Classic printing reminiscing
Choosing the right material on which to print your business card
can be just as important as choosing the right logo for your
company.
But then there are certain materials that may be hot one year
and outdated the next. Plastic business cards seem to be all the
rage right now, but who can tell if they will still be the trend
two years from now.
So unless you are in a business that is equally fickle, it might
make more sense to stick with a business card stock that has
been time tested.
The idea of going with the plain white colored card may seem
like a perfect solution, but there are a couple of materials you
will want to avoid at nearly all cost. The cheapest of the plain
type business cards is the one composed of pulp board, a
material that feels very rough to the touch and is usually
reserved for stock tickets, point-of-sale items and extremely
cost-effective in-house printing jobs.
This is not the material you want to be printing your business
cards on. It screams cheap. Cheap is the last thing you want
your business card to convey.
A big improvement over the rough pulp board business card is the
calendared card. Basically, this card has been compressed in
order to give it a smoother surface and usually weighs a little
more than its rougher counterpart. Keep in mind, however, that
the calendared card is still the preferred stock of companies
offering free business cards. You can therefore draw your own
conclusions.
If you are a hairdresser or a taxi driver who is going to be
handing out business cards in mass quantity, a coated card might
be right for you. These card stocks usually come in a gloss or
satin finish on one side only. The fully coated alternative -
referred to as quality art board - will naturally cost you more.
Textured cards present another printing alternative that is not
too expensive. The narrow ridges indented in the card stock tend
to make the card feel thicker. It also gives the business card a
very traditional look, which tends to suit lawyers and
architects just fine.
Of course, company logos and text do not always stand out on
such business cards. Not to mention that many printers now
consider this material to be pass