USING YOUR BUSINESS CARD

Your business card is one of the best tools you can have in establishing your presence in the market place. It’s also one of the only marketing tools that you have that you can hand over personally, as a part of the business. As far as the trust factor goes, having a business card is a must to promote your business. It’s cost-effective, compact, low-maintenance, and it does its job as soon as it leaves your hands.

The main function of your card is to make that connection with a referral or contact. Contact should always be followed up sooner rather than later. A nice to meet you email or an invitation to meet for coffee. It all depends on your business and the sales cycle.

The great thing about getting a referral is, the moment that your business card gets referred to another person,you get a satisfied customer testimonial. Word of month marketing is still the strongest method and your greatest asset in marketing is always a satisfied customer.

Essential elements
In order for your business card to be effective, it needs to have the following:

• The name of your business
• Your name
• Your role in your business
• An eye-catching layout related to your business

Getting them out there!

Having an effective business card is just half of the equation. You would also need an opportunity to distribute them among potential customers. Going to conventions and trade events is an effective method, particularly if you have researched the target audience. If you’ve ever been in a convention, you would have noticed that most people are very anxious to give out their business cards. This is your opportunity to do the same although don’t be too desperate to do so either.

When giving out your business card, make sure that you’re not perceived as a guy who’s just trying to make it in the game. Project your confidence when distributing your business cards. Remember, your prospects’ first impression of you is a preview of what’s in store once they do business with the person on your card. See this as all part of your marketing campaign.

First impressions

You’ll never know when an opportunity to give out your card would come – kids parties, football games – people need your service no matter what is going on. Keep a significant amount of business cards in your possession. You can keep a couple of business cards in your wallet for easy access. The point is, you wouldn’t want to get caught up in a situation where you could have handed out a business card, but all you did was write down your name and phone number in a piece of paper – easily forgotten, common, and unimpressive. Besides, being unprepared in those kinds of situations may give your business a bad. Always be ready. Project yourself like you’re the face of your business.