A business card says a lot about you. It’s helping you to make that great first impression. It’s giving you a sense of credibility when meeting new, prospective clients. So why wouldn’t you make sure that a lot of effort went into designing it? It’s not going to do a whole lot for you if it’s bland, or the colours are garish or half of your company name isn’t there. That’s why, as small as business cards are, they require just as much time and effort in creating them as those brochures that you give out. And you’re in luck, as we can tell you the top tips when creating business cards.
- STICK TO THE RIGHT DESIGN SPEC
- NO SMALL FONTS – OR OVERLY LARGE ONES
- USE THE WHOLE WORKABLE AREA
- EYE CATCHING DESIGN – SIMPLE CAN BE BEST
- CONSIDER DOUBLE SIDED BUSINESS CARDS
Stick to the right spec
When creating your business cards, it is vitally important that the design is perfect, specifically the dimensions of the card itself, depending on if you are using a bleed area or not. Here at Kaizen, our top notch designers understand this, and want to make sure your business cards are the best they can be. If you are no planning on using a bleed area, it is usually good to have your cards at 85x55mm. However, if you are planning to use a bleed area, it is usually good practice to have your dimensions at85x55mm. By sticking to these dimensions, you are guaranteed that everything you want on your business card is going to fit on your business card. This is always the best way to start, as from there you can begin to think about the designing of your cards, and really making them shine.
No small fonts – Or overly large ones
Your business card is going to say something, there isn’t any doubt. Whether it is just simple information about business name/your name and some contact information or perhaps a little bit more, your prospective clients are going to be reading it. That’s why, when creating your business card, it is vitally important that it is legible. Our designers at Kaizen know how important typography is to really selling something, and as such we want to help you have the same knowledge. When creating your business cards, as you will normally have two different sets of type, it is good practice to stick to these guidelines. When writing out your company name and any other information, don’t go below an 8pt size on whatever font you have chosen, as your clients need to be able to read what you want them to, without needing a magnifying glass. The second piece of type on your business card is usually going to be you company name or logo. For this, it is usually good practice to stay above 12pt size. This allows the logo to be legible and the first thing that jumps out at your clients. However, be sure to not make it too big, unless it is part of the overall visual design.
Use the whole workable area
Business cards are small, everybody knows this. This means, it’s usually not a good idea to make that working space smaller for yourself. At Kaizen, when designing business cards for you, we strongly recommend you stay away from borders. It is only going to make the usable space smaller, which in turn makes everything on your business card become more cramped, and unreadable. Or else, all of your information will begin to run over the border which in turn makes it useless and not good to look at.
Eye catching design – Sometimes simple is best
Great business cards are the ones that stick out, but for the correct reasons. Not because the colours were garish or the type had loads of effects on it. They will stick out because as soon as your hand them to your client, they will immediately go “Wow”. In that first instance, it has only taken them a couple of seconds to run over it, but already they can see the information that they need to, as well getting a great professional sense from you, because of how well designed your business card is. Our designers at Kaizen know just how important this is. We have worked with hundreds if not thousands of clients looking business cards, and have never failed to disappoint. Here, we know that eye-catching design doesn’t necessarily mean mad effects, and more often than not, it’s the simple, clean designs that work the best. A good example is to take inspiration from Google, and their Material Design. The use of flat, matt colours and flat type, with only a hint of drop shadow, is both clean and eye-catching. As well as this, using only a couple of colours, even just two or three is good, as it continues to keep the design clean, while having the colours contrast well.
Consider double sided business cards
Another aspect of keeping the design of your business card clean, is to make the most of both sides of it, it is double sided for a reason after all. We’re big fans of this design aspect here at Kaizen. By using both sides of the card, you are giving yourself even more space to work with. Consider this: Why not put your company logo on one side, front and centre? This means it can be big and right there, being the first piece of information that your clients see. Flip the card over, and it will present them with the rest of your information, contact details for example. It allows both the logo and contact details to be spaced nicely, instead of it all being squashed together.
In need of some design help for your business cards? Feel free to give us a call to speak to one of our design team on 028 9002 2474 or if it’s easier, drop us an email at our contact page
