Business Cards Ideas: 5 Killer Ways to Stand Out
Are you tired of hearing that business cards are outdated? Instead of ditching business cards completely, say no to boring, traditional designs. What's exciting about a white rectangle of paper? Nothing! Stop following the crowd. Start creating unique business cards ideas.
You’ve got your business up and running enough to where you feel like it’s time to start promoting it with business cards. You design a few and order some bundles for an upcoming trade show.
Throughout the night, you see more and more of them going in the garbage than in people’s wallets. It’s safe to say that you bombed that company outing. This problem can be fixed though. All you have to do is change up your card.
Your business card is so much more than your contact information. It's a mini advertisement. Does yours entice potential customers to learn more? You want a creative design that matches your brand. But designing an effective business card goes beyond choosing the best colours or fonts.
Choosing attention-grabbing designs can keep your cards from getting tossed in the trash. And that's a big step toward landing your next sale and more brand awareness. Don't let your business cards be part of the 88% that hit the trash can within a week.
Try one of these unique business card ideas to make your cards effective.
1) Choose a Unique Material
When you think of business card design, think beyond the words and graphics you print on it. Using material other than paper lets people feel and see the difference. Laminated business cards start with standard card stock. The lamination gives the card a special look and feel.
Silk business cards have a matte finish with a silky smooth feeling. Another soft route is a laminated suede card. As soon as you hand over your business card, the recipient feels the difference. Why stop with a soft touch? Get creative with the materials. Some options include:
- Transparent plastic
- Metal
- Wood
- Plantable seed paper
If you like the traditional look and feel of card stock, step it up a notch. Go for heavier-weight paper. The thicker design gives your business cards a substantial feel. People associate heavier paper with better quality. That perception can transfer to your business, too.
A bonus of choosing heavier paper is durability. Your business cards hold up better in pockets or briefcases. That durability may keep them out of the trash.
2) Add Special Touches
Plain business cards don't give customers any reason to look closer. Making certain parts of the design stand out gets people interested at first glance. Try these methods for unique business card ideas.
Fight the flat look of plain printing with special touches. Spot UV business cards use a glossy coating to highlight parts of your design. Use it on your logo or business name to make those parts stand out.
Embossing gives your business cards a three-dimensional effect. This technique makes some parts of the design raised. It adds texture to your card to make it feel unique. Another option is to highlight the text and graphics with foil. You can choose from traditional metallic colours, pearlescent finishes, or holographic finishes. Foil accents catch the light and add an upscale look to your cards.
Show the People What Your Store Has to Offer
Give your prospects a reason to hold onto your business cards by making them functional. This is a next-level special touch that sets you apart from the competition.
Here are some examples:
- Bottle opener built into a business card for a liquor store
- Bookmark business card for a bookstore
- A packet of seeds for a landscaping company or garden shop
- Integrated USB card for a tech company
- Ruler for a handyman or a shop that sells hardware
- A magnet for any business
You don’t have to include excess information about your business when you can simply show the people what you’re doing. For example, if you're a freelance photographer your business card could be a graphic of you with a camera followed by a tagline. It’s a nice, special touch that shows what you do.
They will know what sort of service you supply without you having to include that in the text on the card. You can get as creative as you want and produce the coolest business cards there are.
Design With Your Audience in Mind
You want your card to go with your target audience. For example, say you own two businesses that sort of go together, you could use the front of your card for one of the businesses and the back of the card for the other one. It's all going to the same audience so you're good.
If you're a writer by day and a garbage man by night, you'll need to get two separate cards because those don't relate to each other at all. Regardless of what you plan to create, whether it be business cards, envelopes, invitations, posters, flyers, or even postcards, you have to keep your target audience in mind.
Be Careful With Special Finishing
You've got a lot of options available to you when it comes to special finishings. You could have rounded corners, foil accents, die cuts, you could punch holes into it and make it into a mini brochure of some kind. Your business card can be a real work of art, but you’ll want to be careful.
If you're too flashy then your card and business may be remembered as being flashy rather than for the information you give the potential client. Also, if you were to do a black glossy finish you may frustrate customers more than anything. Again, some customers like to take notes and they can't do that on this type of finish.
3) Focus on Modern Business Card Shapes and Edges
How many rectangular business cards have you received over the years? It's standard, but it's also boring and does nothing to grab attention.
Stand out by choosing a unique shape for your business cards. With die-cutting, you can get a custom shape that matches your business.
Design business cards for your dog boarding business in the shape of a bone. Shape them like a camera to promote your photography business. Or choose a circle, oval, or square instead of the usual rectangle for any type of business.
Why does a shaped business card work? The outline grabs attention because it's not something you see often. People want to look at the card in more detail to see what's on it. They may even show it off to other people because it's so different.
You can also help reinforce the basic purpose of your business with a related shape. A house-shaped business card creates a realty-themed design. When people see the shape, they make the connection to your real estate business. Give your custom business cards the perfect finishing touch by customizing the edges. They may seem insignificant, but the edges can give the cards a polished, modern look.
One simple option is to round the corners. Rounded corners soften the look of the cards. It sets them apart from standard rectangular cards while keeping a professional look. Painting the edges of your business cards adds a colourful pop. It makes them stand out in a stack of traditional cards. It gives the edges a bold, finished look.
If you go with a black card background, consider black edges for a dramatic, elegant look. A contrasting colour helps define your cards and grab attention. Use your company's colours on the edges and front design to help build your brand.
4) Use the Back of the Card
Are you leaving the backs of your business cards blank? If so, you're missing out on prime printing real estate.
Traditional business card design crams all the information on the front. Instead, focus on a custom, eye-catching design on the front with minimal text. You can do so by making sure that the front holds only the most important information while leaving additional info on the back.
If you're an artist, print custom artwork on the front. Add a professional photo related to your business. Or add a custom graphic that creates interest. Showcase your aptitude for art on the front.
Use the back to add more information and engage potential customers. Here are some ideas about what you can print on the back of the card:
- Special discount or coupon code
- Client testimonial
- Map of your physical location
- Social media information
- Industry statistics or your success rate
- QR code
- Referral codes
- Examples of your work
- List of products and services
- Loyalty stamp card
- Appointment card.
Stay Away from Full Coverage
You want to give potential customers enough information where they know what your company is about but let them wander a little. You don't need to put the entire history about how you got started on your card. You'll want a tagline, the name of your company, a phone number, email address, and perhaps a physical address. This should give them all that they need to know.
Let’s say you hand a customer your card and then start talking more about your business. The customer turns the card over so they can take a few important notes. If you leave plenty of white space then they can do this with no problem.
If you have custom graphics and text on both sides then they can't do this and they won't have as much important information about your company to take home with them. Keep in mind that using white space isn't boring. In fact, it draws the viewer’s eye to everything on the card from your text to your graphics.
Stay away from full coverage to highlight the important information on the card.
5) Create the Business Card Professionally
If you don't have the ability to print business cards professionally in your office, don't print them yourself. They can come across as cheap or unprofessional which isn't the impression you want to leave on a potential client.
Instead, find professionals who can take care of the custom design and printing for you. Plenty of people who print their own cards tend to go for gimmicky and uneven fonts that are simply difficult to look at. Your business card will be useless if the customer can't read what's on it. Crazy fonts can be fun but they aren't professional and they can be difficult to make out.
This being said, if you want to add a little bit of interest to your card, give them a logo that pops and keep the text as simple as you can. On top of not using fancy fonts, make sure that the text isn't too small and isn't distorted.
You can get bundles of cards for not too much money so it's worth it to have them professionally done. They'll make a huge impact on the customer this way.
Shop Now: Consider a Call to Action
If you have space on your card to throw around you can do a little call to action that inspires the potential client to do something. This could be as simple as checking out your website or subscribing to your newsletter.
You could also put a helpful tip on it that relates to your business. This labels you as someone who’s knowledgeable in your field and the customer is sure to remember you for that.
Print Your Unique Business Card Ideas
If you don't put a lot of thought into how you're designing your business cards, they may end up in the trash or in a potential customer's junk drawer rather than actually be used. You're only allowed a certain amount of space on your card so, try out some of these design ideas to make the most out of it.
If you’re scratching your head trying to think of a business card design, we may be able to help you out with that. New Era Printing can help you turn your creative design ideas into reality. From design to printing, we're ready to help you create modern business cards that work.
Are you inspired by our unique business card ideas? Are you ready to stand out from your competitors with unique designs?
Explore our business card options today.