Have you ever picked up a business card and been instantly impressed? Something about the card’s shape, design, color, or font attracted you. You saved the card, and perhaps you contacted the person to buy their products or services. When you design your own business card, you want it to give potential clients that same “wow” feeling, the sense of admiration and attraction that will compel them to keep the card for weeks, months, or years.
What’s Included in a Great Business Card?
A Prominent Name
When you first pick up a high-quality business card, your eye should immediately go to the name of the person or company that gave you the card. That’s the information that should be in the largest font, in the place of greatest prominence on the card. Depending on the design, that location could be at the top of the card or in the center. If the business card is for you, include your title under your name, such as “Chief Executive Officer,” “IT Services Manager,” or “Photographer.”
Contact Information
When you’re designing the perfect business card for yourself, make sure that you include all the pertinent information. The recipient not only needs to know your name and the name of your business, but also the applicable contact information such as your phone number, email address, address, or website. You don’t have to put all of these pieces of information on the card, but it’s a good idea to give potential clients at least two convenient ways to get in touch with you.
A Unique Shape
A business card is typically 3.5 inches by 2 inches. To catch the eyes of clients, you can design your cards vertically rather than horizontally, or you can pay a little extra for unique shapes and sizes. Artists and creative professionals often take advantage of these different shapes and dimensions to show off their creative style.
A Touch of Elegance
An elegant business card can benefit from some tactile design elements, like raised lettering, embossing, expensive paper, or unique edges. It feels luxurious or interesting to the recipient, drawing more attention than a plain business card might.
Space
A good business card has some blank space— a place for the eye to rest. Keep the copy and important images about 5mm or further from the edge of the card to provide an ample margin. White space is restful to look at, so a card with some white, open areas is likely to give the viewer a positive feeling.
Perfect Grammar and Spelling
The ideal business card includes pristine grammar and perfect spelling. If you’re not sure about any point of spelling, grammar, or punctuation on the card, ask an editor to review the content before the card is printed.
A Design that Matches Your Profession
If you’re a wedding planner, the perfect business card for you might involve a romantic spray of pink flowers across one side of the card. If you’re the founder of a growing company, you probably want something clean, modern, and professional instead. Don’t forget that your business logo can serve as a design element. The right business card fits with the owner’s position or profession and hints at the service or product that the person offers.
An Unusual Approach
Do you really want to stand out from the competition? Some business cards are showstoppers because they take a calculated risk— and it works. What if you put just your name on one side of the card and your number on the other? Perhaps, instead of the standard cards printed on heavy cardstock, you could order a set of plastic, translucent cards in soft colors. There have even been business cards created on wood, cloth, metal, leather, and chocolate.
Are you struggling with the design of your business card? Visit FreeLogoServices.com to view some business card options that may work for you. We have a broad variety of card designs for many different categories of business and employment, in styles ranging from minimalistic modern to edgy artistic to quirky vintage. Patterns, images, and font choices are all there, ready for you to customize just the right card for your business. Take a look and get a head start on creating your ideal business card.
