Even in today’s digital world, the personal touch of handing someone a business card is still a highly effective and professional way to make a connection. They not only provide an easy way to include all of your contact information for a potential customer to reach you, but they give you an opportunity to make a first impression of your business that “Here, let me give you my number to put in your phone.” simply cannot do.
However, like any other first impression you make, it’s really important that even something as small as a business card be professional. Here are some ways you can do just that…
1. DO NOT use templates. Surely you have all seen the commercials for online services that offer you 200 business cards for $10 or what have you. The thing that they DON’T tell you is that the business card they are selling you for that price is almost always a template and not in any way customized just for you aside from them populating your name and phone number into.
You aren’t a carbon copy of anyone, and your business shouldn’t be either. So why would you want to use a business card that a bunch of other people are already using (including perhaps some of your competitors)?
2. DO carry your cards with you. I know I myself have been guilty of this, but after having missed some opportunities…I never show up for a meeting without business cards in my briefcase or somewhere on my person. In fact, I keep a stash in my car at all times because you just never know when a new client might pop up – and you want to make it as easy as possible for them to reach out (or pass your info onto a friend who may need your services).
3. DO NOT over-do it. We always recommend 2 sided business cards to our clients. A simple reason being that you are already paying for both sides of the piece of card stock! 🙂 2 sided cards also give you an opportunity for more “face time” as the person sees your company name/logo or info on both sides instead of just one.
However, you do want to make sure the information is easy to read and your card is not cluttered. A good balance of information is key and some “white space” is always a good idea.
4. DO make sure you include a few ways to contact you. Believe it or not, I have picked up business cards in the past with only a website on them…and when I go to the website, it doesn’t work. Want to guess where that business card went? If you guessed “file 13” aka the trash, you would be right!
It goes without saying that you should at a minimum include 2 ways to contact you on any card, one being your phone number. BUT…since there are a lot of different ways to contact people these days…give your potential customer the opportunity to reach you on several of them! In addition to your phone number, email and website, include your Facebook page info, your Twitter handle, or whatever other platforms you use frequently.
Note: it is perfectly ok to include an office number and cell phone number, and if you have one, a fax number. However, stay away from including TOO many phone numbers as it does confuse people. A good rule of thumb to follow is to include the 1 or 2 numbers that you prefer people call you on even if you have several offices/lines.
If you are in a need of business cards (or just want to refresh the ones you already have) we can help! Contact us today for a quote on design and printing (yeah, we do that too!)…and let’s get started on a business card that you will be proud to hand out to everyone!
Recent Comments