I Don't Have to Show You Any Stinkin' Business Card

Well of course you do. If you're in serious business person, you need a well-designed business card. Like the Bandito responding to Bogart in Treasure of Sierra Madres, there a lot of folks that refuse to give much thought to their business card design.

The sad fact is that there are a lot of stinky business cards being used to represent a lot of very talented professionals. If you want to be taken seriously, you have to consider your business card as an essential advertising tool. Here are some essential design tips for basic business card design:

1. Avoid dark colored papers and card stock.


2. Paper stock is important. Spend a little more for a quality paper.


3. The flat size should be small enough to fit in a wallet.


4. Stick to one (or at the most two) font styles.


5. Steer clear of tacky clipart, as well as copyrighted artwork.


6. Be descriptive with your business card's text.


7. Remember: include your name, company, address, telephone, cell phone and website address.


8. If you don't have a logo design, don't try to fudge one.


9. If you're not the creative design type: Keep It Simple!

Don't give short shrift to could be the most important tool in your advertising arsenal: your business card design. It could make the difference between being one of the many business failure statistics or being one of the few that succeed in an increasingly competitive economy. Remember, you do need a business card, just not a "stinkin'" one.