What’s on an Artists Business Card?
As an artist, the business card can look like an antiquated relic in the era of the world wide web, but it is among the most effective and employed personal branding tools in any company. Those in-person connections continue to be valuable to have, and also a well-designed business card may connect you with your next purchase, commission, or presentation.
What should you include on an artists business cards?
Layout and card stock are important, but the most integral part of your artist business card is that the information on it. A card is totally useless if it does not tell anybody how to reach you. A name (including your business name) contact number, and email address will make certain you can “continue the conversation” with anybody who is interested in your job, or wants to contact you about possible work or services. Your card should also have your site on it, or a place where your work can be seen online. You should never attempt to fit your entire catalog on a card, or flip your card into a catalogue, so by placing your site on your card, you are telling people that there’s more to see and showing them how to view it.
You do not have to write the word ‘artist’ on your card, however, your business card should clearly state to anybody that you are one. You can have one of your artworks act as the background, or add a universal picture icon, like a picture frame, paintbrush, camera, or chisel. In case you have many distinct types of artwork (like if you’re both a commissioned portrait painter as well as an abstract expressionist), then it could be handy to have two distinct designs based on the appropriate practice you’re trying to promote.
These things are not required, but may be helpful information to your business card:
Services you provide:
Your address (if you have a studio or company)
Logo
Social Media icons
Sample of your work
And please, no QR codes. QR codes will waste unnecessary space in your card and who is likely to scan them. Just including the URL of your webpage will do everything your QR code needs to do, and it will do it in a more appealing manner.
Design & Size
If there were a standard design for an artist business card, we would say you should ignore it. Make your card stick out from the crowd. After all, your artwork does. Nonetheless, there are certain design elements that you ought to remember, or your own business card may offend more than it brings. You can trial out general printing for your card, however if you want it to have a bit more flair, upgrading to a higher quality business printing may be the right option for you.
Stay small. A business card may vary in shape and size, but it must never be bigger than 3 1/4″ x 2 1/2″ or 8.5 cm x 5.5 cm. This is because this size business card will fit in most standard pockets and pockets. If you publish a business card larger than these dimensions, they can become problematic to the receiver and they may just throw your card off!
Keep it clean. We have given the identical advice for artist sites, artist claims, portfolios, and nearly every blog post we have ever done. Do not over-clutter your business card with too much information, or it will look unattractive and perplexing.
Keep it clear. Use simple fonts that are easy to read on your final print design, especially to your email address. Should you ever want anybody to get in touch with you, they will have to be able to clearly read your email address, or else you may as well not have given them a business card as the contact info may be deemed useless!
Use no more than one artwork per side. Your business card is small and your art should use all of the space it can to make an impression. If you are incorporating artwork into the plan, let it fill the height or length of your business card. It will be bold and impactful, and can also be viewed as a type of business stationary used for marketing purposes. Do not force numerous functions onto the card or it’ll seem over-cluttered and unprofessional.
Use powerful paper. This will be more expensive, but strong paper lasts longer and gives a better sense of professionalism. It shows people that you take your art seriously enough to invest in a great quality business card. Strong paper also tends to keep color better, which will make your art look great! In case you really want to show off your 50 great paintings, then publish 50 great distinct business cards and let people chose which business card they would like to choose from you.
Fancy Shapes
Everyone’s anticipating the rectangle, but you can do interesting things with printers nowadays. Whether you are rounding the edges or altering the shape entirely, ensure that your card stock is thick enough to withstand the unconventional form.
Fancy Materials
We met an artist whose timber business cards did great justice to their own wooden sculptures, or even if you want to use stainless steel wire mesh panels on your next creative business card to really make it stand out from the crowd. You can use many different materials such as metal, cardboard, or wire work to produce an excellent business card. You could even use fabrics, sandpaper, plastic, the list continues!
Interactive Business Cards
While it is a fantastic idea to have several stock ready-made business cards available, one good thing you can do would be to have some blank business cards with your site and data on it which you can draw private one-of-a-kind designs/artworks on. Met a collector with an art fair? Draw their portrait on the company card that you give to them! This can be a fantastic gimmick, particularly for artists with a focus on portrait or drawing.
