I’ve got well over 100 printed business cards. And looking them over, I thought I should create some tips from the ones that stand out from the rest. Here’s what the best business cards of the bunch do differently from the others.
1. They have colors or use colored card stock. This isn’t too hard to do. I can see the merit of a black-and-white card – as long as the black overshadows the white. What I mean is that nearly everyone has a white business card with black lettering. The ones that stand out don’t have neon colors – a simple change of cardstock to cream or light gray could do the trick. The one I like the best is black on the front and white on the back. The back is matte, so I can write on it if I choose. The black makes it stand out from the rest.
2. The simple designs win out over the complicated and cluttered. Some have crammed so much text, along with a logo and tagline, that I just gloss over them when I’m looking at them along with the hundred others in my handy business card holder book. The ones with the most white space, or empty space, look the neatest, cleanest and most professional.
3. The best ones are free from typos. Proofread before you print. Please. Just do it. It can’t take more than a few minutes for the longest business card. Give your proof or your contact info to someone else to look over. Typos and spelling errors make the few who do it unprofessional. If these people can’t or won’t take the time to get their business cards right, there’s no way I’m trusting them with my business!
4. Have a professional email address. This is just a small pet peeve of mine. These people took the time to create a business card, but they don’t have a professional email address. My opinion of someone with a Hotmail or Yahoo account, or even Gmail account is that he isn’t professional. He doesn’t have the resources to even get an email account at his Web site address? I think a lot of domain names come with email space as well, so if you have a Web site, you should have an email address at that site. For me, when I’m comparing two real estate agents, the one with the address at her real estate company’s site seems more reliable and long-term than the one with an email address at Yahoo.
5. Write a personal note on your business card as you hand it to someone. Whether this is your cell phone number, a date or a product name, the cards with enough room to jot something down (and that did have something down) stand out to me. Handwriting looks weird on a business card, so those with writing stand out. Writing your cell phone number or some other number that isn’t printed on your business card makes the recipient feel special.
Asking or telling customers to buy your products or services isn’t enough to get sales. Sending out marketing materials that tout your benefits and tells them to visit your store does help, but once they get there, if they don’t make a purchase, then what was the point?
You need to help make it easy for your customers to buy from you once they are in your store. Here are some characteristics to keep in mind that will help you understand your customer and get them to throw some money your way.
People buy based on their experience in your store
If you have great products but your customer service isn’t up to par, people aren’t going to buy from you. Your competition that has the caring customer service reps are going to steal – no – take your customers. They don’t have to steal customers because you’ll be the one driving them into your competitor’s store! Be sure your staff is courteous and knows their stuff – a knowledgeable staff is key to increasing sales. Have a process in place to deal with customer complaints in a swift and effective way. Print business cards for all of your sales force so that it’s easy for customers to remember their names and to get in touch with them again.
School your shoppers
Many consumers like to compare and contrast when they’re shopping. To do that, they need information. Keep informational brochures, flyers and posters in sight of the product shelves. Require your staff to know all the benefits and features of each of your products so that they can help the customer make the best decision for him or her.
Design your store to fit your target market’s tastes
A customer will stay in your store longer if they like your décor. You should know the personality type of your customers pretty well and what they like. After all, you know they like your product. If you don’t know, just ask! Or go to your biggest competitor’s store and take a look around. Does it use a pleasing color palette for the walls and flooring? How about decorations? Try to adopt, but not copy, some design elements of your competitor’s and make them into your own. Provide sitting areas to relax in and play relaxing or upbeat music, depending on your target market. You’ll notice a store like The Buckle plays a lot louder and heavy-hitting music than JCPenney!
Evaluate the walking pattern of your store
Most people walk to the right when they enter a space. Keep this in mind when positioning your products. Many stores will put men’s clothing near the front so that women have to walk past them to get to the women’s section. Hopefully, the thinking goes, the women will notice something that they like on their way to their clothes. The placement of the product makes it easier or harder for your customer to find it and purchase it.
Quality color business cards a must have for today’s sales executive. Old style plain cards send a message that you lack innovation and are less than dynamic. If your card is blah then the time has come for some business card printing.
There are many places which provide business card printing. Most are high quality. A telltale of one to avoid would be if their brochure assured accurate “custom business cards”. There are many traditional storefront printers as well as online business card printers of high quality.
Your color business cards end up in the rolodexes and drawers of many people. Some are potential customers. Cards resting with them must stand out among the huge pile of other cards within which they reside. Color and design go a long way towards this goal.
Other cards end up with vendors, peers and those working ancillary to your industry. You never know when one of those people will assume a role which holds sway over your business. Your company’s reputation is paramount and professional color business cards are but a small and easy step to protect and enhance it.
Next time you are looking for color business cards make sure you put the necessary thought into their design and verbiage. Your brand and potentially some sales rely upon it.
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