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Top 5 elements of a lawyer's business card
by
Marcin Rzymek
What should you include on a business card if you are a lawyer? How do you get them printed later?
In this short article, we will go over the five things every business card should have, which can ensure that someone picks up the phone instead of throwing your card in the garbage. Especially useful if you’re a lawyer or managing partner in a giant law firm.
We will also highlight where you can order your prints without leaving your office.
TOP 5 Business card elements
- LOGO
- FIRST AND SECOND NAME
- CONTACT METHOD
- WEBSITE (URL)
- PHYSICAL ADDRESS
Do you need a business card at all?
Business cards can be an effective marketing tool whether you meet someone and leave them with your card or mail along with a letter to potential customers. These small paper cards repeatedly approve of their value. Let’s look at five items every business card should have to make the most of it. For every lawyer, a business card is an essential tool. It is a small card printed with one’s name and contact details and is often the first place potential clients look for ways to get in touch with you or your company.
A regular business card has three and a half by two inches (in the U.S.).
Despite its small size, you can still get your message across.
What are the top 5 elements you should include?
Your Brand Logo
At a quick look, your brand should be easily recognizable. The logo is a visual representation of your brand; it is the fastest way for an individual to define what company the card represents. A logo should take up between a quarter or a fifth of a business card space on average. Don’t be afraid to make your business card’s logo the most prominent element.
But if you are the only representation of your business and it doesn’t have a logo (or at least not yet), read this article in which I explain why it is so important to have a visual representation of your brand.
Your first and second name
When you get a business card from someone, you expect that their name is on the card. So let your business card recipient know whom to contact when they want to reach your company, and just in case they forget your name because, let’s face it, your business card will be able to refresh their memory.
Contact method
Now that the person with your card knows whom to contact, the next thing we need to know is how to get in touch with you. An easily legible contact method should be a telephone number or email address. We suggest that you should include both email and mobile because there are different contact preferences for everyone. Some people prefer email over mobile and vice versa, so letting your card recipient decide which one works best for them is good. It is also best to include only one number two if necessary when it comes to phone numbers. Even though you may have four phone numbers nowadays, a 1-800 number, cell phone, office number, maybe even home phone, your clients want to know the best way to get in contact as soon as possible. Keep in mind that if you list just one phone number, make sure that number allows voice messages. This way, your customers can quickly contact you, and if they don’t get a hold of you right away, they can leave a message so that you can get back to them.
Website address (URL)
These days everyone expects that your business has a website. A website should be an extension of your business card and offer the card recipient a way to find more detailed information about your business online. It is pretty well known these days that all websites begin with “HTTP://,” so there’s no need to include this in the text. It just takes up space and adds clutter to your card. Today, most people also recognize that all websites begin with “www,” and it’s becoming much more common to see sites listed without this prefix. However, you should also consider your audience if you choose to leave out the “www.”. If you cater to a less computer-savvy customer, you may want to keep it, or if your website address has a less common extension such as .shop or author vs. the common (dot)com; (dot)net or (dot)org, you may want to keep the prefix that way. It distinguishes that it is, in fact, a web address. Your designer should be able to advise you whether to keep the prefix or remove it.
Physical address
This one depends on your business. If you operate virtually without a brick-and-mortar location, customers can visit. You should not list the physical address as an independent contractor, a yard maintenance service, or an e-commerce shop. However, suppose you are operating from a physical place where clients are present or want to locate you, such as a restaurant, a storefront retail store, or a dentist. In that case, you should list your physical address most definitely on your card.
Other elements?
There may be additional items you may want to put on your cards, such as your job title, for example, but always ask yourself this question first – “is this information vital for my business card?”. If you can find this information elsewhere, like on your website, you should probably leave it off. You want to try to maintain a clean card and only with the vital information. Whenever possible, legibility is king here, and less is more. If you believe that adding something extra details would be helpful, maybe your social media links or a reminder of an appointment, the back of a business card is a good location for this kind of extra information. The backside is also an excellent place to place your logo (mainly if you use a symbol as a part of it or a separate, alone standing identity part). It will make the business card stand out and help people associate you with the company you represent.
There are many ways of making your cards unique and letting them be a good “ambassador” of your company. I have recently written another article about lifting your business by transforming it into a brand. The branding process helps with highlighting your venture as more professional and building credibility. “Branding process explained” article is available here.
Where to get cards printed?
Now, when you have a business card design well prepared, let’s check how to print it and prepare it for your customers. There are undoubtedly many printing houses in your region, although you can save much time by ordering them online. Here is our list of 6 decent printing sites (in the U.S.):
Elite Flyers
Without a doubt, Elite Flyers tops our list due to their nearly endless options for custom cards. They have more customizable options than any other printer by far! They also feature the ability to quickly upload your company’s original design/logo via an app on their website. The process is very user-friendly, and we had no trouble swiftly uploading our design. Elite Flyers’ design team is also fantastic. They can create a 100% unique image/logo for your brand to help you stand out from the crowd for a nominal fee!
They offer high-quality printing options like foil stamping, spot U.V., raised foil, raised spot U.V., and more! In addition, you can choose from standard width, super thick 32pt, and even thicker 48pt stock for a lovely, meaty card. There are also silk and velvet card stocks, as well as animated and lenticular cards! In short, we were very impressed by Elite Flyers’ custom options, great prices, accessible tools, and quick turnaround time. They’re the best business card printers in the industry!
MOO
Moo offers excellent, high-quality cards, reasonable pricing, and plenty of deals for free business cards with services such as About.me and Facebook. Moo provides mini cards and full-size business cards, and with nearly any text, picture, or design you choose, you can design your cards through an excellent web app that allows you to tweak and customize the front and back. If you choose to include different pictures or designs on each card, you can even customize your card order, perfect for photographers looking to demonstrate their job. You can even get NFC business cards if you want. Of course, Moo reps are always a phone call away does not hurt, and their printing and shipping are rapid. Plus, your cards are not always watermarked, even if you get free ones.
GOTPRINT
Another solution that is more affordable than some others in the roundup is GotPrint. It provides various card sizes, inventory, and paper choices, but make no mistake — the service prints company cards, not picture cards or designer cards. Nevertheless, if you have access to a designer or want simple, elegant, and tidy business cards with a more traditional look, we have observed that GotPrint is an excellent choice. The service offers several cuts, shapes, and colors, all of which are available at competitive prices if you want something fancy and unique. We have also read that many clients also praised GotPrint for their fast turnaround and quick shipping.
VISTAPRINT
VistaPrint does not give the same customization instruments as some competitors do, but their most significant advantage is their cost. The firm was one of the first to provide super-affordable business card printing to people who just wanted their cards for themselves or their companies, generally throwing 250-500 free cards to any fresh client who signs up. Even now, a quick search for Google will result in deals where you can get free cards as long as you pay for shipping. Other codes will shave off your order a heavy quantity or offer you free shipping. You usually have to choose from predetermined designs and layouts and deal with a VistaPrint watermark on the back of your card unless you‘re willing to pay, but if the cost is the central aspect, VistaPrint is the best choice for you.
JUKEBOX
An independent, detailed printing company, JukeBox provides a fantastic range of card stock types, including traditional white paper textured pulp and lovely recycled paper choices. If you want something genuine and unique, the company even provides wood business cards. They also give a broad range of paper colors, types and more choices for customization and customization than many other printing agencies. You can be sure that they won’t look like everybody else when you order your cards from JukeBox. JukeBox’s pricing is competitive (although not bargaining basement— their strategy is to get what you’re paying for.) However, you’re going to have to supply your designs— no internet wizard to guide you through the process, but the end outcome is you’re getting real private cards. The firm is based in Canada but is shipping all over the world.
OVERNIGHTPRINTS.COM
Overnight Prints, like GotPrint, are specialized in mass printing of all types, not just business cards. They offer you the choice to upload your layout, use their wizard, or choose from pre-defined templates of your choice. You can also select your finish, card stock, and colors. You’ll find fewer customization options here, but you can upload any design you want in the wizard and contact them for something unique. The value is in the name. OvernightPrints is dedicated to fast, easy, affordable printing without breaking the bank in the process. They may not be the best choice if you’re searching for fancy designer cards, but if you’re looking for something traditional in significant amounts without spending a ton of money, it’s worth a look.
FINAL WORDS
Now you’re prepared to go for it after understanding what you need to place on your business cards and how to get them printed quickly. Collect the details you want to put on it, choose the design from the websites listed above (or ask your designer to create a beautiful design that fits your brand style), figure out how many you might need, and do it!
You should consider one more thing to be sure your cards won’t land in the thrash – whom should you provide with them? I have written a short guide explaining how to define your target audience and know your clients. You can read it here.
Digital Experience Designer & Webflow Certified Expert | Co-Founder & Creative Director @Brandman Design | Product Designer @Netguru | Loving husband & father of 2 wonderful girls.
