A stand-out business card can capture people’s attention long enough to inspire them to actually call you. There are no stats available on responses to cool business cards vs. lame business cards, but as pros in the printing business, we constantly get feedback from clients who see a higher response rate when they put more thought and creativity into their business card design.
Here are a few easy-to-do design ideas to get you started on improving your card design.
Not only is this one of the easiest design tricks to use (All you have to do is “flip” your front design in Photoshop, and wa-la! You have your back design.), but it’s guaranteed to inspire lingering looks. If your prospective client catches a glimpse of the back of the card first, he or she will first take a longer look to try to make sense of it, and then flip it over to check out the front. That prolonged attention to your card is likely to plant a nice healthy seed in his or her head that could easily lead to a follow-up later.
Unless you’re in a very traditional field, there is no rule set in stone that your business card text has to be perfectly left aligned, right aligned, or centered. You can align your text in “steps” that fall down from the top left to bottom right of the card, for example. Or you may even align your text in a circle in Photoshop by first drawing a circle with the ellipse tool, then clicking the text tool and bringing the cursor back to your circle (when the cursor is properly positioned over the circle, it will change to an “I-beam”). Then start typing the text you want. Adjust using the free transform tool.
Plain 16pt. cardstock most certainly gets the basic job done, but for a remarkable look and feel, try a new card base. Linen gives an old-world, classy texture to your card. Plastic business cards feel like credit cards in the hand. Clear cards, especially, make all recipients do a double take. They’ve got a modern edge and also stand up to all sorts of wear, tear, and moisture. And silk laminated cards are smooth and expensive looking, lending a touch of elegance to your card as well as tear- and water-resistance.
Yes, this can take time, but in the interest of standing out from the crowd, it’s worth the investment. Here’s what we mean, for example. Say you own a wool clothing store. You can print a picture of a sheep somewhere on your business card design, and when you get the cards back from the printer, glue a little swirl of wool onto the sheep’s body to add a fun, textural, three-dimensional element to the card. You can punch special-shaped holes in your finished card, stick on plastic “gem stones,” or even spray them with perfume for an added sensory experience. Use your wildest imagination!
These are very tongue-in-cheek business card designs. When designing a look-alike card, you start with a common object like a playing card, a business card, or a “hello, my name is” name tag. Then you insert your own information into the design. Such cards convey the sense that you are witty, smart, creative, and hip – all good qualities that inspire people to want to know more about you and to be in touch about your products or services. The design of these can be tricky – if you’re not sure how to approach the task, contact a reasonable professional to help you get the job done.
About Jenny DixonJennifer has been apart of the EliteFlyers.com team for over 15 years. She brings a deep understanding of web marketing, thoughtful strategies, that she's able to design, manage, print, deliver multi-media campaigns to meet all client's goals. Her personal portfolio includes high-end design and printing of business cards, flyers, post cards for elite businesses and individuals from all over the world.
