Case Study: Designing Business Card that Rocks!
Business cards are hard-printed mediums for spreading the word about your business and what you do. These papers should truly stand the test of time and patience with those you offer services towards. Thus, their concepts should be fascinating and creative, stretching far beyond common people’s imagination.
Likewise, we are not all gifted artists in this trade. Whether you’re freelancing alone or building a team business, cards will always influence your sales numbers. Consider some of the points I’ve raised below regarding modern card templates and how you can break out of the box. Such creativity isn’t as difficult as implied by artists and merely requires a bit of stretched thinking.
The concept arts showcased below are geared towards the modern era of print layout. There are many styles and shapes to consider, so I also recommend spending time not only researching but also building a collection of business cards to enhance your mind patterns.
The Simple Pass-off
Regardless of the style and setting of your business card, we can draw the same conclusion from many different artists. Business cards shouldn’t be created too extravagantly, as they can become burdensome pieces of annoying paper not worth anybody’s time.
In fact, the whole purpose of exchanging cards with others is to facilitate easy communication later on. The pass-off period refers to how much time is required to hand out your business card and gauge your colleague’s reaction. With more complicated and erratic structures, it will be very difficult for clients to find a comfortable placement in their pockets.
Consider sticking with shapes standard to squares and rectangles. Objects that protrude outward can be fun and even evoke a sense of playfulness. However, this generally doesn’t belong in modern business card design and can detract from your credibility.
Keep in mind how the receiver will feel taking a big hunk of cardboard paper from you. If they really wish to contact you, it would be simpler for them to find a secure placement somewhere in their personal belongings, i.e., a wallet or purse. This ensures they can find it later and it won’t be accidentally sent through the washing machine.
Confident Branding
You’ve got to push your company brand like nothing else. When it comes to passing around cards and word of mouth, nothing is more powerful than backed-up imagery and branding.
Notice how fuzzy or embossed logos stand out tremendously. Similarly, adding holographic or shiny techniques over your logo gives your company a futuristic look. Every sleek businessman wants their cards to shine, and this is one great technique.
On a similar note, you may create a letter branding or icon theme. This could be the first letter of your company or possibly a similar logo, such as Exxon’s logo. Regardless, the point is to repeat and create the illusion of a dynamic pattern. Small hole punches or background imagery will fit the bill perfectly.
In spite of how you approach branding, you should consider the outcome important for marketing. A company icon or logo will generally supplement a longer title since the symbolism is easier to recognize. If you are truly lacking space on your card, try fitting something into the back side or even a light shading of background textures. Some very creative designers have showcased these exact techniques with precision and great imagination.
Highlights of Typography
For some time, consider how powerful the role of typography plays on your business card. Anyone holding onto your piece of paper will surely be interested in the information printed. This means your contacts should be legible and neatly spaced!
I can’t even begin to imagine how many cards offer poor-quality optics when comparing text. There have been many examples where background and text color barely contrast and almost blend together – quite a costly mistake. When clientele or possible leads become frustrated, they’ll eventually give up, or best-case scenario: Google your brand and hopefully find a means of contact.
Highlight different sections and see if you can draw attention to portions of your cards. The attentive bunch will pick up on simple techniques such as attracting eyes to your company’s website or personal e-mail address. No matter what your objectives as a businessman are, any new lead is always a great possibility for prosperous growth.
Clever Puns & Symbology
When you’ve got a company working in a specific sector of society, it’s simple to build clever puns with these. Often times this will come into fruition through clothing apparel and print companies, also handymen decorating cards with tools and clipart.
Symbolism can play a key role in business card design. For a company such as Google, it’s all too common an occurrence to play around in their neck of the woods. Holding the elite position of “Top Search Engine”, the employees of Google are able to play off such a historical role in society with comical imagery proportional to their home page. The business card below is a prime example displaying the person’s name inside the search field with contact information on the back.
If you’ve acquired a talented graphic designer or know your way around Photoshop, it’s entirely possible to blend symbology into your branding. If you can find a symbol or animal which represents your company, card design is often the best creative artboard for showcasing your ideas and getting your new branding afloat.
Suspending User Interaction
One major point of interest in card design comes from an aspect of human intervention. By adding neat effects, it’s simple to create interactive business cards which capture the imagination.
Your competitors will be ripe with envy while all of your clientele and corporate partners will be awestruck. There are many examples of this style, namely by Matt Imus in the photo below. You may notice not only the small slots of information open, but there is a sliding inner piece that displays extra information.
This technique is just one of the many exciting renditions of interactive card design. Granted, this isn’t the only viable solution and, in fact, is quite rare. You would need a strong press or somebody very knowledgeable about printing dual or triple-layered cards.
In other examples interactive designers often display maps and even cards wrapped in packaging. These effects are very contemporary and will help you stand out from the crowd. Ensure you don’t cross the line and go overboard, though, as your audience is probably finicky and wouldn’t like to spend hours toying around with your cards.
Design Gallery
Throughout many of these tips, it’s difficult to fully grasp how business cards are created. The vast amounts of creativity required far exceed the mindset of many top graphic designers. I often find myself digging through internet archives for fantastic galleries of newer and modern card structures.
Below, I’ve included over 25 business card examples for your viewing pleasure. These range from standard black-and-white letterpress to exotic and almost inconceivable pieces. If you’re struggling to come up with your own card design, I recommend checking out our brief gallery below.
Reactor
Lisandro Enrique
Yup
Ubiquitous
Violett Chakakov
Wilma Traldi
Amanda K Photography
Lou Fargeot
Top Funky
Sabrina Sorella
Metallics Unlimited
Design Nine
Nataliea Roberts
Edouard Domenici
Marnie Gilder
Forge
Klinetech
Leroy T
CR
Rachel Russell
Thomas Antiques
Jake Caputo
Square One Communications
WOOOOOO!
Abby Doodles
Duo
Anick Bauer
Jonny Campbell
Milky Interactive
Conclusion
Whether you are working solo or aspiring to construct your business kingdom, business card design will guide you along the path towards building reputation. It’s difficult to break into any market these days without some form of physical presence.
In today’s culture, it’s all about who you know. And the best way to increase who you know is through meet-n-greet with business cards! Never feel shy to offer your information or greet a new contact. When delving into deeper inspiration, I recommend our huge collection of business card templates as a great starting point.
Spend some time browsing online galleries to come up with not only ideas but also publishers who may create and print your cards. This process doesn’t need to be difficult and can actually result in a very fun experience. Try brainstorming in a group with close friends to see just how articulate the process of creation manifests.