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6 Tips for Business Card Design Inspiration
by Gregg Hardy
If you do not have experience in graphic design, it may be a difficult to think up a design that is unique for your business card. What's more, a unique design may not be enough. You will need a design that is memorable to your customers.
Even for a seasoned designer, it can be difficult to come up with a fresh and innovative design for a specific business or industry. In this case, it is good practice to draw inspiration from existing business card designs, websites, advertising to give you ideas and to get your creative juices flowing.
Here are some tips to help you get started:
Tip 1
If you are a traditional artist or just love the look of oil paintings or watercolour on paper you can achieve the same effects with brushes in Photoshop. You can even go beyond paint effects with the brushes and apply the paper textures as well to simulate traditional art.
Tip 2
For a design that is retro or indie, you may want to try using a photo calling cards. If you have a Polaroid camera, you can take some nice photos and print your name and contact details on it to be used as a business card. You can even achieve the same Polaroid photo effect in Photoshop.
Tip 3
If possible, you should invest in a die-cut contact card. Die-cut cards are guaranteed to stand out from a pile of business cards that are all rectangular. Start out with your favourite shape and start designing around that concept.
Tip 4
Try using caricatures on your visiting card. If you don't know how to draw, you can hire a freelance illustrator to draw a caricature of you and incorporate in your final calling card design. This kind of business cards is ideal for illustrators, graphic designers, or even stand-up comedians.
Tip 5
Have a professional photographer take a photograph of you and put that image on your visiting card. This is great for those who are focused on self-branding, such as real estate agents.
Tip 6
You do not have to always go for a crazy design to have a noticeable contact card. Often times, less is more, and if you get rid of the clutter and have your name or business name be the focal point of the card, a minimal design can also stand out with its simplicity.
Whichever tip you decide to go with, remember that these tips are merely idea-starters. Feel free to add something or tweak it, to make the design uniquely yours.
About the Author
For more business card design inspiration, visit BusinessCardDesignIdeas.com. There are plenty of creative and fresh designs showcased on the site that will surely help to get those creative juices flowing. For the complete novice, we also have free tools to help you make your own business card at home.
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Work In Progress
(more) class="minus2" style="display:none"> class="minus2" style="display:none"> class="minus2" style="display:none"> class="minus2" style="display:none"> class="minus2" style="display:none"> class="minus2" style="display:none"> Buck Billo and Maxi sing "Work In Progress" by Alan Jackson.
As the first artist signed to Arista Records' country division, Alan Jackson's first single, "Blue Blooded Woman," peaked at a dismal No. 45 on the country charts in 1989. Clearly, things improved substantially with the next single -- the title track from his debut album, Here in the Real World -- and the hits haven't stopped yet. Fifteen years into his career, the superstar has sold more than 40 million albums and scored more than 30 No. 1 singles -- 21 of which he either wrote or co-wrote.
Jackson was born Oct. 17, 1958, in Newnan, Ga., to a blue-collar family. Jackson's father was an automobile mechanic. Caring for a household of seven, his mother helped instill a sense of integrity and small town values. While in high school, Jackson met his future wife, Denise, at a Dairy Queen, and their lasting marriage has produced three daughters.
Playing in country bands in Georgia, Jackson worked as a mechanic, used car salesman and forklift operator to pay the bills while writing songs. He and Denise moved to Nashville in 1985, but his first impressions of Music City were a tiny basement apartment and a genre whose radio prerequisites had almost nothing to do with his own songwriting. That same year, Denise met Glen Campbell in an airport when she was working as a flight attendant. She told Campbell about her husband and gave him a tape. Campbell gave her his business card and suggested that Alan should call his publishing company. Soon after, Jackson became a staff songwriter at Campbell's music publishing company.
Jackson hit No. 1 three times in 1991, with "I'd Love You All Over Again," "Don't Rock the Jukebox" and "Someday." In 1992, he released the spooky video for "Midnight in Montgomery," which won a CMA Award. That same year, he returned to No. 1 with "Love's Got a Hold on You" and "She's Got the Rhythm (And I Got the Blues)." In 1993, he spent four weeks at the top with "Chattahoochee," which propelled the corresponding album A Lot About Livin' (And a Little 'Bout Love) to sales of more than 6 million copies. "Chattahoochee" won a CMA award for single of the year in 1993 and song of the year in 1994. Jackson took his first CMA entertainer trophy in 1995, coinciding almost exactly with The Greatest Hits Collection.
Following several novelty hits, like "I Don't Even Know Your Name," Roger Miller's "Tall, Tall Trees" and Tom T. Hall's "Itty Bitty," Jackson then found inspiration (and chart success) in more challenging material, such as Harley Allen and Carson Chamberlain's "Between the Devil and Me" and Kieran Kane's "I'll Go On Loving You."
Although Jackson's albums emphasize his original material, he frequently tips his hat to the sounds that molded his music. Prime examples include "Summertime Blues" (a country version of Eddie Cochran's 1958 rockabilly smash) and "Who's Cheatin' Who" (a remake of Charly McClain's 1981 hit). He took an additional step with the 1991 album, Under the Influence, offering his versions of songs made famous by Merle Haggard, Charley Pride, Conway Twitty, Don Williams, Gene Watson, Mel McDaniel and others. The album netted Jackson another Top 10 single with "Pop a Top," a Nat Stuckey song that was a major hit for Jim Ed Brown in 1967. Other highlights included Jackson's take on Hank Williams Jr.'s "The Blues Man."
Others have had major hits with Jackson's compositions as well. Among his credits are Randy Travis' "Forever Together" and "Better Class of Losers," Clay Walker's "If I Could Make a Livin'" and Faith Hill's "I Can't Do That Anymore." Already one of country's most respected songwriters, Jackson ascended to yet a higher level at the 2001 CMA Awards show when he debuted "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)." His song about the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City stunned the awards show audience and ultimately proved to be the most honest, heartfelt song written about the tragedy.
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