Current Business Card Design Trends & How they can be Developed

During the 19th Century, business cards were more commonly known as social cards and mandatory in the middle and upper class circles as a way of presenting yourself to the household of which you were visiting.

Today, when you’re introducing yourself to someone attending a business conference, we use business cards which have your contact details on them so you can keep in touch in the future.

Many conference attendees carry business cards, which helps to create a first impression of you and lasts for as long as the card is held onto.

If you’re preparing to design your first or next business card, I have gathered a list of the current business card design trends and how they can be developed to make them more appealing to your potential client or colleague.

QR Codes on Business Cards

QR or Quick Response codes can be found on most things everyday; product tags, shop windows, poster-sized billboards are just a few examples.

Initially designed for the automotive industry, the QR code is similar to a barcode in that it encodes information in a 2D space and has recently become popular in the packaging and advertising world.

When designing your next business card, you may want to consider printing a QR code onto it replacing your contact information.

By doing this, you no longer have to design new cards when your contact details change as you can link the QR code up to a page editable by you containing your contact details.

Folding Business Cards

One of the most common design restrictions with traditional business cards is their size. As standard business cards provide a minimal amount of space, they don’t allow individuals to promote themselves or their brand to those who they may be handing their card over to.

In order to avoid this issue, designers are now embracing a new trend when designing business cards for either themselves or their clients, using one of the many creative design templates that are now available.

These design templates create a seamless or partial fold.

Folded cards can feature larger images and icons, such as QR codes or company branding, while all of the important contact information can still comfortably fit within a pocket or wallet.

Vertically Printed Cards

If you’re against folding business cards but still want some additional space, most designers are now finding them designing their cards in a vertical format.

By realigning the card and designing it vertically, it not only allows the designer to have more space on either side of the card for some of their fancy sales artwork but it stands out of the crowd when compared to most other cards printed in a horizontal alignment.

Die Cut Designs

A lot of companies and clients are looking to intercept die cut designs when designing their next collection of business cards.

By die cutting a business card, it provides an easy way to stand out of the crowd whilst fleshing out an otherwise typical plain piece of cardboard.

Using die cut elements in your cards, it provides the cardholder with an unusual but otherwise engaging texture creating a pleasing feeling.

If you go a long way to create a unique experience for the cardholder, your card is more than likely going to create a good impression as well as finding its way into someone’s wallet.

Interactive Business Cards

Interactive business cards have been a growing trend over the recent years and 3D printers have revolutionised this method. Interactive designs are a good way to impress and engage potential clients.

There are two ways to go about interactive design; letterpress and material. Letterpress has been a design trend in itself for years, even though its considered as a dying art.

This technique to give your card a combined element of 3D and retro embossed look along with an added texture effect.

When designing interactive business cards, you shouldn’t instantly select paper as your material of choice as interactive cards have introduced new materials such as wood, plastic, tissue and metal. However, these techniques can make a large impact on their own so don’t over complicate things with a complex design.