This One Business Card Design Mistake is Costing You Money
Description: Learn how to make your business card unforgettable by incorporating your core message. This article guides you through crafting impactful cards that go beyond just name and contact info, offering tips on design, digital options, and pitfalls to avoid.
Most business cards are forgettable and ineffective.
For a hundred years the goal of a business card was to ensure someone knew how to contact you. Because in the days before the Internet, and more recently social media, it could be nearly impossible to track someone down you met just once through a chance encounter.
But today, it takes seconds to find someone. As long as you have their name and remember any piece of identifying information, a quick Google search will do the trick.
Which means that today if your business card is merely a piece of thick paper with your name, contact info, title, and company logo, you are wasting money.
To paraphrase the late, great Mitch Hedberg, when people hand me their business card it's like they're saying, "Here - YOU throw this away."
And throw it away I will.
Worse, a standard business card is costing you money by losing the opportunity for leads and referrals.
In this article, we'll discuss how to make your business card so clear and compelling that not only will people keep it, but it will generate referrals.
Business Cards in a Modern Context
It's not hard today to find a magician, or a vacuum salesman, or a car mechanic, or a financial advisor.
So if you hand me a business card and it says, "Joe Smith, Car Mechanic" with your phone number, email address, and website - unless I already know I want to work with you because of a referral, or you've made some kind of outrageous impression on me, it's very unlikely I'll keep your card long enough to remember you when it comes time for my next oil change or service.
Plus, how do I know if you work on my kind of car? Or handle my kind of car trouble?
Most importantly, it's very unlikely that I'll think to refer you to a friend when they mention they're having car trouble, because the only thing I know about you is that you're a car mechanic, and my friend has a phone with Google.
No, if you want me to remember to call you, or refer you to a friend or colleague, your business card has got to make a bigger impression.
Which begs the question, what should be on your business card? And the answer is simple: your core message.
Core Messaging is Foundational
Core Messaging is neither internal or external. It is foundational - it's a guiding document so that you and your team deeply understand your own work and can communicate it with clarity.
You'll pull from that text when designing internal assets like positioning statements, leadership principles, hiring, onboarding, and training policies, internal communication campaigns, and even employee evaluations.
And when designing external assets like marketing collateral, sales pitches, customer service scripts, social media campaigns, web copy, press releases, proposals, and even product packaging.
What is Your Core Message?
At Clarity Up we create your Core Messaging in 3 steps: The Filter, The Story Hook, and The Argument. I've explained each of these in great detail in other articles, so click the links for more depth.
For now, let's just focus on The Filter, which is usually stated as, To ACTION so that IMPACT.
In the case where space is limited, like on a website header, a social media banner or headline, or on a business card, your Filter statement can probably serve as your Core Message.
If anything, we usually just need to add an 'audience' to it, in order to make it clearer.
Let's look at some examples of job titles whose business cards can be made so much more interesting by adding a core message:
Making Business Cards More Impactful with Core Messages
Consider these examples:
1. Financial Advisor:
Before: "Jane Doe, Financial Advisor"
After: "I demystify wealth-building strategies for young professionals eager to fast-track their financial freedom."
2. Magician:
Before: "John Doe, Magician"
After: "I help restaurant owners distract patrons from long waits on busy nights so they make positive memories and come back again and again."
3. Librarian:
Before: "Sarah Doe, Librarian"
After: "I curate enriching learning experiences for lifelong learners seeking personal growth."
4. Photographer
Before: "Emily Doe, Luxury Real Estate Photographer"
After: "I make homes come alive and pop off the page for agents targeting high-end clientele."
5. Home Inspector:
Before: "Mike Doe, Home Inspector"
After: "I provide move-in peace of mind for new homeowners by ensuring their house is safe and sound."
Do you see how the Core Messages make these cards more memorable and impactful? It's not that you shouldn't include your title and contact information. It's that you shouldn't only include your title and contact information.
Pro Tip: Put your standard name, title, headshot, logo, contact info on the front of the business card, and your core message by itself on the back.
With a Core Message you not only get a sense of what these professionals do but also who they do it for and why it matters.
How to Craft Your Core Message for a Business Card
Start with Your Filter: To ACTION so that IMPACT. This is the foundational element that captures the essence of your value proposition.
Add Specificity: Who exactly are you helping or teaching? The more specific, the better. For instance, instead of just saying "I help professionals," say, "I help mid-career professionals."
Test for Brevity: Make sure your core message is concise enough to fit the limited space of a business card but still comprehensive enough to be meaningful.
Consider Visual Elements: If your business card has a design or theme, make sure your core message complements it visually. The message should be the focal point, and design elements should enhance, not distract.
Be Authentic: Ensure that your Core Message is true to who you are and what you do. Authenticity resonates.
Pitfalls to Avoid
Being Too Vague: If your core message is too broad or undefined, it won't stick.
Ignoring the Audience: Make sure your core message is targeted. If you try to appeal to everyone, you'll end up resonating with no one.
Overcomplicating: Remember, a core message should be straightforward and easy to understand. If it requires an explanation, it's too complicated for a business card.
What about Digital Business Cards?
Yes, there are lots of options for digital business cards these days, with companies like Ovou and Popl offering a single physical card that has NFC and QR code technology built-in.
When someone taps their phone or scans the code, your digital card pops up. I have one, and it's very cool. And it's even cooler if you put your Core Message right there at the top of the digital card!
In fact, digital business cards work well when combined with physical cards, especially if you have a core message on it.
Consider adding your digital card's QR code to the back of your physical card, next to your core message. Then use the digital card that pops up to expand from The Filter into other aspects of your core messaging - The Story Hook and The Argument.
That way you can immediately grab someone's attention with the clarity and conciseness of your core message, engage them emotionally with your story, and move to them to action with a persuasive argument for why they should work with you.
One-two punch!
Networking with Messaging
Your business card can be a powerful tool for making lasting impressions and building relationships. By including your Core Message, you're offering something far more valuable than just your contact information: you're giving people a reason to connect with you.
And that is what will make your business card a keepsake rather than a throwaway.
So next time you're ordering a batch of business cards, think beyond your name and contact information. Add your Core Message and make your card a true asset for your personal or professional brand.
In this digital age, let's use business cards not just as a way to exchange information, but as a way to establish real connections.
For more insights into Core Messaging and how it can transform your business, visit our in-depth articles and programs at Clarity Up.
And to learn how to get more people to ASK for your business card, grab a copy of my book Three New People: Make the Most of Your Daily Interactions and Stop Missing Amazing Opportunities.
There's an entire chapter on networking that deals specifically with business cards, and it's worth its weight in gold.
Happy networking!
