1. Use HIGH-Resolution Images
When designing business cards, it is crucial to use high-resolution images…and I really mean that. If you use low-resolution images, you’ll end up with a business card that looks pixelated and has grainy images throughout it – and that’s not a good look.
Depending on screen size, computers usually display images around 72DPI (Dots Per Inch), and this is way too low for printed media. If you were to print an image that is 72DPI on paper, it would be very grainy looking.
With business cards, you will want to use images that are at least 300DPI for photos, or 600DPI for logos and artwork. This will ensure your images look nice and crisp every time.
If you’re designing your business card using Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, or Illustrator, you can designate the size of the card in inches and specify the Pixels/Inch (DPI) that you would like to use, which makes it really easy.
2. Don’t Make The Text Too Small
People often design their first business card on their computer without zooming out to check text font sizes. This is dangerous because more often than not, they end up with a card where the text is so small, its unreadable. And that’s when you end up putting your brand new business cards straight in the bin.
Remember, a standard business card is only 90mm x 50mm in size. The text needs to be fairly large to be readable by most people, especially those with eyesight difficulties.
Every time you make a change to your design, remember to zoom out to see what it would look like once printed.
3. Ensure There Is High Contrast Between Colours
Colours on computer screens look quite different to printed colour. Monitors mix intensities of red, green, and blue to create colour, but print media uses four or more different coloured inks to create the right colour. Also, your computer screen always shows colours at the optimum lighting levels.
4. Use Call-To-Actions (Seriously!)
You use call-to-actions (CTA) in your email signature, your website, and most other marketing material, so why not in your business cards?
There are plenty of creative ways to use call to actions in business cards, such as:
“Get 10% off your next order by mentioning this card.”
or if you wanted to be even more creative, place this at the bottom of your business card is really small font:
“If you can read this, well done. This gives you a 15% discount on all store items.”
Don’t be afraid to experiment and add CTA’s to your card to see which ones convert the best.