Do I Need Raised Letter or Full Color Business Cards?
If you've been searching around for business cards that will
best represent the image you want to portray for your business,
then you've no doubt encountered many options. The Big Two, as I
like to think of them, are "Raised Letter" and "Full Color."
What are the differences in raised letter and full color
business cards? What are the price differences? What looks best
for how I want to represent my business? These are all questions
I hear on a daily basis.
1. The difference between Raised Letter and Full Color printing
is in how the ink is applied to the card stock. Thermography is
the type of printing that produces ink that stands up off the
page slightly. When you run your fingers across the surface, you
can feel the printing on the stock. Each color that is printed
has a separate plate, and the cards have to be run through the
press for each color chosen. These types of cards have a very
elegant and refined look about them, especially if the colors
and stocks chosen are complimentary. There are hundreds of
varieties of stocks and inks to choose from.
Full Color printing is much like printing from your ink jet
printer at home. All the inks are printed on the page at the
same time, and combined to create hues, shades--photo images.
So, one run through and the cards are printed. These cards have
been traditionally used by real estate agents, insurance agents
and the like. But now, with this type of printing becoming more
affordable and available, anyone can choose this option. These
designs most of the time seem jazzier, sharper, more upbeat.
2. The cost difference is an oddity. Spot printing (the process
of laying the colors on one at a time, as in Raised Letter
cards), can be much cheaper--if only one color or black is
chosen. White plate (65 lb stocks) will be cheaper than a
cordwain or linen. But, if you start adding more colors (equals
more time through the press) then you'll start racking up the
cost. If your colors touch each other (called registration--the
printer must make sure the cards run through correctly) then
you'll tack on some extra expense there.
If you have a full color logo, the least expensive way to go
would be with full color (process printing). But, you generally
have to get a minimum of 1000. You can get 250 from some places,
but you'll pay about the same price. It's the setup fee from the
printer that is the biggest expense. Printing them is the cheap
part, which is why the more you get, the better the price.
3. To choose the look that's right for you, I would think first
about the image you are projecting for your company. Are you a
doctor? You probably would rather have a classier linen stock
with black and gold inks. Same for lawyers and other
professionals. A handsome bordeaux (burgundy) on grey fiber
stock would speak volumes about your professionalism. The raised
letter would add to the expensive feel. There is really no need
to add more than 1 color and black in printing raised letter
cards. If that's the way you're heading, then you probably have
a flashier business image and would need full color cards. A
doctor or lawyer is usually using cards to provide clients with
contact information, not get more business.
Full color is proven to get a 30% better response rate than
regular printing, but this is only a bonus if your business aims
to use the business cards to get more business. If you sell a
product, using full color cards would be a brilliant idea--you
can have a photo of it right on the cards. If you're in a
service industry like real estate, you'll want your prospects to
remember your face. Add your professionally taken photo to your
cards. If you're trying to express a concept of what you can do
for customers, then finding the right stock photo image can
speak thousands of words with just one image!
In reality, cost usually dictates the biggest part of your
decision making process. However, I would caution you to
consider your IMAGE first. You might find that if you choose the
card that has the best representation of your image, the cost
ends up being less than if you choose the wrong one.