How to create the perfect business card

Every small business in the United Kingdom can utilise business cards for a vast number of positive reasons, which undoubtedly improve networking opportunities, growth levels, connections and more.

A business card is more than just a piece of paper with your name and contact information. It’s a reflection of who you are and what you stand for as a professional. When designing a business card, there are a few key elements to keep in mind.

Make sure the card is easy to read and not cluttered with too much information. Choose a font and colour scheme that reflects your brand. And finally, use high-quality paper stock to give the card a feeling of sophistication and heaviness. With these tips in mind, you can design a business card that makes a lasting impression.

However, unless the quality of said business cards are high and created with an effective design, the desired effect will not be reached. So, if you’re a business owner that wants to start handing out business cards for the betterment of your company, read through our advice and apply it to your venture.

What is a business card?

A business card represents the next step in making your small business dream a reality. For any potential customers, it’s the first interaction they’ll have with your brand – so, make sure it’s a positive one.

A thoughtfully-designed business card does more than carry your contact information. It will make you look professional, build trust in customers, and set your small business apart from others. But before you start giving out business cards to everyone you meet, stop and ask yourself: What makes a good business card?

What is the point of a business card?

Business cards are arguably the most personal form of marketing, and they get straight to the point. You would often use a business card to either market your company or yourself, as a business owner or potential partner to people working within the world of business.

However, you can also use a business card as a networking tool at events around the world, where you plan on meeting up with likeminded people. If you want to grow your social business groups, then handing out a business card with your details on it is a great way to do just that.

Another fundamental role of a business card is to quickly share contact information with an individual. When you meet up with a potential partner or client, for example, you can leave a business card for that person to refer to in a follow-up call or email. Having a card works much faster than writing your name and number down.

It is also easier for the contact to read your contact details on a professional card. This also makes you look highly professional when engaging with others in meetings, etc. So, consider the fact that having a business card to hand out in important situations that involve you and your firm, can most definitely seem impressive to those around you.

How can you make it stand out, and ultimately bring in more business? Many things add up to make the perfect business card, but the main points are listed below:

Perfect business card design

In order to be able to use your business cards effectively, they must in themselves be effective on a number of standpoints. For instance to obtain the perfect look of the business card must be something that catches people’s eyes and grasps at their attention immediately.

Of course, the look of your business card will be highly dependent on what sort of company you run, but that is no excuse to make an unprofessional business card. Even if the target audience of your product or service is children, you should still make a professional card, as it is the parents who will be viewing it.

This is why you must always consider who the audience of your firm is, as well as who’s hands your business cards will end up in. The target audience isn’t always the same as the purchaser of an item and so you should perform the proper research as to where you want your business cards to end up before releasing them into the wild.

Information needed on a business card

A business card is a small card that includes your name, contact information, website URL and often a logo or other image. In many cases, your business card is the first impression you make on a potential client or customer, so it is important to make sure it is well-designed and accurate.

When designing your business card, be sure to include your name, title, and company name. You will also want to include your email address, website, and phone number. If you have logo, you may want to include that as well. Finally, be sure to proofread your business card before printing it to avoid any typos or errors.

Again, it is all dependant on what the purpose of your business card is, but it is usually a good idea to ensure that it tells people how to get into contact with either you or the brand itself.

Company name and logo

Also remember to include your company name and company logo on the card. We are well aware that this is a more than obvious thing to point out, but you don’t want to be going to all the effort of designing a high-quality business card and then forgetting the simplest set of basics.

This should occupy a large portion of the design of your business card and may even cover a whole side of, should you opt for a two-sided format (we recommend doing so).

Branding and imaging surrounding a business is of great importance in 2020, as it has been for such a long time now. The appearance of your company is likely to be the first thing your customer sees of it, from the front of your shop entrance area, to the design of your logo. How these things look will create an instant impact on your customer, as they’ll make a mental judgement almost straight away on whether or not they want to shop with your business.

One thing both a physical and online business presence will have in common is the logo of your company. This will be at the head of your branding and marketing and work as the recognisable image of your business. If your company’s logo fails to look professional, or fails to represent the products you sell to a high, easily understandable level, there’s no point in having it. Your business needs a logo that gets the right image across to your customers right off the bat.

It is important to be aware that the one main running theme throughout the entirety of your branding will be your company logo. This is the sole reason why it’s so important you get it right. A redesign can’t happen any time soon because it’ll throw your customers off and create a confusing image of your brand.

Your logo is the face of your company, so naturally it’ll be everywhere. If your companies name pops up, so will the image of your logo. It’ll be locked onto your social media accounts, website headers and store fronts. You need to be happy with the design of your logo before you start printing it on t shirts.

The company logo on your business card needs to convey to the audience exactly what the business is about. After all, the logo will be a representation of your brand, it’ll be the face of any marketing campaigns you run, so it’ll definitely help if it gives off some indication of what your company is or how it’ll serve your potential audience.

If your logo is confusing to your audience, they’ll immediately turn away from it, therefore you need to ensure that it not only looks good, but it also makes sense. It needs to click with the audience immediately, or they’ll lose attention. Bright, vibrant colouring can help to catch someone’s’ attention, but the actual imaging needs to fill in the rest of the blanks they may have about your company.

If your direct competition has large audience, perhaps it’s down to their branding and marketing skills, so be aware of any and all techniques they’re using effectively. Do you like their logos? Then inject what you like into from theirs into yours, but don’t forget to add your own personal touch too. Besides, your company will have differences to others, so show off that level of uniqueness in your design.

This is where it gets important that you understand the difference between inspiration and copying. Don’t create a direct rip off from your competition, just understand what makes their logo so powerful and take inspiration that can be applied to your own. This way you allow your own competitors to give you a boost forward. This is a great thing to do if you don’t have much design experience, or if you’re brand new to the concept all together.

Your company logo should directly influence the rest of your branding, so acknowledge the fact that whatever look you give off here will have to continue into the remainder of your marketing. It would be nonsensical otherwise and create a jaded image within your business’ look.

If you have gone for a crisp modern look, you’ll need to make sure the website for your business matches this, whereas if you have gone for something a little more retro, you’ll need to be firmly aware that your products should represent that imagery also.

Business-matching colour scheme 

Don’t forget to capsulate the look of your business venture directly on its representative business cards. These are now a part of the business as they’re soon going to be in the hands of potential clients, business partners, investors, etc.

This means that it must represent your company and follow the same already-established look of it. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking it should have its own unique look, it needs to follow the colour palate of your website, social media accounts, store front sign and more.

Leave some white space

This point may seem a little odd to you at first, but trust us, it i of the upmost importance that you don’t over clutter your business card. If you have a card that is crammed full of both text and imagery, everything will be competitions for the consumers attention. This isn’t the desired effect you should be looking for with your business cards (Also remember that you can use both sides of the card, so feel free to space things out).

A little bit of white space makes all the difference to your audience; it’ll appear far easier on the eyes for starters. Additionally, if you leave some white space on there, you’ll be able to add a note to the card before handing it out to potential clients and customers if that is something you wish to do. That would add a higher level of personalisation and potentially create the foundations of a strong relationship builder with an audience member.

The fewer elements you have on your business card, the stronger the impact of them each individually will be.

Proofread it

So, the time has come, and you have ordered your business cards. They arrive at your house, you excitedly unbox them, but the worst possible thing has happened. You’ve made a spelling error within the text; this is a complete nightmare.

However, you can avoid a situation such as this by simply proofreading your business cards, and then getting someone else that you trust to do the exact same thing for you. Two pairs of eyes are better than one when searching for any mistakes, so grab a friend and let them help you out in this type of situation.

You should not have too much text to go through on your business card, so this task should be completed pretty quickly, without any real level of difficulty. Although, that doesn’t excuse you from doing it. So, save yourself time, money and embarrassment by ensuring that you always proofread your designs before ordering them from a supplier.

Company Tagline 

Vistaprint supply this next point and say, “Try to summarise what you offer in six words or less. “Brand Strategy for All” communicates that Smith Consulting provides branding services to a diverse mix of clients and doesn’t specialise in one sector. It’s professional, honest and focuses on the core service”.

If people are receiving the card without having any prior knowledge of what your business is and what it stands for, you need to explain carefully and quickly what it’s all about through the use of your business cards. Try coming up with a few taglines and see what sticks with you the best. You need to be both precise and effective here, which is a hard combination to pull off, but it can be done with a little extra effort.

Links to your social media pages

If your business is worth its salt in the modern age it’ll have social media accounts across several different platforms. This is where you can connect directly with your target audience as a brand, so be sure to include your social media usernames on your business card. This is an easy way to increase followers across your business’ profiles and get the word out about what social channels you’re currently active on.

This has the potential to increase your audience engagement levels and further the reach you have as a business on social media. These two things are very important in the current digital age, so don’t go forgetting about them.

Considered a digital business card

The modern age often calls for modern solutions, and this is no different when it comes to business cards. You’ll certainly find a way around the current social distancing guidelines by opting for a digital business card over a physical one. It is also likely to be a very cost-effective method of passing your brand/business/firm on to other people, so why not give it a go?

There are a whole host of websites where this is easily done now, plus they often come with free trail design functionality features too. A quick Google search and you’ll be well on your way.

Business card checklist

These are the basics which you simply cannot afford to ignore if you want to create an effective business card that connects people directly to your business venture.

• Your company logo 

All businesses need a logo of some kind, and with Canva you can easily create your own. This will allow you to give your business its own unique feel and branding. It’ll also add some creativity into your job role and allow you to give the look of your company a personal touch, without having to pay a graphic designer for the pleasure of doing so.

• The company name

Seriously, what is the point of having a business card for a company you don’t know the name of. That will be thrown straight in the bin with all the rest of the meaningless things that come through the post or are picked up from business conventions. Ensure you’re doing what’s right for your business and let the name of it be known.

• Contact information

One of the main goals of your business card should be to connect people with your company. So, don’t shy away from including details on how individuals can get into contact with you on your business cards. Embrace the connections you can make and try to grow relationships with your consumers whenever it’s possible to.