My business cards designed and printed

I recently got my business cards printed and I was amazed at how much of a baffling array of online print companies there are trying to bag your business.

Here and some of my golden rules for business card designing and printing.

1. Don’t do a business card! Everyone does one! Have you got a bit of extra money so you can put your details on a USB stick or something that people will always be grateful for. Or do it in a different format like a die-cut shape that’ll stand out from the crowd. No? You want a traditional-sized business card? OK, go to number 2.
2. Size. I go for 85mm x 55mm – it’s the size of a credit card and will therefore fit into someone’s wallet. There are people who use bigger sizes and they don’t fit into a wallet so they may get left behind.
3. Paper stock. Choose a good quality paper of at least 250gsm. GSM stands for grammes per square metre and is a measure of paper thickness. They are ideally 300-350gsm, or even 400gsm, the thicker the better in my opinion. However thicker papers will cost more.
4. Laminated. I would always argue for some sort of lamination. I’d go for matt lam, it’s classy!
5. Printing. For print runs under 500 choose a good quality digital printer (the thicker papers may not fit through digital presses).
6. Design. That’s where I come in. Choose a fantastic graphic designer who can craft you a quality, eye-catching business card that fits in with your other stationery and online presence. I would charge as little as £25 for business card design.

And, talking of money, printing-wise you should be paying about £10-15 for a few hundred. Most of my clients get me to sort out the printing.

Corporate stationery is something every graphic designer has tried at one point in his/her career. It has its pitfalls as company politics comes into play but if created correctly it can add so much to a company’s presence and profile.

See how my card compares to other bloggers’ cards.