Nothing is more important to making a good first impression and your business card is part of that. Your contact information is of course important, but it should also give strong message about your business. Does your? Many people go to websites, design and print cards for free, not the best idea. From a branding perspective, you should match the look and feel of your logo. Everyone wants their card to be unique and memorable, but if you break the cardinal rule (reflecting your company’s image) in pursuit of uniqueness, all people will remember seeing is an unusual business card. They may not remember your brand or its attributes.
Here are some tips when designing you biz cards:
• Caution if using a design template. Remember you want to reflect your company’s image, so be extremely careful with template-based designs. Many entrepreneurs fall in love with an over-designed template that distracts from their logo, or one that features an unrelated image. Images work well in marketing brochures, but if they appear on a business card, they will distract from your logo.
• Choosing paper stock. Inexpensive paper stock may save you money, but it often leaves you with a card that feels cheap. Touch is an important sense and plays a role in memory recall. How you appeal to this sense depends on your company’s image.
• Adding too much color. Don’t try to WOW potential customers with a super-bright, rainbow-colored card? Color is your big asset in branding your company. Research indicates that color is the most important factor in memory recall. Tie your business to one or two specific colors; this color should also appear in your logo.
• Making the card too unique. I think I am guilty of that. You want your card to stand out, certainly, but not so much that its difference makes people uncomfortable. Complex dye-cuts, over-sized cards or odd card stocks (like metal) should be used only by companies engaged in highly customized or creative endeavors. Embossing, rounded corners, or varnishes are better touches for most companies. . .function overrides form.
• Making the logo gigantic. In general, the bigger the company, the smaller its logo appears on business cards. To look like a Fortune 500, size your logo appropriately. Instead of enlarging your logo for emphasis (guilty again), employ white space to bring attention to it.
Choose wisely on your biz card design and you’ll make a lasting impression.
Smiles and Smiles and Smiles |