There are many mistakes people can make with their business cards. You can make these mistakes yourself as a photographer or artist.
However, there are mistakes that hurt graphic artists and photographers more than the average business owner.
“What Does That Say?”
You’re a photographer. Your reputation is tied to the quality of images you capture of key events. Unreadable text counts against you at a fundamental level. Text that’s too small, fonts that are so complicated that they’re hard to read, color schemes that interfere in readability and text on top of graphics and logos that interfere in readability all undermine your image. This means that the graphics you put on the business card, the logos that grace the card and images you may cannot get in the way of the purpose of the card — communicating your contact information
“What’s Their Email Address?”
Your business card needs to contain all critical information required for potential clients to contact you, if they decide to get a quote from you. Anything else is a lower priority and may be a luxury you can’t afford. One of the benefits of photography business card templates is that they remind you what information you really must put on the business card.
For example, they prioritize phone numbers and email addresses over the three online portfolios you may want to show off. Avoid bity links and long web domains, too, since this is hard for someone to correctly type into an address bar. QR codes may work, but you can’t count on the average client having the ability and knowledge to make use of it.
“What Do They Do?”
While a photographer could in theory take pictures of everything, in reality, clients are looking for experts in a particular area. Whether it is a realtor who wants great photos to sell that house or a family seeking the perfect portrait, your business card should convey what type of photography you do.
The ideal photography business card clearly communicates this visually, whether it is with a beautiful sample on the back of the business card, a lovely logo in the corner or several thumbnail sample images across the business card.
One of the worst mistakes you can make is put photos that aren’t really related to your bread and butter business on the business card. If you’re mostly into wedding photography, there is no point putting a commercial real estate piece on the business card.
“What Is That a Picture Of?”
Whether it is a logo or a photo on the business card, you’ll hurt yourself by putting a poor quality image on the business card. If people aren’t sure if that’s a floral bouquet or bird’s nest on the business card, they may wonder how your photos come out. If the business card print job is not that great, a beautiful photo could come out mediocre at best.
That poor quality image leaves people wondering how their own photos would look. If you can’t guarantee a high quality image on the business card, use a neat, stylized logo instead
Photo by Trevor Brown on Unsplash
