7 Reasons Why Your Business Card Gets Thrown In the Bin
Posted January 9, 2011 in Marketing
Did you know that your freelancing business cards say everything that anyone needs to know about you?
The design, messaging and feel of the business card are signals that help formulate public perception of you, your brand and/or company. After making a contact, your business card is the only tangible thing they have to remember you by. It is your identity, your chance to be remarkable and memorable for the right reasons.
Yet, the humble business card is often overlooked. Making a great first impression is the first step, but leaving a sloppy business card is like taking a date to a Michelin starred restaurant, then putting them on the night bus home. Let’s face it–an unremarkable card probably won’t result a second meeting!
As a freelancer, it’s so important to get the details right. We all collect business cards, and we all throw most of them away. So why do some cards make the cut, while others end up in the bin?
Common Pitfalls of Forgettable Business Cards
Here are some common mistakes that freelancers make when choosing a business card:
- Being unremarkable–Communicating your unique selling point (USP) is key. What is it that makes you stand out from the pack? Don’t be dull and average, be unique and get noticed. But remember, getting noticed is not the same as being remarkable. You don’t want to get noticed for all the wrong reasons.
- Sloppy design–If your business card looks amateurish, so will your freelance business. An overly complex design can send the wrong signals as well. Take your time with the design and remember that when it is printed in small sizes, a complex design will lose detail. Factors like the right color and font also play a big part in depicting personality, so make sure you choose carefully.
- Unclear messaging–Design and text should not be competing for attention on your business card, so make sure your message is clear and easy to read. How many times have you received a business card at an event, then looked at it later and had no idea what that business actually does? Too little information is a silly mistake, but so is too much; balance is vital.
- Low print quality–Don’t skimp on high print quality. A professional business should look professional. Low print quality can be disastrous for the look and ‘feel’ of the card. Don’t let a high quality product or service be let down by using a low quality printing job just to save money. In the end, it won’t be worth it.
- Poor quality paper–The quality of the paper used for your freelancing business card says something about you, whether you like it or not–so don’t use cheap, thin paper. Today even recycled paper can provide weighty, thick, high quality paper for your cards that produce excellent print quality, so there is simply no excuse for poor quality.
- Oversized cards–Be a little careful with oversized business cards. Large or bulky cards don’t always fit well into people’s pockets, card holders or wallets. While outside of the box large cards can be fun, but the last thing you want is for someone to have to fold it up five times to fit into their pocket or end up throwing it away out of irritation.
- Hiding contact information–Why it is you give out your business card? It is so that you can keep in touch and be contacted! It seems obvious, but make sure your contact details are clear and direct–don’t hide behind a generic reception number or an email address. If you don’t want to be contacted directly, be selective about who gets a card!
So, before designing and printing your freelancing business cards, stop and think. What do you want your business cards to say about you, and how will it make you remarkable and memorable? Planning and considering will make the most out of your business card. And finally, don’t forget to take them out with you wherever you go!
Your Turn
What other tips do you have to make your freelancing business card stand out from the crowd?
Leave your answers in the comments. Share your opinions about the importance of business cards.
Related posts:
- Does Your Business Card Say Anything About Your Skills?
- 60+ Unusual Business Card Ideas and Designs
- Business Card Design Project Walkthrough
- Open Thread: Do You Have Business Cards?
- 70 Amazing Business Cards
About the author: This post was written by Simon Goble on behalf of moo.com. MOO loves to print, offering custom double-sided Business Cards, unique MiniCards, Postcards, StickerBooks, Greeting Cards and more. You can visit their site at moo.com or follow them on Twitter @overheardatmoo.
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31 Comments
Vivek Parmar
January 9th, 2011 at 11:02 amhaving a great business card really affect your business. Remember first impression is the last impression and its a thumb rule to get success in any business you have to give your best. Even though your business card also needs your best one
Contrarian
January 9th, 2011 at 12:01 pmI disagree …
It is my experience that the card has nothing whatsoever to do with whether it ends up in the round file or not.
I throw away exceptional cards from mediocre people all the time, but always keep the unremarkable cards from important people.
As a mater of fact, creating high quality multi-color professional designed business cards are so cheap and easy today, anyone can do it, so almost everyone does. There is an argument to be made that the ultra-simple clean black and white card is the one that will stand out in the crowd.
Just my 2 cents :-)
– Contrarian
Rahul Banga
January 9th, 2011 at 12:28 pmBusiness Cards still remains one of the most important tool for freelancers or any other type of business.
There are hundreds of qualities available but one should always choose the best and according to the type of Business they do.
As a Graphic Designer I have seen many business cards that i never wanted to see again just because of there design.
It projects your image in the public.
Business cards should be the best and follow some rules pointed in the article.
Aaron James Young
January 9th, 2011 at 12:44 pmI personally like to write on business cards; so I can remember where I met the person, if they’re potential clients or subcontractors, etc. I got a card the other day that was black and glossy on both sides, pretty much impossible to write on.
Sponsi
January 9th, 2011 at 2:05 pmI recently made some new business cards for myself and got comments like “oh what a nice business card” from 90 per cent of people I gave them to : ) it IS important, of course!
melissa
January 9th, 2011 at 6:14 pmMy biz cards are Moo cards, the 1/2 sized cards. I have my contact info on the front and all my social media stuff on the back. The card stock is sthick and glossy and looks great. I get lots of comments on it and people always hold it in their hands for a while looking at it and asking me about it. My only concernt about the card is that it’ll get lost bc of its size. But people definitely like it and comment about it.
Stephanie
January 9th, 2011 at 7:16 pmI personally like business cards that have all the information I need to know about the person. Even if the card is just a simple one, as long as it’s got the contact numbers and site URLs I need to connect with the person then I’m all good. Amazing design is nice, but it’s not a really big factor to winning projects. IMO :)
Eddie Garrison
January 9th, 2011 at 10:07 pmI guess I’m a little old school even as a graphic designer when it comes to business cards. I like simple and straight forward cards that have all the contact information and not too busy with a bunch of graphics all over the place that I can’t find any of the contact inftormation that I need to get in contact with that person.
I, like Aaron Young said I like to write on business cards and jot down notes for the person I am talking to that gave me the card. So yes a business card is of course very imprtant but it needs to be easily readable and all your important contact information need to be easy to find and read.
Sajjad
January 9th, 2011 at 11:35 pmyup it is important to having a simple and straight forward card. i agree to rahul because card projects your image in the public.
Angelee
January 10th, 2011 at 3:34 amSooner this year I’ll be giving away business cards. If people will just throw it away, I’ll make sure they’ll open up their browsers first to check on our websites / portfolio / blogs before neglecting it. Thanks for the listed pitfalls… Good reminder to be a purple cow.
Jen @ Adrinah Design
January 10th, 2011 at 10:12 amI only half agree with this. If someone has an ugly card but I like them, want to work with them, etc, I’m still going to keep their card. Now if the person was not memorable, but they have a nice card, I will hold on to it. Regardless, why wouldn’t you want a nice looking card?
Lauren
January 10th, 2011 at 12:43 pmI love when I can write on a card… otherwise, they tend to get lost in the shuffle. I keep a stack of cards I have come across, but if there isn’t something specific to remember them by they get lost, regardless of how nice the design is or the quality of paper.
John White
January 10th, 2011 at 1:17 pmIf my hair is on fire and you hand me a business card that reads, “I put out hair-fires,” I don’t care how ugly the card is, I’m going to call.
From a design perspective, I agree with comments here about jotting notes on business cards. Leave some white space.
Jamie @ Business Card Critic
January 10th, 2011 at 4:03 pmI agree with some points from your article, as well as some points from Contrarian… a lot has to do with the type of business you’re in.
For most occasions your experience or word of mouth is what will get your business card kept aside, however if you leave business cards out somewhere at like restaurants, stores, or business card stands, a lot of the time it’s the design that will attract someone to it and maybe pick it out.
If you can make your design suit your industry than it’s a bonus, but in the end the important thing is to always have the contact information easily identifiable.
Bjarte Edvardsen
January 11th, 2011 at 5:23 amGreat to get thoughts on business cards directly from a producer!
Some off-topic thoughts… Within some freelancing areas (photography, design, art), business cards are simply not enough. To hand out mini-portfolios which are easy for potential clients to put in their pockets makes it easier for them to remember you and your work. One of the main reasons why so many business cards gets thrown away is that all people know they are generally very cheap, but it would take more consideration to throw away a funky mini-portfolio (which could/should also include contact information).
IdentyMe
January 11th, 2011 at 5:55 amCheck our service: http://identyme.com – IdentyMe is a service for making of virtual business cards. Collect all your contacts in one place and create a portfolio. Share information with new people, find new friends and business partners.
Rachel Small
January 11th, 2011 at 9:12 amI gave my business card to a friend of mine who is a graphic designer. I’m a freelance editor and want my card to be simple and professional with bold colours (green and purple writing on black). She gave me several suggestions about how to make it more artistic – hers has a ton of flair. Even though she’s a designer, I disagreed. For my profession, I think simple is best. For hers, something more artistic is more appropriate. I agree with what many others have said – if I really want to get in touch with someone, I’ll keep their card, regardless of what it looks like. The cards that stand out in some way I may look at again, even if I don’t want to contact that person right away.
JSX Solutions
January 17th, 2011 at 1:40 pmIf your boring and you dont sell yourself when distributing cards they will go in the bin! be confident be interesting!
Christina Moore
January 17th, 2011 at 3:49 pmThanks for the tips! The business card of a designer vs. an accountant should definitely be different, but you can still make it stand out. A good way to do that is by using a plastic card. Hopefully that will keep your card out of the bin! http://www.plastekcards.com/products/plastic-cards/business-card.html
David Radovanovic
April 5th, 2011 at 9:28 amVery concise and worthy of a thank you, for sharing. Your business card design article is a good complement to my own previously written articles about the importance of a well-designed business card: http://www.whatsthebigidea.com/business-card-designs.html and http://www.whatsthebigidea.com/professional-business-card-designs.html. Thanks again!
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