Do business cards really matter when it comes down to business?
Yes!
This is what people will pass around when they meet you or recommend you to someone else. It’s a constant in business and this article discusses the most common business card mistakes and how to avoid them. See for yourself!
Business cards: the basics
A business card is a small, but important tool in business. Even though we tend to think of business cards as outdated and old-fashioned, the truth is that business cards still play an integral role in business life. Stacks of business cards can be found at networking events, seminars & shows – not only because they are handy tools to have on you but mainly because other people will pass them around.
Having business cards printed is very easy these days. There are a lot of business card templates available online, which can be used as a starting point to create your own business card that fits the look and feel of your company or business.
In this article I’ll also briefly touch on how business cards should be designed and printed in order to make a good impression on those who receive it, but first let’s have a look at some business card mistakes you might run into first:
1 – Not having a business card at all
This can come across as odd to other people. You don’t need a business card? It’s not really common for people to give their phone number out anymore today, so what do you expect people to do if they want to stay in contact? This business card mistake can really limit your business contacts.
2 – A business card with no information on it
What’s the point of having business cards if you don’t bother putting any information on them? If this is the first impression someone gets about you, then I think you’d agree that it’s not a very good one. It looks like you didn’t care enough to make an effort and other people might appreciate that as well.
3 – Not having business cards at all (and just handing out slips of paper)
I’ve seen this happen quite often too. Maybe handing out business cards isn’t ‘cool’ anymore, but that doesn’t mean that business cards will disappear. It might sound like business cards are overrated, but business cards still play an integral role in business and people will appreciate it if you hand them a business card that they can use to stay in contact with you if they want.
4 – Using cheap business cards
This mistake makes business cards look unprofessional and cheap. No one likes looking at or holding a cheap business card in their hands so this is another big turn off in the eyes of others. When people receive cheap business cards they start thinking about how much effort you put into your business instead of making positive associations towards it, simply because they’re not very good quality.
5 – Having standard templates on your website
As mentioned earlier, having templates available online will make it easy for business cards to be created in almost no time. On the other hand, business card templates are overrated and when designing business cards these days business card templates can actually cause quite a few business card mistakes.
Using business card templates is rather generic and doesn’t make your business cards really stand out from others in any way. Additionally, business cards using business cards design templates look very similar to each other which again give off the impression that you didn’t put much effort into creating them.
Designing business cards
The main thing about business cards is that they give people something professional to keep on hand if they want to get in touch with you or just remember who you are. This means that someone might use your business card to do business with you one day, so it’s crucial that business cards are designed professionally. You can use business card templates but make sure they fit the business you’re in and complement your business cards instead of looking like they were just chosen randomly.
Conclusion:
Design business cards that are professional yet interesting enough for people to want to keep them if they meet you. Business cards look best when they’re simple and clean, yet they also need to be designed in a way that business card templates wouldn’t make them look generic.
