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WARNING: The Problem with Online Business Card Design

The days of having to go to your local print shop to get another stack of business cards are long gone.

Today, they’re available all over the internet.

One search on google, in fact, delivers a virtual shopping mall of business card designers and printers, one with a bigger, more grandiose selection of business card designs than the next.

And the cost? Boy are they cheap.

Some companies are even offering their basic business cards for free, charging nothing more than shipping and handling. The premium varieties are affordable as well.

Did I forget to mention that they arrive quickly too? Well they do. Which means ordering business cards online isn’t just affordable – it’s convenient too.

Now before this starts sounding too much like a promotion for online business card design, I should stop myself.

Because this is certainly not that. Actually, it’s more of a warning.

You see, there’s a major, major drawback to online business card design and I think business owners lose a lot of potential clients because of it.

I know, I know, that sounds a little dramatic. But hear me out…

Have you ever gone to one of these websites to order business cards?

Well if you have, then you know how it generally works.

1. You start by choosing an industry.
2. Then you look at a few, or a few dozen templates that do indeed look nice.
3. So, you choose one of them.
4. And then you fill in a form that asks you for your name, title, company name, address, website, phone number, yada, yada, yada, and then you hit submit and boom there’s your business card – ready to go to print.

What just happened?

Well if you ask me, anyone who goes through this process ends up with a very typical… unoriginal… unengaging… formulaic… forgettable business card that looks pretty good, but doesn’t really say much about your company and will never really make all that much of an impression.

Boy, that was a mouthful (and possibly a run-on).

But it makes sense doesn’t it?

You see, business cards are supposed to make a powerful, positive and lasting impression on someone. Someone who could one day make you a little — or a whole lot — of money.

And we’re not just talking about one person; we’re talking about a lot of them. Because after all, the average business owner will hand out hundreds to thousands of business cards over their lifetime.

So why settle for something typical and forgettable?

Why not make a bigger more powerful statement that has more of a chance of converting a prospect into a client?

Look, I think ordering business cards online is a wonderful thing. If you recall, that’s how I began this article – with all of the things I love about this affordable, flexible, simple, and convenient option.

I just think entrepreneurs need to understand that entering a few details into a template renders your business card a lot less effective than it could be.

Most of these websites have custom business card builders (or the option to upload your unique design) as an alternative to the “pick and click” template route.

So sure, keep ordering your business cards online! Just think twice about what your business card needs to say to make the best possible impression… and make you the most money.

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Alan Saltz is a small business marketing consultant, copywriter, author, and expert on great business cards. For more powerful business card ideas and examples, and to discover how to transform a weak business card into a winner visit http://www.BusinessCardProfits.com.

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