straight away.
How is this different from a standalone sign in app?
A standalone app signs visitors in and stops there. Visitor Connect runs on the same system as your staff records, so visitors and employees are on one list, including the fire roll call, and the same records feed Access Connect door access and your time and attendance. If you do not run a workforce system and do not intend to, a standalone app is a fair choice and there are good ones.
How do we compare visitor sign-in apps?
Time a first-time visitor signing in, because that is the slowest case. Then check what happens to the people the app does not know about: a visitor who forgets to sign out, a contractor who gives the wrong answer, a tablet that loses wifi. Ask whether visitors appear on your fire roll call without anyone re-keying them, and whether pricing is per site or flat. Those answers matter more than the welcome screen.
Does it work across several sites?
Yes, and the flat price covers all of them. Each tablet has its own site and assembly point, hosts can be filtered to the tablet’s site, and the reception view shows everything in one place. A business with six receptions pays the same £495 as one with a single front desk.

Visitor Connect

Retire the sign-in book

Start a free trial with no card, or book a demo and we will sign a visitor in, notify a host and show them on the roll call in front of you.

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