# Business cards!



## Dom6663 (Nov 29, 2011)

I am about to start designing my business card!

I would be overjoyed if any of you kind folks would share what your business card looks like? I need tips ideas and inspiration.

Thanks!


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## MLeeK (Nov 29, 2011)

Mine all have an image on the back of them and my information on the front. They are the Moo Mini's at MOO | Custom Business Cards, MiniCards, Postcards and more... | moo.com USA The moo cards are much heavier than a business card and they're great attention getters! People LOVE them and will take several because of it... They seem to do a better all around job than regular business cards ever did for me.


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## camz (Nov 29, 2011)

Yup. MLeek I'm with you on that one.  Been ordering Moo cards since 2008 with images from the portfolio printed on the back of the card.  

Pricey compared to the others.. yes...but it sure makes an impressionable value and shows some of your work off the bat.


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## KmH (Nov 29, 2011)

*K*eep *I*t *S*tupid *S*imple.

K.I.S.S.

Short, Sweet, and to the point, because you have very limited space.

I have used www.overnightprints.com for several years now because they have the thickest, most robust card stock around, do quality work, and have great customer service.


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## camz (Nov 29, 2011)

Oh c'mon Keith! Business has more dynamics than K.I.S.S.I.N.G.


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## loopy (Nov 30, 2011)

camz said:


> Yup. MLeek I'm with you on that one.  Been ordering Moo cards since 2008 with images from the portfolio printed on the back of the card.
> 
> Pricey compared to the others.. yes...but it sure makes an impressionable value and shows some of your work off the bat.



I get my local printer to do the same thing, cheaper than ordering from Moo.


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## Tee (Nov 30, 2011)

I love MOO.  I get the traditional card stock.  The eco-friendly option has a very cheap feel to it.


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## tirediron (Nov 30, 2011)

I don't have any images of my cards on line, but they're very simple; just my logo which is a large 'J' superimposed on a 'P' with my business name, contact information, and "Custom photography for all occasions".  I use the heaviest weight white textured card-stock with "thick" (I know there's a term for it, can't remember what it is) ink.  I order mine from a 'mom and pop' printing house in my local area.


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## o hey tyler (Nov 30, 2011)

Tee said:


> I love MOO.  I get the traditional card stock. * The eco-friendly option has a very cheap feel to it.*



Uhh... It's recycled and eco friendly. It's not coated in any way like the card stock. The eco friendly version actually is a heavier weight.


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## Tee (Nov 30, 2011)

o hey tyler said:


> Tee said:
> 
> 
> > I love MOO. I get the traditional card stock. *The eco-friendly option has a very cheap feel to it.*
> ...



Uhh...I'm very well aware of that. However, if you compare the two in your hand and ask your client which card feels and looks better (without pulling the eco sympathy card), I'd wager the majority will pick the traditional stock.


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## CCericola (Nov 30, 2011)




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## Bitter Jeweler (Nov 30, 2011)

Keep it simple, with one hook (gimmick).

My hook is the silver foil stamped logo, which doesn't show in the scan.


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## flashyinteractive (Dec 15, 2011)

Nice business card David. Visaprint has templates that you could look at to get inspiration. Did you google business cards and look in the images?


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## etnad0 (Dec 17, 2011)

KmH said:


> *K*eep *I*t *S*tupid *S*imple.
> 
> K.I.S.S.
> 
> ...



I love Overnight Prints. Their bookmarks are very high quality as well. I've only order bookmarks and business cards from them and haven't been disappointed yet.


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## GreatPhotoRace (Dec 17, 2011)

*Do yourself a favor and DON'T use vistaprint. Their quality is horrible. *Keep your design simply and if you want to dress it up but not go overboard, try having the printer apply a UV coating to your logo only. Personally, I love matte finish with a light UV on just the logo. It dresses them up nicely without taking away white space.


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## photo guy (Dec 18, 2011)

I print my own at home since am not a pro photographer. I have actually had a number of people who expressed how they like them. I custom made mine to reflect my fire photography.


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## cgipson1 (Dec 18, 2011)

I use these.... seem to work


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## borisnikon (Dec 19, 2011)

Go on to moo.com and you can muck around and make one with a photo on the back if you want, and I'm sure you get some free


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## Aloicious (Dec 19, 2011)

some nice card designs here. I recently made some up for my small business (automotive journalism mainly), I don't have a scan of them but some advice that I'd recomend, and things I'd wish I would have done differently, keep in mind my goals in a card are a bit different than someone who is running a photography business (like portraits,etc), but here are some things that may help...

-keeping it simple is ideal in my book, a small hook like a foil logo or die cut or something is great to catch the eye, a simple image is good, but if its too busy or cluttered it looks unprofessional IMO. 

-since most of the associations I make in regards to my business are automotive/tool/DIY guys, I spent extra for some fancy paper that was supposed to look metallic (I wanted it to look like brushed aluminum, or at least just solid medium grey with mild reflectivity, which is what I was under the impression it would look like), wish I didn't, since I ordered them online I didn't have a physical proof to inspect, the paper was high quality, but it looks sparkly, which isn't want I was going for and I don't really like it much. luckily I only did a small run so next time I order I'll get a different paper.

-regardless of the color/texture/etc, get a good thick paper, The thin paper cards just feel cheap and unprofessional IMO, plus thicker paper will hold up better when handled, and will retain looking good for longer in the client's hands (thin paper will bend/crease/rip easier), when I was at the SEMA show in vegas I got several dozen cards from people while I was going around the convention, and after being in my pockets while walking around, and driving, and riding the monorail, and being packed in a suitcase, etc, when I got home and sorted through everything, the higher quality cards I recieved, I found the thicker paper cards maintained their crisp and clean look much better than the thin ones.

-Leave some room to write info or something on, preferrably on the back. when I made my cards I put a simple silouette image of a truck on the back that took up most of the room, it looks good on the card, but I found when I'm at trade shows or when I'm covering an event, people like to ask you questions then write down info on the cards to help them remember you when the show or event is over. I eliminated virtually all the area to do this on, wish I hadn't.

-colors will look different on different colored paper, request a physical proof for approval before the full production printing to make sure everything looks the way you want it.


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## adam68 (Dec 21, 2011)

I think it should be kept clean and simple. You do not want it to be crowded with information and images, beacuse then you would just confuse the customer. When I got my business cards made from CardsMadeEasy, they helped me alot in the process of making my own business card


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## printisnotdead (Feb 6, 2012)

Clean is good. Look at Google's home page - only the basics are shown. They don't clutter things up with all sorts of extranious information. I'd also include an image or example of your work, if possible. It's especially good in art and design fields to show off what you can do.


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## uduxdigi (Feb 8, 2012)

Hi Dom,

           Do you have any samples of a slightly black business card? Or a dark color or blue?


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## janineh (Aug 29, 2012)

I've got moo mini cards too.


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