Most situations that will require you to hand out a business card are ‘first impressions matter’ kind of situations. You will be meeting your new prospect for the very first time. That is why you will always want to make yourself come off well, and a good business card is a great way to do this. Business cards are still an integral part of many company’s marketing strategy. Companies such as Young Living still make use of business cards to advertise their brand, which is part of the reason why they are so well known. Some people take the business card game to an even higher level by having their own video cards from companies such as Elev8. Video cards are the new way to promote your business, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a great impression with an old style business card.
When making a new contact in business, appearance is as important as the substance of your conversations. Most people will judge you as they would a book, by the cover.
Part of your image as a business person seeking to connect with potential business partners, customers, or suppliers is your business card. You want your business card to do its primary job of communicating who you are and how you can be reached but it must do so elegantly.
You should never sacrifice looks. It has never been easier to design and print unique business cards that work. Below are some of the ways you can make your business card unique.
1. Add Social Proof on the Back
Social proof is a social phenomenon that has been incorporated into marketing to great effect by some of the most successful brands in the world.
Basically, social proof refers to the tendency of people to assume correct way to act based on the actions or behavior of others.
If a majority of the population is buying iPhones, most people are going to assume that it is the best phone on the market. You can use social proof in self-promotion just as successfully as it has been used in product promotion and marketing.
A business card is essentially a tool for self-promotion. The best way to incorporate social proof in business card design is to have any of the following on the back of the card:
- Logos of some of the notable brands you are currently working with
- Logos of publications you or your company has been featured on
- Name(s) and a quote from someone or people who recommend your products. You will be basically printing a testimonial on your business card.
2. Get a Good Designer
In any artistic field, there are details that only virtuosos get. You can easily separate the pieces of art that were produced by average artists from those that were created by artists with absolute mastery.
Since well-designed business cards are essentially works of art, giving your design project to an average designer is counterproductive. You want to go for the best designers you can find within your price range. If you have some design skills, you have the option to select free business card templates from websites like Freepik and customize them to suit your specific requirements.
Don’t be lazy in your search for a good designer. Sites such as UpWork and Fiverr make it incredibly easy to find world-class designers.
Make sure to also include your logo on there! If you don’t have a logo, you can design and download one in 5 minutes with DesignEvo.
3. Use Premium Material
Most people actively seek out the least expensive deals when designing and printing business cards. Since you always get what you pay for, taking this approach will ensure that you end up with a business card that is far from unique.
Printing your business card on a high-quality material will give it a premium look and feel. Someone touching your business card will easily make the association between the premium business card and the quality of your brand.
Getting premium business cards will definitely cost you more than you would spend if you chose average business cards. This shouldn’t be a problem if you do networking correctly and only hand out business cards to the few people that deserve your attention.
A pricier business card will definitely incentivize you to take a hard look at the kind of people you dish out your cards to. You might end up saving time on networking opportunities as you ruthlessly cut out people whose business you are unlikely to get.
4. Have a Photo of You
If you are always handing out business cards in networking events where attendants are drawn from the same industry, you might want to have a business card that has your photo on it.
Most business cards handed out in such events will look almost the same. The names of the companies will sound the same and the services the attendants offer will generally bear some semblance to one another.
Trying to remember who gave you which card in such a situation is a tall order unless you google their names to see the photos that pop up.
Make it easy for your prospects to remember which business card belongs to you by having your photo on the card. This could be the edge you need over your competitors in networking events that tend to draw lots of people from the same industry.
5. Offer Fewer Contact Options
There are numerous ways you can contact a business owner today. You can reach them by email, phone call, Skype, contact pages on their sites, social media accounts, and texting apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram.
When there are so many ways to reach a person, it becomes hard to decipher the optimal way to reach them. Listing all the ways you can be reached on your business card is therefore cute but counterproductive.
You should list one or two ways you can be easily reached. A phone number and an email address are enough. Always have a phone number as it is the quickest and most accessible way someone can reach you.