Business Cards Land

I wrote about business card colors a few days ago from an emotional and perceptions perspective – how colors influence buying behavior.  It’s a fascinating subject, certainly one worth exploring on your own.

But there’s another reason to be careful about the colors you use on your business cards, and that’s for the purpose of comprehension.  I’m talking mostly about the color of the TYPE on your business card.

Many studies have shown that reading comprehension is greatest when type is in BLACK – and comprehension is reduced significantly if the type is in any other color.  (Read about Colin Wheildon’s research on readability, here.)

This is one of those situations in which what people SAY they like conflicts with what they ACTUALLY prefer.

When show samples of text in black and various other colors, the majority of people say they like colored text – and, in fact, that black text is boring.

But when asked which text is easier to READ – black wins by a large margin.  The darker the type, the greater the comprehension level.  It’s not just about the color – it’s about the contrast.   Black ink on a gray background isn’t very legible, of course – so you also need to be careful about the background colors you use.

What’s this mean when it comes to business card design?

It means that the most important text on your card should probably be in black ink on a white background – or as close to that as possible.  Use colored text and colored backgrounds for text sparingly, and make sure there’s a high degree of contrast for the most important information.

And what about reverse type – white text on a black background?  If it’s all about the contrast, that should be acceptable, right?

Nope, at least not according to research.   Comprehension is extremely low for “white on black” text – so again, don’t use this combination for your most important information.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples
• Glossy Business Cards versus Matte Business Cards

By now you’re well versed in the design and layout of the perfect business card for you and your company.  You know how to tweak the layout, the font, the color and even add rounded corners at OvernightPrints.com.  What you might not know, however, is that when it comes to the delicate art of the business card exchange, you might have a few things to learn about the etiquette of the hand-off.

Lucky for all of us, as even we probably didn’t know the full rules and social niceties of actually giving away your business card, and taking theirs in return, we found a video where an etiquette coach teaches us the in’s and out’s.  Check out the video, hold onto the ideas and try to keep as many of them as possible in mind the next time a situation presents itself where you think it’d be not only appropriate, but completely beneficial to give out, and take in a business card.

Enjoy the video, enjoy your weekend, and send us in some comments on your successful business card transactions!  Have a great weekend and we’ll see you bright and early Monday morning!

Popularity: 4% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples
• Glossy Business Cards versus Matte Business Cards

Was reading Tyler’s post from Monday, where he suggested the idea of using multiple designs of the same card as a way to keep a card fresh and new.  The illustrations he used showed the same business card done in different colors – and if you haven’t looked at those cards, I suggest you do so now.

While you’re looking at them, ask yourself:

Color Wheel

~ Which color do I like better?  Why?

~ How does this particular card color make me feel?

~ Is this color suitable for my particular industry?  Why or why not?

When designing a business card, it’s wise to keep in mind that many people have, at least to a certain extent, distinct cultural, gender-specific and industry-related COLOR preferences.  We don’t discuss them much, and it’s not likely that putting the “wrong” color on your business card will cost you a sale – but colors do have connotations that a savvy marketer keeps in mind.

Don’t believe me?

Okay, ask yourself this.  Would a pale pink wrapper be appropriate for an energy bar promoted to male athletes?

No (at least in the U.S.) – pink is a color associated with calmness in men, and it’s not one they generally remember or prefer.

Here’s another one.  Would a red business card be suitable for an investment counselor?

Again, probably not.  Red signifies danger – and there are negative cultural connotations too (“red ink” and “in the red” come to mind.)

And it’s not just the color – it’s the color intensity.   Hot pink is considered more provocative and energetic; pastel pink is considered more feminine and relaxing.

The point is to make sure that your new business cards convey the appropriate message about you and your business.  You want to make sure that the subtle messages your cards send are in synch with the rest of your branding and advertising messages.

Choose the right color, and you’ll be seeing “green” all the way to the bank!

Popularity: 5% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples
• Glossy Business Cards versus Matte Business Cards

On this blog, we’re proud to say that we’ve covered a great deal of tips on exactly how to make your business card not only creative, but extremely effective at portraying the strengths and benefits of your business.  Today, we decided we’d let someone Else give you a few tips, just to further reiterate all we’ve been saying, and prove that there really are things you can, and should be doing to make your business cards the perfect representation of you and your company.

We just found an article on Helium that provides four simple tips that pack a powerful punch on upping the effectiveness of your business cards and making the tiniest version of business communication, one of the most important.  Please head over and read the full article, but here for your viewing pleasure, are the 4 tips they offer up for making your cards, even better:

1. Cardstock. The cardstock is just as important as what is printed on it. Successful businesses tend to choose heavier cardstock, because sturdy and firm cardstock conveys a sense of reliability, stability, and strength. Flimsy cardstock, on the other hand, may subconsciously put doubts into the mind of a customer because it conveys a sense of weakness.
2. Color. Certain color combinations that work for one business may not work for another. For example, my collection includes a card from a super-successful handyman. The card is plain white, with the man’s name and phone number in black. I also have a card from my favorite Indian restaurant, which is elaborately embossed and printed with dozens of different colors. Both businesses are successful, and both styles are drastically different. People who have no-nonsense jobs, such as those who repair machinery or those who fix things, can get away with simple black and white because these colors give the impression that the businessperson is serious about what they do. Restaurants, on the other hand, need the “wow” factor to make them stand out. (more…)

Popularity: 1% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Holiday Business Cards
• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Business Networking Cards
• Hand made business cards

If you need even MORE hints on how to organize your business cards, keep reading!

It really can be a pain to keep track of all these cards – this isn’t exactly the most fun or most interesting post, I know (Tyler, you find such COOL stuff!) – but when you realize that each business card in that pile on your desk COULD be a customer or referral source – well, you make the time to get this done.

• Write the date on the back of cards you receive, and where (location or event) you received it.

• When you carry many cards or want a disposable cardholder, use a plastic audio cassette case.  Break off the inner tabs, and Voilá!  A display case.

• Develop a system for carrying and collecting business cards.  For example, you can always keep your business cards in your right pocket and those you collect in your left.

• Several networking events in a row?  If you don’t have time to organize collected cards immediately after a networking event such as a tradeshow or seminar, you can still keep the cards straight.  Put the collected cards into an envelope immediately afterwards and label the envelope with the name, date and location of the event.

• Update your file regularly.  Pick an afternoon and start calling (or sending notes to) the people on the cards.  Put a paper clip on the last card done, so you’ll know where you left off.  This tip not only allows you to add or correct contact data, it gives you another reason to contact previous customers or prospects.

• Combine methods.  It’s perfectly acceptable to organize cards in different ways at different times, or in two different ways at the same time.  One of my newsletter subscribers told me that he keeps current/working business cards in clear plastic sheets that he tapes to the back of his door.  When he is no longer working with that person or company, the card is transferred to his permanent files.

• Use business cards in conjunction with calendars.  If you’re scheduled to call someone on a particular day, remove his or her card from the file (the extra card, if you remembered to get one) and clip it to your appointment book or desk planner.  You can scan it within the first few seconds of a phone conversation and almost instantly jog your memory.

Even better, if a co-worker answers the phone for you, they can ALSO figure out who’s calling, and why.  The business card gives them the caller’s name and identifying information.  You can even jot notes on the back of the card to “clue them in” as to what information the caller may be seeking.

I’ll try to find something a little more fun to talk about next time!

Popularity: 1% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples
• Glossy Business Cards versus Matte Business Cards

It’s Monday, in the midst of Summer, so most likely if you’re reading this, you’re not very happy about being indoors reading it and you’d much rather be outside enjoying the weather.  That said, Monday also brings inspiration and today we have two business cards that show you two very simple aspects that you can emulate to bring your business cards to the next level of effective, and the next level of cool.

The first tip that you can immediately start following is one we’ve discussed before:  The use of rounded corners to set your business card apart from all of the sharp, squared-edge corners that absolutely dominate the business landscape.  The great news for you and anyone else looking for that rounded corner look, is that OvernightPrints.com offers rounded corners and they look stunning.  Everytime.  The example we just found combines the rounded corners look with some very simple, two-color design.   In addition, they chose to make it a vertical business card instead of the standard horizontal.  Remember, sometimes it’s the little things that set you apart.

Second up, is another tip I don’t think we’ve really mentioned, but is a great one nevertheless.  A simple way to always have your business cards looking fresh, is to have multiple designs of the same card.  By changing only the colors used, the photo background, the fonts being used, or even the text color, you can present all of the same information in a variety of different ways so every new person that sees your card, sees something different.  That’s exactly what these cards we found do, they offer the same information in exciting new ways.

In short, why not try spicing yours up a bit?  Come up with 3 or 4 different color combinations for the very same card and watch how people respond when you hand different ones out to each person.  Simple, but extremely effective.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Holiday Business Cards
• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples

Every now and again, we stumble on something too funny, too interesting and too odd not to post.  Today, this happy Friday, just so happens to be that day.  We were linked to this crazy video, and unfortunately it’s not embeddable so you’re going to have to just click over here to watch it, but we couldn’t resist putting it up for you all to see.  It’s called “Business Card” by a group called Big Digits and it’s just about perfect as it’s about business cards!

Head over and check it out, use it as fuel to remember to enjoy your weekend!  Keep in mind, OvernightPrints.com is still running their amazing contest where you, our loyal readers, have the opportunity to win FREE Business Cards for LIFE.  Yep, I know it sounds crazy, but I’m not kidding, a lifetime supply of business cards if your design is chosen in our contest.  You can enter as many times as you could possibly want, and design as many cards as you can to win, so what are you waiting for?  There are only a few weeks left in the contest, if you haven’t entered now, you need to as soon as possible!

Have an amazing weekend, enter our contest and start thinking about what kind of business cards you’re going to design for your chance to win!  We’ll see you bright and early Monday morning!

Popularity: 3% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Holiday Business Cards
• Colorful business cards
• Business Networking Cards
• Hand made business cards
• Great Spot UV Card Examples

Once you’ve decided what cards you want to keep, where do you put them?  What system should you use?

First you need to determine:

• How portable you want your organizer to be
• Whether you want one master file and/or several files
• How much time you have to spend entering data

Physical Storage Options for Business Cards

For physical storage of actual hold-in-your-hand cards, your primary options are boxes, files, rotary systems, and binders/notebooks/planners.

BOXES:

Whether you’re using an old shoebox or a card file with alphabetical dividers, storing business cards in boxes is a popular alternative for many people.

Advantages: It’s easy to add, discard or sort cards (or entire card categories).  Storage boxes are inexpensive, it’s easy to add more boxes, and there’s really no learning curve.  It’s easy for people in the office to share cards also.  Cards of unusual shapes or sizes may be accommodated easily.

Disadvantages: Card boxes can be bulky, are certainly not as portable as other options, and may be unsightly too.  They also do not offer the convenience of some of the electronic options.

FILES:

Although not intended for the purpose, you can use files and/or file folders to organize cards.

Advantages: File folders are inexpensive and readily available.  It’s also easy to categorize, sort or discard cards.  Cards of unusual shapes or sizes will probably fit.  You can even purchase smaller file folders (like those used for coupons, receipts or checks.)

Disadvantages: They can be bulky, they waste filing space for larger papers, and a single card may be difficult to find.

ROTARY CARD SYSTEMS:

With rotary systems, the cards themselves are filed into desktop systems of varying shapes, such as open rotary file, covered files, mini-files, portable files, and so on.  Some cards have a distinctive cut on the bottom to fit directly into the track; other systems have sleeves or slots into which you insert cards.

Advantages: It’s easy to sort, add and delete cards or card categories.  Alphabetization and categorization are easy.  The card systems themselves are usually attractively styled and they’re familiar to most office personnel.  Cards are also less likely to fall out, since they’re anchored to the track.

Disadvantages: These card systems are not intended to be portable, rotary cards may not be interchangeable among systems, and large, odd-shaped or vertically printed cards may be difficult to file.

NOTEBOOKS/BINDERS/PLANNERS:

These systems allow you to insert cards into the pages of a book and function like a photograph album with business-card-sized pockets.  The plastic pages with the business card sleeves hold varying amounts of cards and fit into notebooks/planners of different sizes.

Advantages: They’re affordable, can be easily expanded by adding more refill pages, and are more portable than boxes or rotary systems.  It’s also easy to coordinate the “look” with other accessories such as your briefcase.

Disadvantages: They’re not a good idea if strict alphabetization is important to you, since other cards have to be moved if you want to insert a new card into an existing page.  You also have to keep the binders themselves organized.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Colorful business cards
• Loyalty Business Cards- a cheap and effective marketing idea!
• What Should People Notice?
• Who Are You, Anyway?
• The Perfect Cutout Makes The Perfect Business Card

Let’s face it, if you choose to do your business cards this way, you are going to need a few things:  First, you’re going to need a laser cutter, or am extremely precise hand and a sharp Xacto Knife, and second, you’re going to need a LOT of money, in $1 dollar bills.  Most people don’t want to pay $1 per business card, but if you have some disposable income and want to really make an impression with your business card, I suppose you’d be hard pressed to find a more impressive way than using a $1 bill as your business card.

That’s exactly what the company Graffiti Research Lab did on these business cards, and I can’t imagine they printed very many, because while OvernightPrints.com sells a set of 5000 of our PREMIUM business cards for only $79.95, it’d cost you $5000 just in dollar bills to get the same set of Money Business Cards, and then you’d need the laser cutter!  Nevertheless, I can guarantee you one thing:  If someone gave me a business card made out of a $1 bill, I would definitely not be spending it, and I’d more than likely hold onto it and show it off to just about everyone I possibly came across.

So, do you have the cash and the courage to use your hard earned cash for your business card?  Yeah, neither do we, but we do have some extremely creative ideas on how to make ours better.  Speaking of, our contest to win FREE Business Cards for LIFE is still running!  You have time to win a lifetime supply of business cards of your choice, saving you a lot more than just the $1 per card you’ll save by not doing the Dollar Bill card, right?!  Enter now!

Popularity: 1% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Holiday Business Cards
• The Conversational Business Card
• Colorful business cards
• Business Networking Cards
• Hand made business cards

Business cards are only as useful as your organizing skills allow them to be.  It’s one thing to get someone’s card; it’s another thing entirely to find it later and follow up with the prospective customer or business acquaintance.  If you can’t figure out a way to keep track of the cards you receive, you might as well quit collecting them.

Preliminary Sorting

Some people find it helpful to make a quick, initial sort of the cards they receive and save more specific categorization of cards until they have more time.  For example, if you attend several large networking events or tradeshows in a row, it’s faster to sort business cards you collect fairly generally at first and do the detailed sorting later.

Sorting Business Cards for Long-Term Storage

When determining how best to organize your cards so that you can find them later, pay attention to your own particular memory quirks and file cards accordingly.  If you’re horrible with personal names but remember company names, file them according to company name.  (Or file cards in both places to cross-reference each other.)

You can categorize:

Alphabetically:

• Person’s name

• Company name

• Type of business (accountant, plumber, wedding planner)

• Type of contact (vendor, colleague, client)

Chronologically:

• Date you acquired the card

• Event at which you acquired the card

• Next scheduled contact  (To remind yourself to call/contact someone on certain dates – a so-called “Tickler” file).

Action Required:

• Send brochure

• Request information

• Add to mailing list

• Send bill

• Invite to Chamber luncheon

• Et cetera

Remember, the best method is the one that works for you.  You may come up with something completely unlike anything I’ve mentioned; so long as it works, that’s fine. (Just make sure it also works for others in your company, such as your secretary.)

Popularity: 1% [?]

Possibly Related Posts:

• Colorful business cards
• Loyalty Business Cards- a cheap and effective marketing idea!
• What Should People Notice?
• Who Are You, Anyway?
• The Perfect Cutout Makes The Perfect Business Card