Here are ten tips to design professional and effective business cards
You can market your business by using effective business cards. Make sure you make the most of them. This article will show you how to create cards that are professional, effective, and reflect your brand.
Richard Budd, our Senior Production Print Analyst, told us:
A business card should reflect the personality of the company and grab attention. The right stock weight, texture and colour are all important things to consider as well as embellishments using custom colours (including Beyond CMYK+) and finishing (rounded edges/embossing/folding).”
Here are our thoughts on the following ten categories.
- Which information should you include?
- Branding.
- Basic design guidelines.
- Design and colour.
- Typography.
- There is no space.
- Size, shape, material.
- Multifunctionality.
- Final touches
- Proofreading.
Which information should you include?
A traditional-sized business card has limited space so any information must be useful.
Include your phone number and email address so clients can contact you. Clients can choose their preferred communication method by providing two or more options. Information might be listed differently on your website than it is on your site. For example, you may list more directions to your office or active social media channels.
Branding.
Branding is essential. Branding gives your business an identity and makes you stand out from the rest. It is essential to include your logo on your business cards. You can make your logo more prominent so it is easily visible.
The business card shown below shows the logo prominently and includes the name in the design.
Basic design guidelines.
- Follow these design guidelines.
- To avoid distortion, use high-resolution images.
- The right format for design.
- Allow 5mm to the trim edge.
- Set a text size minimum that is easily readable.
Design and colour.
Use the same colours and design elements to make your design consistent with other business collaterals. Your business card should be recognizable as a representation of your brand. However, you don’t have to limit your creativity. Boldly use colour and create striking designs that grab attention to get the client’s attention.
Typography.
The choice of the right typeface is crucial and should not be ignored. Choose one that is easy to read and reflects your company’s style. Are you looking for sans-serif, serif, or both? You might want to digitally alter your signature or handwriting to give your business card a personal touch. There are many typefaces available so take your time and explore all of them. If your company has a specific typeface, you might want to use them from your style guide.
This example shows cursive script typography adding a personal touch.
Do not be afraid to use blank space.
It’s not always wasted space. Don’t feel pressured or pressured to fill the blank space with unnecessary information. Don’t overfill your business card with unnecessary information. The use of blank space can improve composition, balance, and overall hierarchy. For those who love to write on business cards, you may want to leave some room.
Size, shape, and material for business cards
Standard business cards measure 3.5″ x 2″, which is the perfect size to fit into a wallet. You don’t have to follow the rules. To make your business card stand out, you might change the shape of your card or make it squarer.
You should also consider what type of material you want to print. The traditional business card is printed on thick, durable 14 Pt cardstock. To add luxury to your business cards, however, you may want to impress your customers with something like the Xerox Colotech+ Gloss or Silk coated paper range.
Multifunctionality.
You can make your business card multifunctional with special offers and turning it into a loyalty card. This will encourage potential customers to keep your card longer.
This example shows how space can be optimized by placing the logo on a background with a lower transparency to allow text to be layered over it. Business cards can be multifunctional. This example shows that one side can be turned into a loyalty card and encourages customers to keep it.
Final touches
You can make your business card stand out from the rest by adding finishing touches. Examples include:
- Embossing
- Debossing
- Color the edges of your business card
- Round corners
- Metallic foil edges
- Foil printing
- Spot gloss
- Proofreading.
You should check, check, and again. Ask for a second opinion as someone else may spot an error you missed. We recommend printing out the work you are doing once it is done. Then, proofread it. Seeing it in another format can help you spot mistakes.
Additional Resource:
https://hotmart.com/en/blog/business-opportunities
https://connects.world/business-opportunities/
https://www.mindtools.com/amtbj63/swot-analysis
