# Should I have business cards?



## tase (Sep 28, 2014)

Are business cards important? Do I just buy them and just leave some where ever I go? What do I do with them?


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

Are you being serious? You literally have one sample of one shirt design. If you're going to spend money on anything, get more samples and more product. Business cards won't help you sell anything. So I fail to see how they would be up high on your priority list. And if you don't even know what to do with them, why are you wasting time considering it?

But to answer your question, no, business cards are not that important anymore. When you meet a potential customer, you can give them your phone number (and email, website, facebook, twitter, etc) and they can put it right into their iPhone contact list. If you really want them and have the money to spend, then sure, go right ahead. But business cards are a bit old fashioned, IMO. But if you do end up getting them, you would give them to other business people you meet and network with.


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## Quartier (Apr 29, 2014)

Once you start sales, business cards are essential. Just having them legitimizes your business in consumer's eyes. Don't give them out to people you just met, but if over the course of the conversation, your business comes up and they seem interested, give them your card at the end of the conversation. That way the business cards are more likely to be kept instead of thrown away as soon as you leave. When we first started sales, we didn't have business cards and we thought it was ok. But after we got business cards and people saw them, they would say something like "Oh! You have a _legit_ business!" That was a real comment from the first time I handed out a business card. It also makes it very easy to exchange phone numbers with people and market at the same time, especially if you're in a rush. Also, when you're doing bulk sales with organizations, it's always good to give them a business card so that they have all your info right there when they want to know more.


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

The OP is launching a clothing brand, not a printing service. His consumers will hardly need his business card. Vendors, suppliers, etc, might want to exchange cards. But he's at such an early stage right now, there are much higher priorities than this. I don't disagree with your opinion, Jeff. But for someone on such a tight budget starting out, he needs to focus on building an inventory and generating sales. I would hate to see someone spend money on business cards when they don't even have shirts to sell yet.


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## ParrotPrinting (Feb 23, 2015)

Wow is it really that expensive to go to Staples and buy a pack of business cards and print them up yourself?


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## Blue92 (Oct 8, 2010)

If you feel you need business cards then just spend $20 at Vista Print and get them.

Most will:
1. Never be handed out
2. Wind up in the trash


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## True Grit (Oct 19, 2015)

Yes, they are important. Not everyone will remember your name and number and even if they plug it into their phone, they may not remember what they saved it as. A business card is tangible proof that you exist, and even if it is passed on to 5 people before you get a call, you still got the call. I personally have a stack of cards, that when I receive a new one add to it to the pile. Why? because you never know, thats why. Also think of this. every time you put your name out there, that is potential for another order. Not every one you meet is going to instantly be a customer, but 1 week, 1 month, 1 year down the road, you want to give them a reason to remember and call you for their needs.


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

I've had over 5000 business cards printed. I can tell you maybe 20 of those ended up in sales. I get more word of mouth from shirts I've printed. With today almost everyone having a smart phone I just created a digital business card if someone ask me for a card I just send them the digital card now. I still have 1000 cards or so but haven't handed one out in about 2 years


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## PatWibble (Mar 7, 2014)

Business cards are a thing of the past... but some potential customers still attach some importance to them. To those customers (few and far between) you look and feel like a mug when you say that you haven't got a card.

The best use I currently have for cards is to end those conversations with 'potential customers' that are clearly going nowhere - "here's a card - think about it and get in touch". Sometimes the customer is as relieved as I am for a graceful get out to a conversation.


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## kheebl (Nov 26, 2014)

I had a few thousand printed from vista print. I include one with every order along with a small decal with my logo. They could get thrown away for all I know but I do get a lot of business from referrals so one of those Is working.


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## tase (Sep 28, 2014)

ParrotPrinting said:


> Wow is it really that expensive to go to Staples and buy a pack of business cards and print them up yourself?


Staples has 500 cards for $10.


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## Mtnview (Nov 5, 2009)

I keep business cards in my vehicles and try to keep some on my person. I put one in orders that ship out to customers. Half the time I wear what I print and my Jeep has a number of our graphics on it. When people ask about buying I give them a card that has all the information on it. I was in line at a busy ice cream shop this summer. One of the servers asked about the shirt I was wearing and where she could check it out. There was no time to give her my website, facebook page and more but there was time to hand a card to her.

Vistaprint? Not sure I would go that route but it is up to you. I have had people come to me for brochures and business cards because the quality of Vistaprint has been a disappointment to them. But for $20 bucks some will take the gamble.


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## skdave (Apr 11, 2008)

This thread is priceless. One card out of a 1000 could get you a million dollar deal.
I will say you can make a card that stands out and it is the cheapest form of marketing you can do. Buying the cheapest that is poorly laid out is not a good bet which is what most people do.
I think a card that cost .$.20 each makes a lot more $1000.00 sales than a card from Vista Print that cost 1000 for $10.00 I get a verbal response every time I hand out one of my cards and it stands out in the stack of collected cards at a trade show.


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## STPG Press (Jul 6, 2015)

skdave said:


> This thread is priceless. One card out of a 1000 could get you a million dollar deal.
> I will say you can make a card that stands out and it is the cheapest form of marketing you can do. Buying the cheapest that is poorly laid out is not a good bet which is what most people do.
> I think a card that cost .$.20 each makes a lot more $1000.00 sales than a card from Vista Print that cost 1000 for $10.00 I get a verbal response every time I hand out one of my cards and it stands out in the stack of collected cards at a trade show.


Agreed, 100%. I do business cards; and my standard is a 16pt 4:4 with either spot or full UV both sided is $43.00/M, delivered (at my convenience) to my client. 

My upscale cards which can include multiple layers, die-cuttings, coatings, materials, embossings, and such can run as much as $400 or more per 500 cards. Those are usually "executive" cards or special purpose cards. They absolutely stand out in a stack, or in a pocket, or on a desk.....

Business cards aren't dead; it's just they you have to "up the game" to stand out better.


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## Quartier (Apr 29, 2014)

kimura-mma said:


> The OP is launching a clothing brand, not a printing service. His consumers will hardly need his business card. Vendors, suppliers, etc, might want to exchange cards. But he's at such an early stage right now, there are much higher priorities than this. I don't disagree with your opinion, Jeff. But for someone on such a tight budget starting out, he needs to focus on building an inventory and generating sales. I would hate to see someone spend money on business cards when they don't even have shirts to sell yet.


I assumed he had started sales since I saw his original posts several months ago. When he makes his first $10 profit, he should definitely get business cards. 

I get the cheapest option from vistaprint, and they look pretty good. There is a minor flaw in them, but that's because I haven't put the time into making the minute changes to our template to fix it. Most people don't notice it, and many have commented on how nice they look. Nice thing about vistaprint is that they have a sale on business cards every other week, and every now and then you can get free shipping which saves $10-15. I don't know about the quality of their other services, but most people I know use them for business cards.

If he has a brand, he should give his card to store owners/managers he meets with about getting his brand into their store. He should also give his business card out to consumers, and tell them that if they have any issues with his company, to give him a call or shoot him an email. People like having that connection, even if it is a small brand. They will also say nice things about his brand because they know the owner, and if they really like him, they'll hand out his business cards to their friends. Give about a hundred to your mother, and another hundred to your grandmother. My mother gives out more business cards in a week than I do in a month. Your family is your greatest asset, and business cards are a great way for them to tell the world that their son/daughter/niece/nephew/cousin/grandchild is "successful" and is reliable. You can get some of the best word-of-mouth referrals from your family. People will also feel more comfortable buying from you if someone they trust speaks highly of you, and I think your mother and grandmother would be talking about you like you're about to be the next Bill Gates.


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## Quartier (Apr 29, 2014)

I have about 1200 collecting dust and one of my reps has another thousand because we went to a massive conference in Florida in April-May, and I over-estimated how many people we would encounter who would want a card. But, I won't have to worry about business cards for another year or so, so that's a plus. I never leave my dorm or house without them, even if I'm going to a party or a movie, I always bring them because you never know who you might meet. 

Treat everyone as a potential customer, regardless of who they are. I know the names of a lot of the homeless people living near my campus, and I never pass up a chance to have a friendly conversation with anyone I meet on the bus, young or old. 

Just last week, I talked to a guy I met on the bus on my way to a sales pitch for my carpet cleaning company, and he's going to call us next time his carpets need cleaning because he had to pay Stanley Steamer 3 times for the same job, and they still left dog hair in the carpets. I gave him my card, which is my apparel company card, and he might just buy from my website too.


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

You should advertise in the phone book too.


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## tcrowder (Apr 27, 2006)

kimura-mma said:


> Are you being serious?



That should be the response to every one of this cat's posts!


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

Mtnview said:


> I keep business cards in my vehicles and try to keep some on my person. I put one in orders that ship out to customers. *Half the time I wear what I print* and my Jeep has a number of our graphics on it. When people ask about buying I give them a card that has all the information on it. I was in line at a busy ice cream shop this summer. One of the servers asked about the shirt I was wearing and where she could check it out. There was no time to give her my website, facebook page and more but there was time to hand a card to her.
> 
> Vistaprint? Not sure I would go that route but it is up to you. I have had people come to me for brochures and business cards because the quality of Vistaprint has been a disappointment to them. But for $20 bucks some will take the gamble.


Yeah, I wear my designs around, and when someone asks where I got it, I hand them a card.
I also toss a couple in when I ship a shirt ... not sure that accomplishes anything, but costs next to nothing.

I got my cards from GotPrint, which was one of the recommended sources when I asked on here before. I'm happy with the price and the quality.

One side has my logo and the URL of my web site. The other side has a photo of one of my shirts.


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

Leg cramps said:


> You should advertise in the phone book too.


Using your Phone number to your bag phone!!!!!


I still carry business cards but it seems when I mention digital business card and I can send either text or email and I do on the spot no one wants a printed one. I might give out 50 a year max. What I do use them for is all my friends businesses have a card racks but I always ask when a new client contact how they obtained my number. Very rarely do I hear a business card. I still think they are needed and as cheap as they are why not, even high quality cards are cheap advertising.


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## Biverson (Oct 20, 2014)

I agree with a lot of the posts on here. Don't get business cards thinking they themselves will get you business. It should be your overall look, appearance, professionalism, and selling your service. A business card will then present an opportunity to give a potential client something. We all talk with people everyday. Giving them a business card makes you different than all the other people they talk to. 

I also make my business cards dual purpose. They can be used as standalone cards, but also as pricing and sizing tags. When the High School booster club needs apparel and I say, "you want me to tag them?" I get my name out there in a big market, on quality apparel, and help them look for professional.


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## mountaingoat (Aug 24, 2015)

Yes, you should *definitely *have business cards. They make you and your business look grown-up and trustworthy! I use jakprints.com they have good pricing and printing. Look at around at cards you admire for inspiration. If you have experience, design your own, if you don't and want to save money, use a template. Most places don't charge extra for full color on both sides. Putting a nice product photo on the back side is a great way to say, "this is what we make."


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## Mtnview (Nov 5, 2009)

mountaingoat said:


> If you have experience, design your own, if you don't and want to save money, use a template.


Don't use a template. Design your own. I was having lunch in a town about 20 miles away one day at a friend's restaurant. As I passed his bulletin board for local businesses to put their business cards I noticed the same card in two different locations on the board. Thinking someone was hogging space I took a closer look. It was two completely different businesses that had used a template off an online site. If you are printing t-shirts, surely you have enough talent to design your own business card.


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## sben763 (May 17, 2009)

mountaingoat said:


> They make you and your business look grown-up and trustworthy!


Ther is no way a business card will give any trustworthiness to a company. Look back in the 80's and 90's that is a diffrent story but look at all those investment scam places that bought business cards, rented a $1000 a month office and stole 100's of million dollars. Those victims all believed there was validity, trustworthiness, with a few business cards and office space. I know this isnt the same but with $20 or even less as the have some really nice card blanks these days one can print on their own. Recently scam artist in my area printed some business cards selling services posing as cable company. They would collect for upgrades on mobile device. By the time it was discovered bank account they used to transfer money to were cleaned out and had been opened with false documents. 

They are a way to give contact info and possibly make a impression. Trustworthiness, validation are all done these days by a companies actions after the first point of contact to the delivery of that companies product or services.


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## WGiant (Oct 15, 2015)

kheebl said:


> I had a few thousand printed from vista print. I include one with every order along with a small decal with my logo.


I like this decal idea. Would you share a picture?


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## jmprinting (Jun 19, 2015)

Business cards work, buy some decent cards, pay for a nice professional layout and not vista print crap. Say you pay $50-60 for design and print, one job should pay for them.


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## ObduroHQ (Nov 13, 2015)

I've been around the apparel business for a long time... about 25 years and what has always worked best for me was business card size magnets... yes they are pricey, yes they will take some time to create, I will agree, but they will not be thrown away by clients and you can pretty much cut them to any size and/or shape you like if you purchase them by the roll. You can either screen print them, sublimate, or vinyl them... Just my 2 cents.


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## Preston (Mar 21, 2006)

If you are doing any kind of sales at all, then business cards are well worth the cost. If you pay 20 buck for a 1000 cards and only get one sale off those 1000 cards, they still paid for themselves.

When I still had my shop we got a lot of business off our business cards. Most of it was because we offered a service that hardly anyone else offers so that helped. Most of the sales we got that way ended up being in the 2k to 3k range.

Depending on your business model, here is a little marketing trick that does work using business cards. Get some magnetic business cards made up and then when you park outside Home Depot, Walmart, Your Church and anywhere else your target customers may hang out. Stick several of the cards on your vehicle where passer-byers can see them. You will be surprised at the results.


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