While most of our business interactions and transactions today are digital – whether it’s email, digital signatures, conference calls or even networking – the humble printed business card still has a vital part to play.

Reinforce your brand image

For all the ease of digital communications, people still do business with people. We still choose to work with individuals and organisations that have made a good impression on us, and your business card is part of your personal – and brand – image. It is something that represents you, and it will continue to work for you long after that first meeting with a new contact.
Because all business interactions have an element of the personal in them, the business card makes a better handshake than swapping electronic details by text or email when you meet someone. Don’t spend valuable ‘face’ time hunched over your phone – engage in eye contact, have a real conversation, give them your business card and take one of theirs.
A business card tells people you’re serious about what you do – whether you’re an artist, band leader, banker or restaurateur. You’ve taken yourself seriously enough to want to pass on your details and you believe that people will take you seriously enough to want to keep those details to hand. It all goes back to those first impressions, and it really counts.
A great business card means you never miss an opportunity to hook up. After all, you don’t know when you’re going to encounter someone who could be really important to your business – it might be at a networking event, but it could just as easily be in an airport lounge, supermarket queue, or at the gym. That’s why it’s crucial to have your business cards with you at all times – in your wallet, pockets, phone case… and your sports bag.

Your business card investment

There are other reasons why a business card, printed on good quality stock with concise contact details in a clear font, is an important investment. One of these is the fact that, sadly, our memory can’t be relied upon to store information about all the interactions we have. A business card is a physical record of a meeting, and it helps people connect faces with names.
Last but not least is the fact that we all tend to resort to the quick, easy solution when we have a need or a problem. So if your central heating breaks down, rather than scroll through endless listings on yell.com, if you’ve met a heating engineer who seemed reliable and personable, and you’ve got their business card to hand, you’re likely to cut short any searches and just give them a call. Which brings us to the subject of design.
Ideally, your card should reflect your calling, so if you’re an accountant or business consultant, you may want to keep it clean and clear, with a simple logo and your contact details in a straightforward font. But there’s no reason why straightforward should be boring. In fact, whatever you do, there’s no harm in getting a little design help to ensure your business card stands out from the crowd.

If you’re running low on business cards, or perhaps you want to rethink your image and need a little help with design, we’d love to help. Throughout July and August 2016 we are offering 500 business cards for the price of 250. Use the voucher code ‘DOUBLEUP’ when purchasing 500 business cards to receive your discount. Rather order in-store? Visit our contact page to get directions or give us a call.