We certainly don’t use as much physical stationery these days as we have done in the past. It is quite possible that if your business is mainly conducted online, you may use no more than 25 letterheads each year, whereas only a few years ago you could possibly have used that many each day!
That is why it is important for logo design to be able to transcend from web to print and vice versa. However, you may still have the need for business cards, and when you go to visit a potential client, it is important that they want to look at your card and want to keep it.
The best way of achieving this is to make it really something to look at! The stationery budget that was once possibly restrictive should be far less so now, so you can push the boat out a little and wow with your business cards. So this collection of inspirational business card designs doesn’t pay a lot of attention to logos and layout, rather, shape, materials used, effects, etc.
Inspiration Business Card Designs
Laptop Computer Repair Business Cards
This fun looking business card, designed for a computer repair businesses was designed by Josh360. The card looks like a laptop. It was printed on 16pt Dull Cover with Matte Finish.
Bentply Business Card
This is the business card of bentply, a modernist furniture producer from London. The card’s creative element is that it transforms into chair because of the perforated lines in the card. It was designed by Richard C. Evans.
Major Hunting
Major Hunting, a guided sport hunting company, chose a design that’s both practical and beautiful. The waterproof plastic card’s durability makes it perfect for clients who spend all their time in the outdoors, while its translucent, matte black ink acts as a natural camouflage. An unprinted area creates a gun’s crosshairs, encouraging recipients to “hunt” the objects around them with their business card.
AWP Express
This is the business card of AWP Express, a web design agency. The cards can be folded (instructions included) into a little airplane and also has all the necessary contact details on it. Very creative.
Macaroni Bros
This clever die cut business card design solves a perennial home cooking problem – how does one quickly measure out the right amount of pasta to cook? The card was made and designed to promote the Macaroni Brothers media and design company. They rightly felt that a good measure of the success of a business card is how likely a person is to keep and use the card so they created a card which is useful and capitalises on the company name.
Danielle Abisaam Yoga Instructor
This is the business card of Danielle Abisaab, a yoga instructor from Beirut. The ‘card’ was designed to make you twist/stretch it and make it flexible, as a yoga instructor would teach you to do to your body.
Reusable Business Card
This business card takes eco-friendliness to a whole new level. Made entirely of recyclable paper, it lets the cardholder write contact information on customizable blank lines—rather than using extra ink to print the info. Each card has enough space to be used for three contacts, maximizing its longevity.
Derek Royer Massage Therapist
This is the business card of Derek Royer, a massage therapist from Toronto. The card was made of fabric and is therefore easily tied up in a knot. This way it’s already a nice therapy for clients when they untie the card.
Hire Me Business Card
These scratch off business cards are very memorable. At first it just says ‘Hi’ and after you scratch away the strip you’ll see it says ‘Hire me.’. Very creative and impressive.
Levin Tahmaz
This business card was designed for Levin Tahmaz, a personal trainer. The card shows you a before and after image of a person. The before is how they start and the end result is the very fit image as a result of the training.
Bazooka
This business card that was designed for guerilla marketing company Bazooka has a puzzle on the reverse for recipients to while away a few minutes. The card was designed by Joana Sobral, a graphic designer from Porto, Portugal.
Jose Antonio Contreras
Another puzzle card, this time a word search – the words you must search for in the grid on the back of the card are the designer’s details listed on the front of the card. Very creative!
Ryan Johnstone Electrical
This mini business card was designed to be placed on the ends of British plugs once they had been Pak tested. It is created from thin cardboard to mimic the plug fuse information cards supplied on devices when they are bought new. It was designed by Helen Quint, a graphic designer from the United Kingdom.
1scale1
This lasercut business card was designed for 1scale1, a design and innovation studio from Malmö in Sweden. The card has a little pop out figure that brings the message to you.
Mackay Saturday
These cards were designed by and for Mackey Saturday. He’s an identity designer from Denver, USA. The cards were printed on duplexed wood veneer and have been letterpressed with metallic ink on paper. Both sides have also been laser etched to create the different layers in the card.
Laser Creative
These cards were created on birch wood and were laser cut by Laser Creative. The wood has a great unique look that really makes this card stand out.
Walt’s Wood Works
These are the wooden business cards of Walter Spooner, owner of Walt’s Wood Works. He makes handcrafted woord creations and therefor a wooden business card is pretty much needed. The card looks (and must feel) pretty nice.
Woodhouse
These wooden business cards were designed for Woodhouse, a supplier of building materials (mainly wood products) from Norway. The cards are also made from wood and have the info printed on them in green.
SLDesign
These black metal business cards were designed by and for SLDesign. Every time they hand one out, the reaction is priceless!. The cards are 0.5 mm thick mate black metal, cut-through logo, chemically etched, silver engraved and QR coded and they are a fantastic way to build credibility.
Noel Pelavin
This is the business card of Noel Pelavin. It’s 100% stainless steel metal. It has a thickness of 0.5mm and is all chemically etched. In addition, the business card has some very interesting dimensions, being just over 4 inches in length and just over 1 inch in height.
DoggHouse
A dogtag-style business card that also includes a bottle opener… not only would your customers be happy to receive this type of card, they could also find it very useful!
Daniel Ballou
These business cards are not the typical cards you would expect. The design on a coin. The coin was created for and by Daniel Ballou, a designer from California.
Marki San Design
These green handmade fabric business card were designed by Marki-san Design, a designer and illustrator from The Netherlands. The cards have a nice unique look and feel to them and will definitely be memorable.
Sugar Plum
Chocolate business cards! They definitely have the wow factor, but I am sure they are not something that many people will keep – if you choose this style you will need another card your clients can keep!
Vinslev
Beautifully handcrafted branding items. The business card, in the same retro style, and are presented as a tag hanging on a string.
Sergio Delgado
A lovely but somewhat morbid toe-tag mockup for this business card… he states his ’cause of death’ as ‘major trauma to right side of body’ – a unique idea, but a little dark for my liking!
Pivotshare
A business card that looks like a ticket – not a unique idea, but these cards are among the best ‘ticket’ designs.
Pierre Desmarais
This card was designed for a music composer, and it is diecast in the shape of a graphic equalizer display. Using only black for the printing and UV spot gloss for the bars of the equalizer.
Dustin Friesen
These business cards were created by Dustin Friesen, a graphic designer from Canada. He created them with very few resources as he was just a student – his first run of 350 cards cost just $50. They are hand-cut and hand-duplexed and still have a nice professional manufactured look.
Go Fetsch
This business card was designed for Go Fetsch, a construction company from the US. The card has a special die cut feature that resembles a wrench as well as one edge being a measure.
Dr Federico Alvarez
A quirky design for an odontologist of a mouth – you would probably keep this card if you received it, but you may not be happy about having to use it!
1-800 Printing
This 32pt business card is 3.5″ in diameter, and was printed on silk laminated stock. The logo is embossed and foiled. There’s use of Spot UV on both sides. The cards were designed for 1-800 Printing, a printing company based in New York. Circular cards are not unique, but this one has a beautifully eye-catching design – and you could always use it as a coaster for your coffee cup!
Husler & Rose
This company sources furniture and homewares of quality, restores them and sells them on. Their business card design is very quirky, pretty much in keeping with their business. The plain paper strip is blank for the caller to leave whatever message is required at the time – whether it be name, reminder, personal message or anything else.
Hip Baby
These business cards were designed for Hip Baby, a company that manufactures baby proof materials. The business card was made baby proof aswell. They’ve added rounded, protected corners – just in case your baby should get hold of it!
Mark Dijkstra
These creative business cards were designed for and by Mark Dijkstra, a freelance web designer from The Netherlands. A great idea where they are presented in the form of a hand-written file card.
Christopher Elsasser
Digitally painted (in Photoshop) self-portrait business cards and presented in a beautiful vintage style – these cards are really something different!
Tadda
This replica of a Swiss Army Knife is designed to show the designer’s flexibility. Fully working and laseer-cut from rather thin card, this is a really unique business card that I would definitely love to receive!
Bon Vivant
A novelty business card that anyone would love to receive – a tiny cheese grater in a brown envelope. Ideal for a specialist cheese shop.
Wilcox Wards
An amazing amount of padding has been achieved on this card, giving it an overall very luxurious appearance.
Victor Bonates
This business card design is a replica of a 45rpm vinyl record – which would be a fantastic idea for a musician… however, this is the card of a designer. He says ‘This is my personal business card for my own promotion. As a music/vinyl lover I used the vinyl concept for my card.’
Feelme Crew
As you would probably expect, the company that this card was designed for deal in shooting film and video. The card is designed in the style of a clapper board, with some handwriting type for further authentication.
Simon Wenger
Simon Wenger is an 87-year-old piano repairer and tuner. This die cut business card in the shape of a grand piano was designed by his grandson.
Conclusion
Sometimes it seems a shame that face-to-face communication is falling out of fashion, but in terms of print costs, this trend means that more and more creative calling cards are possible as fewer are required – so they can be made from different materials, die or laser cut, in more than one part, foiled, hand-crafted and very thematic to the business or service they are promoting, which makes the recipients happy to receive them and keep them… maybe even use them (or eat them in the case of the chocolate ones!).
Do you have unique business cards, or have you designed any different styles of cards that have not been listed above? Please share your opinions and links with us in the comments section below.
