Business Cards for Entrepreneurs and Home Based Businesses - What's All the Fuss?

By Jennifer A. Thieme

I'm so tired of hearing all the hoopla about business cards as it relates to small, solo service professionals or home based businesses, and I just don't buy it. You may know what I'm talking about - all the marketing advice about how to set them up, using them as marketing "real estate," packing them with just the right kind of information to "catch" that next client. I think most of that advice is a bunch of garbage, because I don't agree with the premise: that potential clients will accept or reject you on the basis of your business card.

People will do business with you because they like you, and/or they think you can do a good job. Period. So be likeable and be educated, because nobody will reject you because of your business card. And if they did, then they were too shallow to want as a client anyway.

My advice for business card is this: keep it simple. Put your name, one or two of your favorite designations, your contact information (phone number, email, and website if you have one), and a logo if you have one you can use. Don't worry about the address. I don't have the address on mine, and it has not mattered one bit.

The reason I say to put your favorite designations, and not necessarily the most prestigious, is this: your emotion about the designation is important. If you are excited about the designations, that excitement is contagious, and your potential client will be excited too. Well, maybe not as excited as you are, but your emotion about it will come across as a form of sincerity. And that can only be good when meeting with new clients.

You can also put the designations that target your desired clientele. The idea here is that you will attract the type of client you think you want. However, I don't think this is as good as putting your own favorites. Putting your own favorite designations is more in alignment with who you really are as a person. This, in turn, can lead to clients with whom you are more compatible for long term business relationships.

So keep your business cards simple, and don't stress about them. People will hire you for other, more important, reasons.

Jennifer A. Thieme is a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor. Visit http://www.jenniferthieme.com for more information about her services.