Business Cards Advise
Information To Include On Your Business Card
By Erin Ferree
The logo and graphic elements that you include on your business card are
quite important, but having the right text and contact information on the
card is equally important. Here are our tips about the elements to include:
Your name — Consider whether you want to include your
middle name or initial,
degrees or professional credentials that are unique to your field.
Title — Including a title on your card will help your potential clients to
identify your
position within your company. Including a title can also make your company
seem
larger. A reason to not include a title would be if you're a consultant, and
want to
market your solo nature as a benefit to your clients.
Address — Always include an address on your business card, even if you are
operating a business out of your home. Including your address greatly
increases
your credibility and makes your business appear established. If you're
concerned
about privacy, a post office box is a great way to go. When signing up for a
post
office box, consider using a commercial mailbox vendor (such as the UPS
Store)
instead of a box at the United States Post Office. At a mailbox store, you
are given a
street address instead of the typical "P.O. Box". The store also accepts
shipped
packages from UPS, FedEx, and other carriers, so you won't need to give out
your
home address as a shipping address.
Phone number (and toll-free number) — Include your phone number and, if you
do
business long distance, consider including an 800 or toll-free number as
well, as an
amenity for your clients.
Cell phone number — This is an option to consider if you'd like to make your
services available to your clients around the clock, or if your business
often takes
you on the road. If you'd like to keep your cell phone number private, you
can do
that tactfully by offering to make your cell phone number available to
clients once
they have signed up for your services — then your clients will feel special
and know
that you're taking good care of them.
Fax number — If you have a fax number you should include it on your card. If
you
rarely receive a fax, or if you don't know if faxes will be useful in your
business, you
can try using efax (www.efax.com). This is an online service that can
provide you
with a free fax number that will email all of your faxes to your email
account. They
also offer a paid service that is available as an upgrade if the number of
faxed pages
you receive per month exceeds their free offering. That enables you to
upgrade if
needed, without changing your fax number and reprinting your cards.
Email address — Your email address is an often-overlooked opportunity to
brand
your business. Instead of using a generic email address such as
"yourname@aol.com" or "yourname@comcast.net", purchase your own branded
domain name to use as your email — yourname@yourbusiness.com. It's
inexpensive
and easy to set up, especially if you use GoDaddy.com to register your name
and set
up the new email address to forward to your existing account. This makes
your
business look larger and more professional.
Website address — A website is a must in today's business world, even if
it's a
simple, one-page site that gives a few paragraphs of information about your
business offerings and your contact information. A website offers potential
clients
an easy, no-pressure way to both learn more about your business, or to refer
you to
new clients. This is also another way to take advantage of the branded
domain name
that you set up to use for your email address — using it for your website
URL will
extend your business brand further.
Tagline — If you have a tagline, including it on your business card will
contribute to
your branding and memorability, and a graphic treatment of the tagline
(font, color
and any graphic effects used) can add visual interest to the card as well.
License Numbers — Include your license number if you are required to display
them
by your industry regulations (i.e., insurance or contractors), or if your
being licensed
is a benefit that you offer to your clients, or if it differentiates you
from your
competition.
If you have room on the front, or would like to create a two-sided card,
consider
adding:
A few bullet points about your business offerings — This provides you with
an
opportunity to further explain what you do. This is most helpful when your
business
name is not specific, so potential clients can identify what you can do for
them.
Your photo — The people you meet while networking will remember who you are.
Putting a face to your business also makes your cards more personal for
potential
clients. However, we recommend that you do this only if it's appropriate, or
somewhat standard, in your industry (for example, with certain types of
coaching, or
real estate).
A "next appointment" area — If you often make appointments with clients (for
massage therapy or health care, for example), consider printing a line or
two on
your business cards to make them into appointment cards as well. This makes
a lot
of sense from a printing standpoint — you'll be able to print a dual-purpose
card
for the same price as printing one card design
About the Author
Erin Ferree, Founder and Lead Designer of elf design, is a brand identity
and graphic
design expert. She has been helping small businesses grow with bold, clean
and
effective logo and marketing material designs for over a decade. elf design
offers
the comprehensive graphic and web design services of a large agency, with
the one-
on-one, personalized attention of an independent design specialist. Erin
works
closely in partnership with her clients to create designs that are visible,
credible and
memorable – and that tell their unique business stories in a clear and
consistent
way. For more information about elf design, please visit: Logo design at
http://www.elf-design.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
|
|
