Never Be Caught Cardless Again: Five Tips to Help You Remember Business Cards


Sorry, I Don't Seem to Have a Business Card With Me...

Those could be the "famous last words" of the forgetful entrepreneur.

If you habitually find yourself without a business card, you're habitually losing money; or at least the chance of making money. Your business card, more than any other marketing weapon in your arsenal, is what prospects and colleagues rely upon to remind them why they should do business with you.

Forgetting a business card is a marketing mistake of significant proportions. We're so inundated with advertising messages that most of us learn to tune them out. Yet every time you're asked for a business card, and sheepishly reply that you don't have one with you, you're missing an honest-to-goodness invitation to market to someone.

Worse, leaving your business card behind when you may need it is a social faux pas as well.

Being asked for a business card is a compliment. Not having one with you at that critical moment is subtly offensive. It puts both you and the person requesting the card in an embarrassing situation. And it nonverbally tells your prospect that you're not quite the business person they thought. You're not really serious about your business, or too careless and forgetful to be entrusted with theirs.

If you're determined not to be caught "cardless" at a critical meeting again, here are some tips to help you remember:

Develop a strategy for using business cards to actively promote your business

It may be as simple as deciding to give 5 or 10 cards away every day. It may mean printing labels describing your current promotion, sticking them to the back of your cards, and pinning them to bulletin boards. Whatever! The point is that if you consciously figure out a way to use your business cards to bring in business, you're much less likely to forget them.

Invest in new cards

If you haven't ordered business cards within the past two years, there's a good chance that the information or photo is out of date by now. And if your last order was for 1000 cards and there are still 990 cards left, ask yourself why you haven't been passing them out. If it's because you dislike the cards, pitch them and get business cards you're proud of!

Draft and practice a business card presentation

Unless you're comfortable and confident when handing out your card, you won't do it. Besides, the words and actions that accompany your business card when you give it to someone can really cement a positive first impression.

Invest in a quality business card case, one that you're proud to show off and to use

Business card cases can be conversation starters in and of themselves, since there are so many unusual, classic and artistic choices available. I suggest investing in a few cases; a more professional, elegant case for formal business occasions and a flashy or fun holder for social situations.

Tuck a few business cards everywhere

Your car's glove compartment. Your briefcase. Your gym bag. Your wife's purse. Next to the front door on the table where you keep your keys. Your desk drawer. Your secretary's desk. The pocket of your coat. Your suitcase. Never leave home without them!

About The Author

Recent advances in online technology allow you design business cards online in your web browser. No special downloads, no hidden costs, easy WYSIWYG design. Choose from thousands of photographic quality backgrounds. Browse one of the web's largest collection of business card networking articles and learn how to make your cards a powerful marketing weapon.

More Resources

The $500.00 A Month Plan
One way to make extra money or start a business of your own is by placing advertising which will pay a good profit. Selling printed information by mail can br financially rewarding.
Custom T-shirts -- Put Your Company Logo on Cotton!
An effective way to gain company recognition is to order custom t-shirts with your company name, logo, phone number, and other important information on them. You can use customized apparel to outfit your employees as well as to contribute a sense of professionalism and reliability to your company.
Business Plan Appeal - Five Rules For Writing Attention Grabbing Headlines
The success of a business plan stands or falls on its ability to get potential investors to take a moment to read it. Nothing works better for doing this than well-written headlines designed to interrupt and engage investors.
5 Reasons Why Headlines Are Crucial To Your Website's Success
Without a powerful headline, your message stands little chance of being noticed in an increasingly competitive marketplace. If your headline doesn't capture attention and pull prospects into your sales copy, than your marketing effort is a total waste of energy and resources.
LED Score Boards
LED scoreboards can be utilized in most of the sporting event for eye-catching effects replace traditional scoreboards. This high- tech lighting system is both energy - efficient and able to produce a very bright light.
Radio and Television Ads: Clever Vs. Annoying
Ever heard or seen a radio or television commercial that you really liked and actually looked forward to hearing or seeing again only to be assaulted by another one so annoying it made you want to heave your radio or television out the window?What makes one commercial so enjoyable while others seem to be so abysmal? It's all in the ability to make the listener or viewer remember the ad in a creative, clever way and I'm about to give you some advice on how to do just that so read on!One of the most successful ways of creating clever ads is to add humor. Unfortunately that's not an easy thing to do as you have probably heard or seen many commercials try and fail.
16 Methods for Getting Free Advertising
1. Place copies of your circular on bulletin boards throughout your community, such as in coin-operated laundries, grocery stores, barber shops, etc.
Testing Headlines
A correspondent to AdBriefing, my monthly newsletter, has posed a very sticky question. How, she asks, can you tell whether a headline you have written is a good one?or not? What she means by this, I imagine, is whether the headline will actually help to make sales, rather than just act as a passing amusement to its readers.
Choosing a Print Mail Dealer
"Print & Mail is a type of service that is popular among small mail order operators. It is an inexpensive way to get your ad material printed and mailed to people.
10 Simple Techniques To Make Your Ad Get Powerful Attention
1. Make your ad's keywords and phrases standoutby enlarging the text.
Write Attention Getting Advertisements
The most important aspect of any business is selling the product or service. Without sales, you aren't generating any income and your business will die.
Driving Customers to You - Your Car as a Marketing Vehicle
You can turn your vehicle into a rolling advertisement. Costs start at just a few dollars, and you can put your business name, slogan, phone number and web site URL in front of thousands of potential customers while you are driving along the freeway, stuck in traffic or even while you are parked.
Is there anything new under the sun? Heres how to find out if your bright idea is unique.
"There's nothing new under the sun" is probably the one phrase no inventor wants to hear, seldom believes, and is always trying to prove wrong. However, moving too quickly to prototype stage and first disclosure can turn out to be costly for the inventor who doesn't take the time to find out if his or her invention is already patented.
How To Create Instantly Compelling Ads Every Time
Use This Quick 3-Question Evaluation Process, So You Can Be Sure Your Message Will Sell!EVALUATION #1: "Well, I Would Hope So!" When you make a claim, don't think about it in terms of words coming out of your mouth. Think of it in terms of words entering your prospects ears.
How to Get People to Read Your Ads Like CRAZY!
Rule One :- The HeadlineThe headline should summarize the whole offer. It should grab the eye, and make you want to read the subheading.
Persistant Advertising Will Do No Harm!
From my experience, I've been on many discussion groups and have spoken to many other like minded people. The one topic that always seems to arise is how to get massive sales right away.
Do I Need Raised Letter or Full Color Business Cards?
If you've been searching around for business cards that will best represent the image you want to portray for your business, then you've no doubt encountered many options. The Big Two, as I like to think of them, are "Raised Letter" and "Full Color.
Ten Secrets for Getting FREE Advertising
The opportunities for getting free advertising for yourproduct or services are only limited by your imagination andenergy. There are so many proven ways to promote withoutcost it's truly mind-boggling! Here are ten proven methods.
Create Your Dynamic Elevator Speech
So, what's an elevator speech, and how do you get one?What Is It?An elevator speech is a short (15-30 second, 150 word) sound bite that succinctly and memorably introduces you. It spotlights your uniqueness.
Take Your Radio Ads to the Next Level
Most small businesses do not have a high poweredadvertising agency to produce award-winning radiocommercials for them. Most award-winning radiocommercials win for the wrong reasons anyway.

More Advertising Information:

Related Articles

Is there anything new under the sun? Heres how to find out if your bright idea is unique.
"There's nothing new under the sun" is probably the one phrase no inventor wants to hear, seldom believes, and is always trying to prove wrong. However, moving too quickly to prototype stage and first disclosure can turn out to be costly for the inventor who doesn't take the time to find out if his or her invention is already patented.
Five Characteristics of Highly Successful Advertising
Have you ever spent a small fortune on advertising that generated disappointment rather than sales?Many small business owners have been down the road of flat advertising results and are at a loss when it comes to developing new ideas to improve the response to their ads.Whether you run ads in your local newspaper, your industry's top periodical or on-line, you need your investment in advertising to pay for itself, and then some, in order to justify its cost.
10 Tips to Use Giveaways Effectively
Walk around any trade or consumer show and you will be able to collect a bag full of advertising specialties, or giveaway items all designed to promote. But look a little more closely.
Advertising: 10 Powerful Secrets To Help You Sell Your Ad Space Like Crazy
If you want to sell more ad spaces, you must read and use the secrets I am revealing here:1. Give your customers a discount when they spendover a certain dollar amount for ad space.
LED Moving Message Displays
LED's are becoming more and more popular in all kinds of lighting fixtures. For simpler, slimmer design, moving message displays utilize Light Emitting Diodes (LED's) as the display technology.
Testimonials Convert Prospects Into Buyers
Big businesses get instant credibility with their well-known company name or brand name. But small companies have to create their own credibility.
16 Ways to Make Your Business Cards Unforgettable
Every time you hear someone say "May I have one of your business cards?" you should get excited. I know I do.
Online Advertising: 10 High Impact Psychological Triggers To Super-Charge Your Ad
If you knew these 10 high impact insider's hidden psychological triggers and plug them into your Ad and website content,you can empower them and ignite a tornado of sales at your website.Read, understand and use them and burst open the floodgate of sales.
Write Attention Getting Advertisements
The most important aspect of any business is selling the product or service. Without sales, you aren't generating any income and your business will die.
Outdoor Sign
Many business organizations that needs to disseminate late-breaking information to a large number of people. Out door sign boards are the perfect solution for them that command the attention of all who pass underneath.
Tips for Using Paid Advertising
Quite a few business out there can't survive without some type of advertising and/or brand recognition, so advertising your business is one of the most important aspects in running certain types of business. It's also one of the most frequently asked questions for "how to".
The SKINNY on Newspaper Advertising
The SKINNY on NewspapersUsing the paper is considered gospel by manypeople in business. Use it wisely and it can be agood tool.
Promotional Vehicles
It is difficult to miss a Hummer, but how many companies could afford to run one to promote their business? The answer is, of course, very few and it is doubtful whether GM's overgrown offspring would be the most suitable promotional vehicle for many of them. What then are the alternatives and how could businesses benefit from using a vehicle as an advertising medium?What is a promotional vehicle?A promotional vehicle is a car, truck or SUV with purpose-designed adhesive vinyl graphics applied to its exterior, promoting a business or one of its products or services.
Advertising Through Moms
Moms have a very powerful influence on what their families eat, drink, wear, do, and buy. Moms are not only the driving force behind their families, but also the economy.
Good Design Makes Good Sense
Organized your pencils and pens lately? Sorted your clothes into a logical system in your drawers? Then you already understand the basic elements of good design: it's practical, it's systematic, and it makes life easier.In the same way, marketing materials that use good design make business easier for your customers.
The Inside Secrets Of Free Publicity For Your Business
Product publicity is the "secret pathway" to business success everyone wants. In simple terms, product publicity is a kind of advertising that costs you nothing, yet brings in the orders for you.
2005 Super Bowl Ads... Winners and Losers
Well, Super Bowl XXXIX is history. Too bad for the folks who consider themselves the always-pullin'-for-the-underdog type.
Why People Fail in Mail Order
Mail order is a very complicated business. Every phase must beplanned, analyzed and tested.
How You Measure Yourself Is How You Motivate Yourself
One of the keys to strong positive mental attitude is what you compare your personal performance to. Do you compare your sales results to the top producer in your industry? Do you compare your basketball playing ability to Michael Jordan? Do you compare your last presentation to a speech delivered by Ronald Reagan or JFK? Or do you compare your results today, to those you had yesterday? Sports, sales, and the media teach us to compare our success against that of others, living or dead.
The Not-So-Hidden Persuaders: The Power of The Media Upon Us All
In 1957, a perspicacious young journalist from Pennsylvania named Vance Packard wrote a book called The Hidden Persuaders. It was meant to explain to the public at large why they buy the products they do and to warn them about the psychological aspects of consumer appeal that lie beneath the levels of consciousness.