blog.jaredsinclair.com
Iʼm Jared Sinclair. I make iOS apps at Riposte, Streamweaver and Pillboxie. I used to be a registered ICU nurse.
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Never Go Cheap on Business Cards
With business cards, there really is no middle ground. There are two general tiers: there’s digital (or offset), which are both inexpensive, and it shows. These cards will look grainy and bland. Then there’s the old fashioned way: letterpress, foil stamping, duplexing, quality stock, etc. The difference in cost is not trivial. Based on my experience, digital or offset cards can cost from 20 to 50 cents per card, whereas “real” cards can cost anywhere from 75 cents to 3 dollars per card, depending on the options. But the difference in quality is dramatic.
I spent $750 on one-thousand cards for Splint, and I’ve never regretted it. I used Henry & Co in Atlanta (warning: Flash-only site). Everyone has their own priorities. Some people view cards that expensive as a waste. My opinion is that if I’m giving something to a customer (a product, a meal, a business card) it had damn better be nice.
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Designing Great Business Cards
The goals I look for in a top-notch business card: a gorgeous logo; a crisp logotype; and clean, spacious contact info that leaves room for the customer to jot down a note.
Business cards are objects in themselves. Unlike a magazine page or a sheet of photo paper, a business card isn’t a medium on which one displays content. The card itself is the content. It’s a tangible artifact. This is why the best cards tend to use things like thick paper stock, letterpress, and foil stamping. Cards that don’t use these things are an imitation of a real card.
Some cards that I think accomplish the important goals:
- Mike Hall
- Unboundary
- Weway
- Milky
- Vief (pictured above)
Photographs on business cards are uncommon, at least among high-end cards. The reason is that a photo is an abstraction that detracts from the tangible experience of a well-made card — like the difference between solid wood and a veneer.
A photo on a card is easy to get wrong. When it’s done well, a photo can help enhance the desired experience. Look at the Vief card pictured above for a great example. Notice how the photo is blurred, and fills the frame. The photo wasn’t included to show a picture of a flower, but to add texture and color behind the stark clean silhouette of the logo. Imagine feeling the edge of the foil-stamped logo under your thumb as it slides across the back of the card.
For the curious, here’s the business card I designed for Splint:
