Is Your Business Card Hurting Your Business


By Bernice Ross

If you have bought into the practice of "image or personal marketing," it's time to take a fresh look at what today's consumer really wants. The 80's and 90's were the decades of image and personal marketing. Marketing experts advised Realtors® to prospect using a personal brochure. "Tell the consumer about how many houses you sold. Use your glamour shot that illustrates how professional you look and don't forget to include it on your business card as well." What seemed like a good idea ten years ago can be the kiss of death in today's consumer oriented environment. Increasing your business in this environment may call for a quantum shift in your approach. A simple place to begin is by changing your business card. If you want a business card that actually attracts business, follow the five tips listed below.

1. Is there a picture on the card?
Can you name one other profession outside the real estate industry that places pictures of its sales force on its business cards? I've asked this question at numerous seminars and the answers are the same—insurance agents and used car salespeople. If our industry wants to break away from the "one-step-above-a-used-car-salesman" image, we should follow the lead set by Fortune 500 businesses. Their business cards provide the name of the company, the individual's name, and their contact information. There are NO pictures. To illustrate why your picture is not that important, can you name the person who won the academy award for best actress three years ago? Even when the person's name and picture has been in front of you repeatedly, most people still have a hard time remembering. The same is true with your business card. The people you meet will decide whether they want to work with you while you are face-to-face. If you didn't make a great impression in person, how is your card going to make any difference? A better approach is to print separate business cards for each of your listings. Use a picture of the listing on one side, a brief property description, and your website and phone number on the back. Sellers will love the idea and it makes you stand out from other agents who still use their own photos to market their services. Most importantly, people who see your card will understand immediately that you're about helping people market their property rather than marketing you.

2. Is the contact information readable?
As an agent, you have access to business cards from other Realtors®. For the next two weeks, collect as many as possible and/or check the ones you may already have on file. Now look at the cards. How many have such a small font that you can barely read the print, even with your glasses (if you wear glasses)? Because the agent’s picture takes up so much space, a small font is necessary in order to cram in the agent's contact information. One agent summed it up like this: "Our prices are so high that almost anyone who can afford to buy properties in our area is wearing bifocals." With up to 40 percent of today's listing market composed of the 55+ crowd, making your phone number and email address easy to read is critical.

3. How many phone numbers are on the cards you collected?
In most cases, the agents will have a cell phone, home phone, office phone, and fax number. How do you know which number you're supposed to call? Instead of listing multiple numbers, include your fax number and one primary number where clients can reach you. Remember, if someone is calling you from your business card, most people will have little patience trying to track down which number is correct.

4. Your website address
If you're using your name as your website address, consider shifting your primary web address to a function. For example, if you work a geographical farm, create a web address that incorporates the name of the area you farm: for example, InglebrookHomes.com or WestlakeHeightsCondos.com. If you serve a specific niche based upon a profession or a specific market segment, use that as your web address. Examples include LakesideSeniorHomes.com or DenverHomes4Teachers.com. Also, remember to use your print advertising to direct people to your website or to call your 800 Call Capture system.

5. Your email address
One of the most irritating and costly mistakes an agent can make on a business card is having a difficult-to-remember and/or difficult-to-type email address. When existing or potential clients make errors in typing your email address, important communications may not reach you. Furthermore, people lose business cards all the time. (Since the first of the year, how many business cards have you tossed or been unable to find when you needed them?) Having an easy-to-remember email address is critical. This means keeping it simple with no dashes, strange numbers, or difficult-to-spell names. In addition, instead of using Yahoo, AOL, or some other ISP in your email address, print up new cards with an email address at your website. For example, instead of using YourName@Yahoo.com, shift to YourName@YourWebsite.com. This sends a clear message to today's Internet-based consumer that you're in touch with today's marketing environment.

Remember, making the connection is the name of the game when it comes to converting leads into closed business. Make your business cards about the consumer and watch how many more leads you generate.


More Resources

Print Advertising: Knowing What To Put In Your Ads
So you've decided to run a print ad in your local newspaper. The paper may have even told you they could produce the artwork for you if you just tell them what should be in the ad.
Graphical LED Display
Graphical LED Displays utilize high-resolution graphics and video to transmit the information. You will find them sited in world's great cosmopolitan cities.
The Seven Second Race: How to Draw Attention Your Ad
You've decided to launch your advertising campaign but you have no idea what would inspire others to buy from you. Or maybe you've already run some ads to no avail.
Magnetic Business Cards: Make Your Marketing Message Stick
What is it about magnets that draw people to leave them on fridges and file cabinets for years at a time?Many people like to have the contact information handy for common service providers without flipping through a bulky phone book. Magnets are the perfect solution for being seen in this situation.
How To Tell If An Advertisement Costs Too Much
People say it all the time: "This advertising costs too much!" They practically go into cardiac arrest when they see how much the advertising for certain media in certain markets is going to cost them. It is pretty easy to get sticker shock when you see that a sixty-second radio commercial on a popular Los Angeles station could cost you a thousand bucks.
Is Your Yellow Pages Ad Putting Cash in Your Pocket... or Sucking Cash Out?
Any idea? It's a question that more than a few Yellow Page advertisers ponder. If you are currently spending money every month to run an ad in your local directory, you don't want to wrestle with that question.
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.
Online Classifieds
Choosing a Classified Website and creating your advertisements.The internet has opened a vast number of doors for people to market their products and services.
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.
Hiring an Amateur Could Mean a Potential Lawsuit for Your Business
These days, everyone's looking to save a buck. But if you plan to cut corners by using a fledgling copywriter or marketer, expect to put the money you just saved towards a really good lawyer.
Do Your Adverts Get You More Sales?
Philadelphia retailer and US Postmaster General, John Wanamaker, once said, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half."If you're spending $10,000 a month on advertising $5,000 is going straight down the tubes.
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.
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.
Direct Response Advertising; Radio vs TV
Radio advertising vs. television advertisingMany new advertisers assume that they should start on radio and "move up" sometime later to TV.
What To Do With Your Business Cards
Without a plan to distribute your cards, there'sno need to print them in the first place.Many fall into the trap of thinking all thethinking about business cards is over once theorder is placed.
Bad Seduction - Advertising Techniques That Dont Work
I just read some advertising suggestions on an Internet marketing site that are beyond annoying. They are flat-out bad advice.
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.
Creativity and Getting Outside of the Box
Sitting in front of a blank piece of paper? Wondering where in the world to start? I have a suggestion. Turn the page upside down.
Super Secret Tip For Using PPC Search Engine Advertising Successfully
It's not about traffic; it's about generating leads.That's right.
How To Track Your Advertising Like A Hawk
Tired of pouring endless money into advertising? Do you wonder which ads are "REALLY" working for the business you manage? Would you like a bullet-proof system for capturing the results from your advertising and marketing? Below are three concepts that will enable you to track your advertising and marketing like a hawk! Really, it's that simple!Developing a tracking system: As a business owner/executive/manager, you need an efficient way to record and evaluate the results from your advertising and marketing programs. To get started, you will need a "prospect card" which includes a list of ALL the places you advertise and market your company.

More Advertising Information:

Related Articles

3 Simple But Powerful Off-Line Advertising Strategies
There are several ways to advertise and get the word out about your business online and the best of them include f-ree search engines, pay per click search engines, writing articles, utilizing press releases, doing joint ventures/ad co-ops, and posting to message boards and forums related to your target market.But one advertising method that's neglected by most online marketers is off-line advertising.
Seven Ways to Waste Your Money on Yellow Pages Advertising
Each year there is a Yellow Pages arms race where competitors in each category are encouraged to out spend each other. There is only one winner in this arms race, and it is not you! Too many advertisers waste their money on Yellow Pages advertising without first considering their marketing strategy.
Dont Put All Your Eggs in The Same Basket
Solution: You can protect yourself by partnering with other lead sources because it is unlikely that they will all have a problem or technical issue at the same time.Other alternative: It doesn't hurt either to use a few marketing tools to generate leads for your business.
Prove It! - Give Your Marketing and Advertising More Credibility
Your marketing and advertising won't be effective if your potential customers don't believe the claims you make. So how can you prove your that you can do what you say you can?Tone it down.
Improve Your Promotional Flyers And Improve Sales
Admittedly, I have not seen your advertising flyer. Then again, I probably don't have to.
If You're Tired Of Adverts That Don't Work And Letters That Don't Sell, Then You Must Read This
Over the 32 years I've been involved in sales, marketing and management, I've discovered that there are two fatal marketing mistakes made by business owners.
The Secrets To Successful Radio Advertising
Ask some businesses about radio advertising and they'll tell you it's the greatest investment they ever made while others will tell you it was a complete waste of time and money. So why does radio work for some and not for others? What's the secret to successful radio advertising?Know this: Radio can be a major player in your advertising mix if you know how to do it and I'm about to give you the secrets to successful radio advertising so read on.
Yellow Pages Ads - Buying Secrets
Yellow Pages Ads - Buying SecretsOK- let's agree that many businesses can benefit greatly from Yellow Pages advertising. Let's also agree that few businesses enjoy paying for this "necessary evil".
Too Much Build-Up: Over-Zealous Ad Copy Can Break The Sale
How many times has this happened to you?A friend recommends a film that just came out: "You've GOT to see this movie! It's SO (funny, scary, suspenseful, etc.).
Small Cards, Big Ideas: Alternative Uses for Business Cards
Aggressive business card marketing isn't about handing your business cards out to everyone you see.The card itself must have a new use, an innovative design, or something other than the usual contact information printed on it.
How to Write Ads that Increase Your Business
I caught myself wracking my brain over what kind of article I should write for newspapers that would be useful to business people. It struck me that I was making a solid effort to get into the mind of my target market.
Create Your Own Business Cards, Part 1
In this lesson, we will create a business card, using Microsoft Word. I created a new template for my business card.
Direct Mail Catalogs & Brochures: Write Captions That Sell
Many prospects skim through catalogs and brochures, glancing at the photos and reading the accompanying captions only when a particular image arouses their interest. That's when you have their attention.
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.
Promote yourself on radio for free
Unless you have become extremely popular in your personal or business name, you likely need all of the marketing and promotion you can get. Now, you may say, of course, I'm aware of this, but who has the money? This a good and fair question.
Top Jingle Companies: What to Look For, What to Expect
The internet offers you the opportunity to seek out jingle companies and listen to their jingle samples online. Your success depends upon a thorough evaluation of as many companies as possible.
Why Hire an Advertising/Marketing Consultant?
As a business owner, you have the option of taking several different approaches to handling your Marketing and Advertising. You may choose to handle the responsibility yourself, with the idea that no one understands your business quite the way you do.
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.
Reach vs. Frequency: Touch 100 Once or 25 Four Times?
Reach and frequency are terms generally used when planning advertising campaigns. However, the concept of reach and frequency applies to any promotional activity you undertake: direct mail, direct selling, and even networking.
Brand Young and You Brand for Life; Why Cinema Advertising is an Effective Tools for Marketers
In the world of advertising there are many forms of media that can be utilized to get an advertisers message to its intended audience. Newspapers, television, radio, Internet and billboards are effective tools in this effort but one form of advertising that is often overlooked is Cinema Advertising.