Business Card Misery, Printsmadeeasy.com

About six months ago I designed my first business cards and was pretty happy with them. Sent the designs off to the printer and a few days later had my first set of real business cards. Printed on a sturdy 15pt stock, full color and glossy on both sides with a pretty accurate trim.

That was with OverNightPrints.com - I was happy with the service, the quality and the price. I paid about $20 with two discount codes. One for free shipping and one for $10 off the order. $20 for 250 nicely done business cards seemed good to me.

Well, one of the business ideas I had which was what the cards were for had been set aside. So I had to get new business cards that are more personal and not quite focused on a project but more on the services I can provide.

I decided I would give a different company a shot and hopefully get a little higher quality (not that there was anything wrong with the first company). This time around I went with PrintsMadeEasy.com

Their website was a little off putting but from what I had read from around the internet, they did a good job with their prints. OverNightPrints.com had some negative feedback around the internet, thus the reason for trying someone else.

So I designed a new card and sent it off. This card would be more widely used so I figured I would need a few more. I ordered 300 and forgot about a big no-no rule. Unless they have been proven, test the waters first, then order the bulk.

300 really isn’t all that much but 100 would have been cheaper. With shipping I spent right around $55. So almost 3x more than the previous company for 50 more cards. A few days later the cards show up and I was so disappointed!

The print quality was poor and the stock used was flimsy and cheap. To make it worse, I assumed they did front & back glossy but was wrong so the back had no gloss coating. The cut job was done well but other than that I was not happy. Even the gloss coating was poor compared to the previous printer.

So back to OverNightPrints.com I go! I sent in the new designs today and only ordered 100 cards since I have 300 cards to waste…

Sorry PrintsMadeEasy.com but your stock used was cheap and flimsy, print quality was lower & gloss wasn’t as glossy. OverNightPrints.com congrats! Looks like you have a returning customer! Thick, strong stock that gives the cards a solid quality feel, print quality was sharp and gloss was fantastic on both sides.

Creating your own embossed business cards and oh yeah starting your own business.

First of all, let me state that the list offered here: 137-ways-to-increase-your-productivity

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is truly great. I think you’ll love it. I am also starting a new business that caters to non-profits. It could also cater to profit taking companies too. I wanted to start by getting a decent web site which I did with brelsforddesigns.com It isn’t that great, it just is and that is a good start. Im using the new word press them k2rc and liking it so far. I am offering very inexpensive outsourced IT for Non-Profits. Most non-profits don’t really have a budget period. They work on Grants and barely have an office if any. With these constraints they will need someone to help get them started and in the right direction. That is where I come in. I will be offering web design, graphical arts and IT consultation to leadership. This will make their lives much easier while starting their non-profit and help them focus on what is important, the mission. The next thing I wanted to do was get a decent business card. I found a good link on how to make my own embossed business cards but I don’t think I’m going to go down that path. instructables.com

I don’t really mind that someone else is doing that but I really don’t think I have the time. He/she hasn’t quite perfected yet either so we’ll see what happens with that DIY. I may just find someone that does an embossed card and have them print it.The other thing that I found pertaining to starting my own business was a great and very FREE Online books site. It is really great with the MOPED edition of their online service I can send free of charge invoices to clients via email and have them pay me via my paypal account. http://www.freshbooks.com/pricing.php One of the other great sites that I found that I think is worth mentioning again is http://www.stevepavlina.com He has some fantastic material and has been blogging about it for a very long time. I would give him a shot. Really like him and http://www.erinpavlina.com/ I hope that others of you find some more interesting articles out there or blogs. Other ways to help your family stay sane and earn a little more income. My wife recently started doing readings on kasamba.com She hasn’t really done anything with it yet but I’ll keep you posted.

Running Websites With WordPress?

Aside from my work in the blogging world, I sometimes accept web development work on the side, such as the Parish website I recently helped launch, in collaboration with a designer colleague. I’ve also helped out my daughter’s preschool in running their own site and email system. And there have been a few organizations I’ve lent a hand to in this matter.

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In all of these cases, the common denominator is the use of WordPress as the content management system. I’m sure there’s not much need to explain why. Being used to running WordPress on an entire blog/new media network, it’s almost like second nature to me. So preparing the hosting account, installing the software, uploading themes and plugins, and actually setting up and maintaining a site running WordPress is something that I’m very much comfortable with. Actually it can be a no-brainer with the easy install scripts (i.e., Fantastico) that come with most hosting packages. A few clicks and a few lines of typed-in information and you’re good to go with a basic install.

I tend to think that others share this sentiment with me. A quick Google search for “inurl:wp-login.php” will yield all indexed sites running WordPress, and some of these will not actually be in blog format, but instead websites and e-zines belonging to companies and organizations. A search for “site:.gov inurl:wp-login.php”, for instance, will show you that a number of US government organizations and local governemnt units running WP on their official websites.

Another observation of mine is that WordPress theme designers are coming up with themes and theme packages aimed at users who want to run a WordPress-powered site that is not necessarily in a blog format. For instance, there’s the Revolution Theme and WP Remix. Then there are those for users who intend to run magazine-like themes like Premium News and Zine Style. (Disclosure: WP Remix and Premium News are advertisers on the Blog Herald.)

So there is a market for WP themes not aimed at the blogging community, but rather for other entities such as corporations or businesses, or perhaps people running traditional publications. This only goes to show that easy-to use back-end software goes a long way. If there are others using WordPress for non-blogging purposes, I’d love to hear how you do it!

Online Presence & Why You Need it… and business cards?

Part One, which talks about why you need an online presence discusses the basics of online identity:
A few months ago I read an insightful article about how more and more job recruiters are putting a heavy emphasis on applicants’ online presence. By online presence, I am essentially referring to how active one is on the web - personal websites, blogs, published articles, activities on programming forums, etcetera. That same article detailed how recruiters hiring in technical positions would ignore applicants that while fully-qualified, lack the online presence that someone with their skills should have. If you’re a Ruby on Rails programmer, there’s no better way to show your passion for the framework by blogging about it, publishing tips and guides or simply helping others work with it. Companies will easily be able to see that, which definitely helps out during the interviewing and selection process.

While I don’t really have a personal website right now (I do own some domains, but nothing I’ve really used for that purpose) - I can attest to the success of having a strong online presence. I’ve secured 4 client gigs - just this year so far - through my various online presence points (Bryghtpath, Telegraphik, Twitter, and LinkedIn).

Owning your name - your name as your domain, that is - is critical. Ask Shel Israel how that’s been working out for him.

The second part shows Paul’s business cards and talks a bit about how they can help extend your online presence into the real world:
As a pseudo-followup to my post about establishing an online identity, I want to talk about creating your in-real-life (IRL) brand. Meeting people at business networking mixers, tech events and conferences is a lot like trying to pick up a girl at a bar. You need to sell yourself in the minute after you shake hands. Talk to anyone that frequents such networking events and they’ll tell you most people forget each others’ names immediately unless they have met before. That’s why you need to give them something to go home with – your business card. It gives people something do to after they get home be it visit your site, check out your company, email you or add you as a contact on LinkedIn/Facebook.

When we set out to create Bryghtpath LLC - we used the services of LogoWorks to create our corporate logo, letterhead, and design our business cards. It wasn’t cheap - but they did a great job helping us establish our online identity. Chris Jennings was then able to take their design concepts and create our online look & feel.

The same design can be applied to your business cards as well - as a nice real world way to extend your online presence.

World’s First Live Author Coaching Event Creates Impact

According to David Hancock, CEO of Morgan James Publishing, it takes the average person 100 formal book proposal submissions only to get a publisher to say ‘no’. Many submissions go unanswered, and many publishers disallow simultaneous submissions. This typically increases the time it takes for a book to get into print.

Although acceptance with a major New York publisher normally takes dozens of rejections, for internet marketer and affiliation expert Ken McArthur, it happened quickly. His proposal got him the coveted “yes” after only a handful of submissions. When Career Press accepted the proposal for his debut book, he was faced with the challenge of actually writing the book to meet a deadline less than four months away. His book, already available on Amazon.com and Target.com, is part of the publisher’s spring 2008 catalog of releases.

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He sought coaching from Glenn Dietzel and his team at Awakened LLC for assistance with the writing and business development process. Dietzel created the world’s first live author coaching event in order to let subscribers listen in and follow along with his complete authoring system.

Participants in the live author coaching program, called “Books Mean Credibility,” have access to the weekly coaching sessions plus other educational materials to help them author their own books for as long as they stay in the program. Those who follow the same steps McArthur took can write their own lead generating book and build a business around it. Dietzel and his team are teaching McArthur how to properly position his book as a lead generator for the business he is building around it.

Robert Kiyosaki, creator of the Cashflow Game and the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series, said that his book is his best business card. Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator of the popular Chicken Soup for the Soul series, stated that the best lead generator is a book. McArthur’s book, now in the hands of his publisher, is designed to be entrepreneurially sound so that it naturally leads readers into a deeper relationship with the author and his material.

Impact: How to Get Noticed, Motivate Millions, and Get Noticed in A Noisy World reveals the key strategies used by some of the most influential people in the world. These people create a measurable effect on millions of people. Stories of well known and ordinary individuals alike illustrate vital impact strategies. Readers learn a simple, strategic system to get attention for their most important messages.

The most successful authors do much more than sell books. Royalties are incidental income as compared with what they generate from income streams such as speaker fees, workshops, home study programs, coaching programs, consulting fees, and other products and services.

McArthur’s book is merely the introduction for a full range of products and services. Even before the book is available, he is building an online Impact community called The Impact Factor. Concurrent with the launch of the book in May, McArthur will offer a coaching program and other services. He has designed the online community so that anyone who refers a sale earns a commission. Now that McArthur’s book is complete the live weekly calls, also available for download to subscribers, reveal traffic generation and other business development strategies. It remains to be seen just how far McArthur will take this venture.

Ten, they can! (if they want)

Mozilla can deploy a fix for any security bug reported under responsible disclosure in “Ten Fucking Days”, according to Mike Shaver.

RSnake, the recipient of this claim written black on white over a business card, sounds quite skeptic.
But I can see it happening.

I’ve seen many security patches which couldn’t wait (i.e. cats out of the bag), being developed and reviewed in 3-4 days.
In a famous recent case, even in 2 days.
Counting the Q/A needed before deploying an automatic update, 10 days is a feasible goal.


The key word here is can’t wait: responsible disclosure, according to some schools of thought at least, may weaken the “can’t wait” perception, and the management of other bugs in the past may be seen as supporting this theory.

We’ll see if Window Snyder is going to seize all the business cards from Shaver’s pockets, or if “a certain someone will be working remotely from an undisclosed location for a few weeks“.

But this public statement, no matter how much bold, is a good thing, because I know Mozilla can really live to this promise.

Good Deals on Business Cards

I know I have a few businessmen and women who read this blog. Thanks! I like to think of myself as voice for frugal moms. I try to pay attention to trends and deals. It can be quite a symbiotic relationship, too. Sometimes I come across some ideas and bargains for businesses, too. I, after all, am an entrepreneur as well!

One thing that tickles me is when a business I’ve dealt with sends me a “personal” card. Not one that screams “Do business with me!” but an anniversary card or a birthday card. It’s kind of cute, and it is a nice personal touch. It makes me think that the business I’ve dealt with wants to continue to do business with me, and wants my loyalty. That’s cool.

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Soooo…. I have a little realated tip for you! It’s business birthday cards from The Gallery Collection! The cards are so sweet! They are very popular with some major corporations, too. You can check out the card company here. The company, family-owned by Prudent Publishing Company, was established in 1929! how many businesses have been around that long!?

They have all-occasion cards, Christmas cards, etc. Sending a card to a customer really helps to build that personal touch, I think. It makes the business transaction that little bit more memorable. I love being wooed by a business! I like to think that my transactions are valued. A smart company knows this.

25,000+ Business Cards

Whether you are just starting a new company, a new job, or you just got a major promotion, you will definitely be in need of some fancy new business cards. This business card design software gives you the chance to do exactly what it says. There are at least 25,000 business card designs, 15,000 images for you to play with, 200 different fonts and texts, and no limit to the number of ways you can combine the card designs, fonts, logos and images.

It doesn’t matter if you want a flashy colorful business card, or a simple straightforward one, this program gives you the option to create the business card you have always imagined, and allows you to give as much or as little information as you wish. You can even decide whether you want to give your information horizontally or vertically, and change the arrangements to create the absolute most effective card for you. Plus, even after you combine all of your design options in the program, you still have more options when it comes to printing your own business cards. Now you are able to print them right from home or your office, and you can choose to print them on standard white paper, or add a bit of flavor with colored paper or printed designs.

Agent Photos - Do You Really Need a Head Shot?

The other day after a brokers’ open I was gathering up the business cards left behind when for the first time I noticed not everyone was putting their photo on their business cards… and to that I say, “Thank goodness.”

I’ve never understood the reasoning behind it… I honestly can’t remember where I read it, but I do remember reading one-time buyers and sellers didn’t see agent photos as a positive thing…

In the real world I’ve never scene a single business card with a photo on it. I’m certain neither Bill Gates nor Steve Jobs has their photos plastered on their cards…

I’ve asked plenty of agents why they do it, and the answer is always the same… recognition

I try to imagine a scene in the mall where potential sellers or buyers are throwing themselves at an agent… begging for their services… rock star status I call it…

Since I personally can’t think of a single good reason for putting my mug on my business card, I’ll give you the reasons for not doing so… by the way, if you can think of a good one, let me know and I’ll happily post in on the site with your photo…

1. Because you buy your business cards by the thousands, chances are that before you get rid of them all, some detail of you appearance will have changed.

2. People make decisions based on how you look… do you really want to lose a client because they didn’t like your smile
3. It’s NOT about you… an agent I spoke with this morning said it sends the wrong message… your card is often your only means of introducing yourself to someone…. Do you really want to dedicate a third of that space to a photo of yourself? Better than that are house flyers where the lower third is covered with the agent’s photo

4. How many times have you picked up an agent’s card and after the agent left said, “Either that was her younger sister, or these cards are about 20 years old.”

I guess the only real proof I need to back my theory is that fact that not a single other profession choices to use their photos on their business cards…

Maybe the occasional escrow officer, but it’s close enough to the real estate tree to be counted under the real estate heading…

Swag Alert: 100 Free Business Cards, Courtesy of Ziki

Ziki is a people-search engine (a la spock), which allows you to not only search for other people, but secure your own profile for others to see. I haven’t used it a great deal, but its premise is kind of interesting in that Ziki promises that once you do fill out a profile (or at least claim one), that profile will rank number one on Google, MSN, and Yahoo.

How? Well, the catch is that Ziki plans to purchase the sponsored link for that search term, thereby enabling that your profile is numero uno.

I haven’t had a chance to thoroughly check this out, but it does pose an interesting conundrum for the John Walkers of this world, or really anyone with a common name.

Anyway, back to the free swag.

If you’re interested in promoting your identity offline (or online), get 100 free business cards courtesy of Ziki. Now if you’re willing to pony up another $5, you’ll be able to customize color, fonts, and background images. Otherwise, you’ll have to live with promoting Ziki’s logo (although you can change the URL if you like).

Small Business and Branding ? Why and How?

When we speak of branding most of the time people try to relate
it to big business house, however, the fact is that every
business needs to establish their brand in order to survive the
competition. This is nothing new; experts and management gurus
had been preaching the same sermon for years now but what they
have not told is why you need to brand your small business? How
is branding going to help you to establish your business? How
can you establish your brand without spending a fortune on it?

You might be having a very small business but would you like
your client to perceive your business as a small time
entrepreneurial effort? Definitely not, and your business cards,
letterheads and other marketing collaterals does just that. They
create an impression to your clients that you are an established
business house of considerable strength and not just a mom-n-pop
shop.

While you have read till this much, you might have started to
plan to get a few home printed business cards or visit the
website where you saw the preformatted business cards being sold
for peanuts. Beware! The quality of your business card is an
indication of the status of your business and your clients are
intelligent enough to understand the difference between a
standard designed perforated business card and a professionally
designed business card printed on good quality card stock.

Most of us, including you, would prefer to consider the
stability of a company before making a purchase decision. Once
you have established your brand with a professionally designed
logo, business card and other marketing efforts it becomes much
easier for you to build your credibility among the customers.

Getting a professionally designed custom logo is one of the very
important elements of branding a business. A logo is not just a
symbol or a piece of graphics; it is actually your corporate
identity. A properly designed logo can leave long lasting
impression on your clients and will never let your business slip
out of their minds. It also makes your business easily
recognizable. Just think, wherever you see the Golden M of
McDonald?s do you really need to think twice, what company is
that referring to? A good logo should ideally exude the nature
and attitude of the business.

Once you have got a logo for yourself it becomes easier for you
to establish your brand. You can use that logo in your business
cards, letterheads and other accessories. Don?t you think it is
going to make a difference if the pack that you use to deliver
your products to your customer has the logo of your company on
it? And if you are using a reusable pack, your customer might
just use the same pack to pass on some other goods to one of his
friends- what happens then? Yes! Your logo gets noticed by one
other person, you add one more name to the list of your
potential customers. You are on your way to establish your own
brand.

Similarly with business cards, as they get passed on from one
person to the other, more and more people knows about your
business and the potential customer base increases.

Having a business card or professionally designed logo also
shows your commitment towards your business.

A short, easy to remember punch line is another useful tool for
branding. Getting a tag line printed on your business cards or
your business stationery makes it easier for people to
understand the nature of your business. Ideally, your tag line
should not only say about what you do but also speak about your
USP.

Having said all that, the ultimate question that most of the
small business people would have is, how much does it cost to
get all these things done? I?d say, ?not much?. Money is always
a problem for most of the small businesses (that?s why they are
small, otherwise most of us would like to open a Microsoft and
be as rich as Bill Gates) but if you know where to look for, you
really don?t need to spend a fortune to get a professionally
designed logo or a business card. There are loads of websites
that offer them really cheap and some even allow you to decide
the price that you want to pay. (Check out this twin sites,
http://www.mycorporatelogo.com and
http://www.mycorporateidentity.com ).

So, if you think you are tired of being a ?small business? and
its time to grow up, take the first step; establish your brand!

A practical approach to business cards

The next time you go to a business meeting, where people are handing out their business cards, take a closer look.

Let’s assume you don’t know any of these people or their businesses in any great depth.

Does their card tell you what they do? And if it is clear, such as for an accountant or solicitor/lawyer (attorney for our US cousins), what makes them stand out from all the other cards you have for people in the same profession? Do you know instantly exactly why they are different and what benefits you could enjoy by doing business with them?

Now look at your business card? What does it say about you? About your company?

Is there a clear message that describes what you offer and the results you deliver? If your answer is “No” you are missing a vital marketing opportunity…

Having said that, the content of your business card depends very much upon how you use it. If you only ever present it to clients or prospects you’ve spent some time with then the minimum amount of information is all you need. That’s because these people already know you and the purpose of your card is purely to serve as a reminder of your contact details.

But if you attend business meetings, networking with other business people (as we’ve been discussing over the past few weeks of posts) then your card has to fulfil a completely different purpose. It has to work harder for you.

The challenge you, and your business card, is facing is making sure the people you meet briefly do remember you and are able to distinguish you from other businesses who apparently offer the same type of product or service. What makes you stand out?

You want to know that when someone else returns to their office or place of business and glances through the, possibly hundreds, of business cards they’ve collected, yours gives a complete picture.

Now I don’t mean it has to be a vivid colour, or a garish design or have wacky graphics on it (although if this is appropriate for your business that’s fine).

What it does need is information that clearly explains why you are the ‘go-to’ company for whatever business you are in.

What Does Your Business Card Say About You?
Does it clearly show what you do or offer? (Your Company name / logo may not be explicit enough).
Does it give a testimonial from a happy client/customer?
Is your photo on there?
What’s on the back of your card - it isn’t blank - is it?

When I explained to a client the business card is a marketing tool and should include a photo, his response was “I don’t want my ugly mug on there” (actually he’s quite good looking, but modest). I told him being a ’shrinking violet’ was not going to help his business to grow. The intention of the photo is to make your card stand out and make it easier for people to remember you afterwards.

Plus, if you send your card with your literature (and a letter) in the post it gives the person receiving it a sense of confidence they are dealing with a ‘real person’ – not an anonymous company. Remember ‘people buy from people’ no matter what size company they own or work for.

The Alternative to Your Photo

If, like my client, you really feel embarrassed about having your photo on your card – try this idea:

Get a photo of you with a happy, smiling client/customer. Ask their permission to use the photo and a testimonial from them in your marketing. Make sure the testimonial is specific, not “Great company, would use again” but something like

“I had problem with the manufacturing costs of our main product line, but the productivity solutions you provided reduced our costs by 31.6% and turned it into one of our more profitable lines”.

Put the photo, with the testimonial underneath, on your card. (N.B. if you are a guy get a female customer to pose with you and vice versa).

Designing Your Card

You may decide to get a graphic designer to create the layout for your card. Regardless of who comes up with the design this is what your card should include:

Front:
Company name
Your name / position
Your contact details
Your photo*
A descriptive strapline

Your descriptive strapline is a single ‘headline’ style sentence that encapsulates what your business does. (It could be your 1-liner from your elevator speech that we talked about in the post Your wow! introduction). And of course, this is where your copywriting skills come to the fore

Back:
Your marketing message: a description of what you offer.
Testimonial(s) from happy clients/customers (with photo if you don’t like your photo on the front)
Key benefits you deliver

If you are planning to use your cards extensively at business and networking meetings include some space for people to make a note:

We met at……………. On (date)…………….

We spoke about………………………………………..

* If you decide to use a photo with testimonial on the back of your card then you don’t need the photo on the front.

Make Your Card More Memorable

Another way to make your card stand out from the crowd is to have a tri-fold card, just slightly bigger than the normal business card size, and include some useful tips or expert advice. People are more inclined to keep a card that has some valuable information on it and it demonstrates your expertise.

In the next post I’m going to describe things you shouldn’t do with your business cards - especially if yours is a start-up company.

Chiropractic and Wellness Gold Card

I spent some time hanging out with other chiropractors recently in Scottsdale, Arizona. I was attending a chiropractic seminar at the prestigious Arizona Biltmore Hotel (what a spectacular place) and while I was there I collected a bunch of chiropractic business cards and postcards so that I could share them with you online.


I love hanging out with other positive thinking business minded individuals and the chiropractors who were at the Biltmore are top-notch. A Toronto chiropractor, Dr. Ruminder Birk, handed me the Chiropractic Gold Card that is shown here. The business card is cut, colored, and shaped like a credit card, and it looks real snappy. Lots of us share each other’s ideas and work to improve on them so we both laughed when I mentioned the similarity to a chiropractic gold card I had created a couple of years ago, which you can see on this page: Practicing in Los AngelesLooking at both cards now, the Canadian chiropractors card looks better. Great to see someone’s taking ideas and improving on them. I took a picture of the back of the card and it definitely looks better than the original card I created. I leaned it up on the counter in front of some of my plainer ADIO Chiropractic cards as the flash on my Casio Exilm kept appearing to bright in the photos when I held the card in my hand.


On the back of the card where the credit card magnetic strip would be is an offer for a free computerized spinal evaluation. The office address is listed, along with some brief landmark descriptions, and there’s also phone, fax and e-mail address. It appears that someone invested some time in designing this card. The result is terrific and creative chiropractic business card that has people saying “this is a great card!” Way to go Atlantis Chiropractic (located in Toronto, Canada).

The evolution of our business cards

They’re here! TPH (our newly-found printer people) just delivered our new set of business cards. I’m really excited about them because they’re slick, they’re very well branded, and they’re rockin’ the increasingly popular 3.5″x1.5″ dimensions.



When I threw out the idea of getting new cards done a little over a month ago, my team rolled their eyes. “Again?” they sighed. It’s true, we got our first cards less than 3 years ago, and since then, we’ve gone through 3 design changes (the new one inclusive). But with good reason! As any entrepreneur would know, nothing is ever quite concrete in the first few years of a new business. Our agency is no different - and as we’ve evolved as a company, so has our business cards. And looking back at each of the cards, the evolution is pretty evident. Here’s what I see:
February 2005



Specs: 3.5″x2.0″, 12 pt card stock, backless, printed at Kinkos
We started out as just a web agency so our retardation with print work shows through a bit on our early cards.
Amateur print work: the design for this card was done as a PSD, rather than a vector EPS file.
Our first lesson in branding: never cut off pieces of your logo, especially if it only appears once on the card.
Friends don’t let friends print business cards at large printer chains. Their service sucks and they’re more concerned about turning around orders fast than about delivering quality.
September 2006



Specs: 3.5″x2.0″, 10 pt card stock, front & back, printed by a business contact (not sure who the printer was)
We have a brand! Part of it is blue. And part of it is that geometric set of triangles that now has a home next to a company name written out in a consistent font that is not Arial. Score!
We also started branching out into print and brand work so our cards are done properly this time around.
Notice the change in my position title from Creative Director to Executive Director. I think at the time I was doing a lot more business development and the company needed a face to lead it. I was that face.
Notice the change in email address format from firstname@ to firstname.lastname@. This was partly done to accomodate two Kevin’s on our team, and also in following a more ‘corporate’ vision we had at the time. What can I say, I worked at Microsoft at the time, and well, you don’t get more corporate influence than that.
October 2007



Specs: 3.5″x1.5″, 12 pt card stock, front & back, printed at The Printing House (highly recommended)
As an indication of the establishment of our print business, we finally have a trusted printshop to rely on.
The brand strengthens: simplicity has been a prevalent element in our brand since the beginning. Only now does it finally show through on our business cards. The difference is simple… and a lot of white space.
Notice the change in my position title from Executive Director back to Creative Director. This comes after a few years of running the business and realizing what I’m really passionate about (creative). It also comes from a strategic move to sway the public perspective away from the idea that one guy runs the business. In reality, the company is built on the blood, sweat, and tears of 5 Executive Directors.
And of course, the new size! This is a clear reflection of our agency’s ability to stay on top of industry standards and all that is the latest and greatest. The new size also says that we’re cooler than you. Na-na-na-na-boo-boo. Just kidding.

So there you have it. The intimate journey of a growing agency and its business cards. How often do you refresh your design? What stories are embedded in your cards?

And just for kicks, I’m entering this post into YGG’s Business Card Contest that they’re running with Orange32. Sure, I don’t really need new business cards (given the subject of this post), but I like to support YGG’s initiatives. That or I like free stuff.

Abbygrey West Consulting - WordPress Website Design

Back in 1999, I helped Dr. Thomas Naughton launch his first website to accompany his new Medicoloegal Consulting business, Abbygrey West Consulting. A busy Family Practice physician for over 15 years, Dr. Naughton thought he would take a leap and try his hand at self-employment and put some of his knowledge and expertise into some legal consulting to see how it would fly. It flew… indeed. 8 years later, I’ve re-launched his new look and format and brought him up to date by using WordPress to power his website. . .


Have a look at his old web site design, circa. 1999 - - it’s a testament to the style of those times, as well as speaking loudly on how my own website design abilities have changed in terms of skill, expeirence asthetics and overall improvement:


All in all, not a bad design for 8 years ago. It was a Dreamweaver special, not only done in tables - - but nested tables at that with a WHOLE lot of inline styling and very very little CSS, if any at all.

His new website design is a 100% CSS based design with a cleaner look, providing a very consice and very focused look into his services, experience and practice.

Dr. Naughton wished to have a very clean and professional look that put the focus more on his content, rather than on the design. While he wanted the site to be visually fresh and clean - he did not want it to distract from the topic at hand. I believe I accomplished that through the use of a newspaper style layout done with a neutral color scheme of grey, black and white.

I think he will be extremely pleased with the perfomance of his website, not only in visual appeal - but in SEO results, rankings and overall visitor satisfaction. Abbygrey West Consulting has been hosted with us, through our hosting division at Blogs About Hosting since 1999 and has been very pleased with our hosting services. I’ve mentioned, in the past, on this blog how convienent it is to have a designer who also has full administrative access to the server your site is hosted on - - not only is access extremely easy for those ‘quick fixes’ - but set up and configuration goes very smoothly. Because I own the hosting services at Blogs About Hosting - you can also guarentee that myself, and our technicians, are extremely well versed in the workings of WordPress and are able to provide support for use of the program that you may not find elsewhere.

I completed the design on Abbygrey West Consulting this week and, so far, Dr. Naughton is thrilled. Like any typical doctor - he would rather not have to worry about tinkering around inside the guts and code of a website - - he just ‘wants it to work’ - - combine my experience and skills with the program, and the ease of use that is inherent to the WordPress platform… Dr. Naughton has a golden setup!

I also designed and printed 500 business cards for him that match his new website design:


I am thrilled to still be providing web development services for him over the past 8 years - - Dr. Naughton was actually my very first paying client!

Agent Photos - Do You Really Need a Head Shot?

The other day after a brokers’ open I was gathering up the business cards left behind when for the first time I noticed not everyone was putting their photo on their business cards… and to that I say, “Thank goodness.”

I’ve never understood the reasoning behind it… I honestly can’t remember where I read it, but I do remember reading one-time buyers and sellers didn’t see agent photos as a positive thing…

In the real world I’ve never scene a single business card with a photo on it. I’m certain neither Bill Gates nor Steve Jobs has their photos plastered on their cards…

I’ve asked plenty of agents why they do it, and the answer is always the same… recognition

I try to imagine a scene in the mall where potential sellers or buyers are throwing themselves at an agent… begging for their services… rock star status I call it…

Since I personally can’t think of a single good reason for putting my mug on my business card, I’ll give you the reasons for not doing so… by the way, if you can think of a good one, let me know and I’ll happily post in on the site with your photo…

1. Because you buy your business cards by the thousands, chances are that before you get rid of them all, some detail of you appearance will have changed.

2. People make decisions based on how you look… do you really want to lose a client because they didn’t like your smile
3. It’s NOT about you… an agent I spoke with this morning said it sends the wrong message… your card is often your only means of introducing yourself to someone…. Do you really want to dedicate a third of that space to a photo of yourself? Better than that are house flyers where the lower third is covered with the agent’s photo

4. How many times have you picked up an agent’s card and after the agent left said, “Either that was her younger sister, or these cards are about 20 years old.”

I guess the only real proof I need to back my theory is that fact that not a single other profession choices to use their photos on their business cards…

Maybe the occasional escrow officer, but it’s close enough to the real estate tree to be counted under the real estate heading…

I’m open to change, so let me know your thoughts