StartUp Ladies™

(©Photo by Lillian - All Rights Reserved)

B is for Business Card

I still remember my first business card. I drew a dandelion on it and wrote Have Dandelion Will Pick, the name of my business. I was six years old. The plan was to dig up dandelions for 5¢ a bucket and business went well that summer. There’s just something about that little piece of paper we call a business card. Two inches by three and a half. Vertical or horizontal, folded or not, one or two-sided - when you hold it in your hand you suddenly feel like you’re in business.

Several months ago someone showed me her business card. I asked her what the business was and she couldn’t quite tell me. She knows, now. It wasn’t silly to give me her card, it was incentive. It helped her take herself seriously. It was a form of commitment to her plan.

Creating a business card in the conceptual stages of starting a company may seem premature. But, whether the card gets printed or not, it’s a pretty nifty way to focus your thinking. This is your first impression. It’s your mini elevator speech. It may the one piece you ever hand out that people will actually keep.

(©Artwork by Lillian - All Rights Reserved)

Business cards are fun. Their look is as varied as the people and businesses who hand them out. The business card function is to tell people who you are and how to reach you. That’s what the words are for. How you place that information the card, what colors you choose, what font, and the look of your logo (if you have one) tell volumes more. A hand-drawn dandelion is plenty apt for a six-year old. A card consisting of plain black type in an elegant font may be plenty for an accountant. A designer, of anything, had better have one slam-dunk look. Not everyone needs to, or even should be, cutting edge. No matter what, though, your card should be memorable. It can be stunningly sophisticated, hilarious, or pretty as a picture.

The route to a great card may well be through a graphic designer. Shop for someone who has a portfolio that sings for you. You want to know they can express your vision. Look at graphic design magazines, especially at their annual design issues, to see what’s current and what does or doesn’t appeal to you. Try to verbalize why you respond as you do to various styles, logos and typefaces. Look at your own files of collected cards. Consider which ones capture your attention and for what reasons. This will help you whether you are doing your own design, or trying to explain your wishes to someone you’ve hired for the job.

The look of your card is an indication of what sort of attention to detail you will offer your customer or client. There are many ways to print cards from your computer. Pre-scored cards come in different paper stocks and edge options. If you decide to print your own, think about the overall impression your card would give someone. People appreciate limited budgets, but if your image is not clear or the cards edges are ratty, if anything is misspelled, your card will speak against rather than for you.

There are so many inexpensive printing options these days that you really can’t justify anything less than great print quality. Online printing companies allow you to simply upload your files and you can have professional-quality cards in a day. Good files will give you good cards.

So…who are you? Are you a yellow, or an ecru sort of person? Are you sans serif bold, or ultra-light condensed? All cap? Can you tell your story in a simple picture or icon? What is the least amount of information needed to memorably say the most about you or your company? There is your business card.

Barb Hranilovich is a guest writer for StartUp Ladies. She is writing an alphabet series of articles pertaining to women entrepreneurs and business owners. Make sure to read her articles on the letter D, letter P, letter R and letter M also.

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