In the high-stakes world of business, consumer image is everything. If the attitude of a company can be expressed fully without contradictions or confusion, that company has a better chance of surviving today’s volatile and turbulent marketplace. Still today as in years past, the business card is still the best way to expose customers, not only to necessary information they need to know about a company but to the attitude of the business itself. The psychology of the business card has been studied and written about for years on end. And still, even in the twenty-first century, the business card remains an underutilized opportunity to get into the customers head and form a link that can draw just the right people in.
The psychology of the business card has been studied and written about for years on end. And still, even in the twenty-first century, the business card remains an underutilized opportunity to get into the customers head and form a link that can draw just the right people in. Believe us, the psychology of the business card is not a mystery. Actually, it can be pretty straight forward. It follows the basic playbook of business marketing solutions. Here are some suggestions to help ensure that a business card has the most impact it possibly can have.
- You want to define your company’s attitude. As they say, attitude is everything. If your card doesn’t convey the true spirit of the company, it could at best just create confusion (i.e. “what is this about?”) and at worse is can create a disconnect (i.e. “I don’t think that is what I am looking for”). In any regard, either option is not okay. The best way to counter this is to make sure your card expresses the company’s image as a whole.
- Make a list of words and phrases that will define the image and attitude of the company. These words can help to make a frame work to work in, and this can contribute to unifying and clarify the message to the customer, and have more impact. Use power words and try to find elements in the card to express them subtly. For example, if you use a word like exciting; the colors and font should be bold and stand out from the background. For example, if you use a word like “stable”, choose a paper that looks like stone to convey the idea of being as solid as a rock. Remember to keep in mind your target customer; you may like a serious- no-nonsense look, but that could create a disconnect if your company makes toys.
- Ask the right questions about your business card. Does the card you have match your company’s image? Does it stand out in a pile of cards from other businesses? Where is your company logo on the card? How much space to leave for contact info? Is the card too overwhelming or too subdued? Sometimes just going through the basic questions can lead to the perfect solution on what a card needs.
It is important to remember that in the end, the solution to getting the right look for a business card is as unique as the company, no one answer is going to work for everyone.
