Got my new business cards today, they look fabulous Now off to dinner.

We offer a wide range of options from simple one sided full colour cards, through to plastic credit card style cards.

Business cards are one of the most popular promotional tools today – they’re quick, easy and effective, and they won’t break the budget! What’s more, they’re essential for any business.

With years of experience working as business card printing  provider to a wide range of customers offering high quality printing at the most affordable prices in the market. Our mission is to be the most convenient, and trustworthy printing destination on the internet.

At PR Design, we are committed to supplying our clients with the best possible price on printing. We believe our prices on business cards are about the best in Australia. Not only the price, but the quality of the print and the fast turnaround time.

Please email us at info@pr.com.au for any further information or queries about business card printing or any of our other services that you require. We believe in total customer satisfaction.

With the current economic climate being what it is an increasing amount of small business owners are taking it upon themselves to create designs for their business cards, flyers, and other marketing materials. While this may be a cost-effective method, it does not always allow for the best results ascetically. An untrained designer has a much higher chance of creating an uninspired, old-fashioned, or just plain ugly design. And that is not to be pretentious and to say that all of us highly-trained graphic designers have all the answers, either. We are all prone to get stuck in design ruts or just run out of ideas.

Luckily, PrintFirm offers over 10,000 pre-designed templates for every type of marketing material from business cards and Rolodex cards to brochures and flyers. And even better, every conceivable business type is represented with industry-specific themes and pictures. These industries include real estate, jewelry, coffee, travel, and even smoke shops. Who knew!?!

Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em

So why give yourself an anxiety attack while staring at a blank Adobe Illustrator document? Go to PrintFirm and let us take care of the hard part and you can claim all the credit!

We’re excited to debut a new weekly feature on the PrintFirm Blog – The Design Tip of the Week. Each week we’ll offer a handy tip that may help you add a new dimension to your graphic designs. Since this is the first in what will hopefully be a long-running feature, let’s start with a basic and fundamental process needed to achieve a satisfying printed work – Monitor Calibration.

Calibrating a monitor is necessary to display colors and tones to match the standard settings used for output, such as luminosity and color. Through the standardization of monitor settings achieved by calibration, you’ll have more confidence that the image displayed onscreen will be reflected in the printed piece.

A screen calibration device such as Pantone’s huey ($89; www.pantone.com) or X-Rite’s Eye-One Display LT ($169; www.xrite.com) will assure correct color matching to the printer. There are also free options for Mac and Windows users that can help calibrate the display. However they are not as accurate or as easy as a good colorimeter.

Calibrating on Mac OS X

Preset monitor profiles are available in the Display Preferences pane. Go to System Preferences, click Displays, and then click the Color tab. You’ll see a list of profiles you can use for your photography, such as Adobe RGB.

Apple Color Chart

We also suggest creating your own profile. While in Displays, click the Calibrate button. You’ll then go through the basic steps of visual color calibration. It’s not as accurate as the mechanical calibration a colorimeter can perform, but it’s a giant step in the right direction.

Apple Calibration Assistant

Calibrating on Windows

Stock monitor profiles are also available on Windows PCs. In Vista, right-click on your desktop and choose Personalize from the contextual menu, and then choose Display Settings. Click the Advanced Settings button, click the Color Management tab, and then click the Color Management button; you’ll see the monitor profiles available for your computer.

Microsoft Color Management

Even though Windows doesn’t have a built-in calibrator, you can use third-party software to help you create a profile. For example, the Adobe Gamma application that comes with Photoshop is a useful tool for checking the accuracy of your monitor.

As I’ve noted before, I love working on personal design projects for people–projects where I get to take their personality and portray it in the design.  I just finished a such a project for a client, who also happens to be my cousin Andrew.  He asked me to do his business cards and I gladly accepted.

Andrew and his awesome wife Tovah live in Chicago, and are absolutely in love with their city.  Andrew is currently in grad school at the University of Chicago for public policy, and I decided to display his love for Chicago in his business cards.

A while back, my friend photographer friend Ashton had some business cards printed with Moo, and I absolutely loved the way they turned out.  The paper is slightly matte, which makes the cards really unique compared to the other thousands of plain business cards being passed around.  But the winning feature about using Moo to print business cards is that you can have up to 50 different designs within one set of cards with no additional cost.  Moo is where I turned to get Andrew’s cards printed.

Because of this really cool feature with Moo, I decided to take a variety of sharp black and white photographs of various parts of Chicago and use them on one side of the card.  The other side of the card–the side with Andrew’s details–would remain the same on all of the cards, but each would have one of the different photos full bleed on the other side.  Here are the images I went with, and I think they are just so striking:

I found them on a free stock photo website that I love, and just did a little editing with the levels to make the whites and blacks as bold as possible.

For the details side of the card, I went very simple because of the busyness on the other side.  I opted for a white background with black text in Geo Sans Lite (per Andrew’s request) and I think it goes so nicely with the feel portrayed by the images.

Then I simply uploaded each of the parts to Moo, which was as painless as could be, and placed the order!  Another neat feature of Moo is that you can order a proof pack of the cards (10 count) for free to make sure they turn out as you expect.  Sometimes with online ordering for printing, you end up with unintended white blocks from crop marks, or pictures cut off in odd places, so this is a great feature to have.

I can’t wait to see how they turn out.  I expect great things!

Do you or someone you know need a business card or other personal materials?  Let me know at lmeanswell@mac.com and we can talk details!

Plain old chipboard gussied up to Green

When Julia Conway, foodie extraordinaire and co-owner of Stella Cadente Olive Oil Company, came to me for her new business cards, I showed her some very gnarly chipboard with lots of organic matter evident in the texture, thinking it would look great with their distinctive Stella Cadente logo. She loved the idea and loved the finished product just that much, as did Lewis, her business partner.

Texture, color, thickness — Chipboard adds up to a great look for business cards that represent hand crafted, sustainable foods and other environmentally pertinent products

I reworked the layout, turned it on its end, and played matchmaker between the muscular paper and environmentally sound intention of Stella Cadente. Black ink (soy based, of course), front and back, impressed with enough bite into the 100% recycled paper to give one more bit of third dimension to these yummy cards.

– Totally recycled, super thick paper –

Stella Cadente flavored olive oils are one of life’s non-guilty pleasures. Nothing but big, gorgous flavor to put on everything from your salad to your baguette, even in your cake. Meyer Lemon, Persian Lime, Rosemary, Basil…How can it be so perfectly good for you as well?

How many foodies do you have on YOUR shopping list?

beautiful…

You’ve gone through the design tutorials. You’ve scanned through hundreds, if not thousands, of fonts and type-settings. You’ve perfected your company logo. You visited PrintFirm to get your business card printed just right. You’ve waited patiently for the UPS guy to show up with that magical box. And now you take those cards and shove them inside your desk?!?

Nobody ever landed a job or client by letting their business cards hibernate in a box in the back of their desk drawer. Now is the time to get out there and give ‘em out.

While there is no rule book on how to give out business cards, there is a certain proper etiquette that can and should be followed, especially when it comes to the face-to-face exchange of cards. We’re not accusing anyone of being a heathen who looks like a Geico caveman, but it never hurts to brush up on the social skills.

Here is a video from YouTube that gets into it.

It’s not The Godfather it is better than Jennifer’s Body.

Jennifer's Body (2009)

It may seem simple, vain, or even petty, but your business card is the first visual impression of your company that a person sees and reviews.  If that is the case shouldn’t you be bold or different?  Why settle for a nice ivory, flimsy, times new roman, one sided card?  Why not stand out in a crowd?

Having the right blend of information on the card for your type of business is critical.  But more than the information on it, the card must create an impression and be memorable.  If you are not thinking at this level of detail then you better get there quickly because your competition could be.

Our business card is almost as thick as a credit card, with rounded corners and three colors (black, blue, white).  All our marketing material has the same design and soon our 3rd generation website will too (which is being designed by web developers).  Consistency is a must in marketing and everything from your business card, letterhead, and advertisements needs to have some level of consistency to create security and awareness.

We talk about noise and breaking through to people when you present your marketing things to them.  Graphics is a huge part of creating that awareness and standing on in a crowd.  It would be like going into the financial district of Boston at lunch time and walking around wearing a HOT Pink Suit with a bright yellow tie.  You would stand out in any crowd…especially that one and people would come up to you and ask questions.  Are you prepared to be that bold with your marketing?  Can you wear a hot pink suit?  Try it on and you might find that you gain the exposure you are looking for to stand out from your competition and all other distractions!

Here you go…

Two very different styles of business cards for the Extreme Painter designed by Laura Stafford in Adobe Illustrator.

Business Card: Extreme Painter by Laura Stafford

Business Card: Extreme Painter by Laura Stafford

Professional Business Cards are hip and urban in their design.

Green Tech Fashion Business Cards by SublimeStationery
More Green Business Cards

One big problem with a traditional square business card is you can only do so much with the shape that’s been given you. Messing with the size doesn’t work – who wants a business card the size of a DVD cover? Well, there’s a solution allowing you to stay in the rectangular style without having to die-cut the card and get too crazy – Go Vertical!

Erick Uresti from Target Design Group

With a simple switch of the orientation of the text, this card becomes extremely modern while maintaining a clean and simple appeal. Take special notice of the front of the card – the circular design and red watermark in the center are a very nice touch. Of all the many business cards we have seen, this is one of our favorite designs – a great example of style and function meshing together.

Remember, PrintFirm offers the most competitive business card prices on the web. We also offer a complete selection of pre-designed business cards and linen stock business cards or you may choose to use our exclusive business card designer.

Business cards are the face of a company. They reflect not only the name and title of the employee of a company, but also present the image the business wants to project. Many have called the business card the greatest sales and marketing tool ever invented. In the history of the world there have probably been more business cards printed than any other item. Billions of business cards have been printed, yet they continue to be as popular as ever. Your business card is an inexpensive and versatile marketing tool that can say a lot about you and your company. Did you ever stop to think that it costs less than “a thin dime” to make a great first impression with a professional full-color business card? Full Color is an easy way to add style to the greatest marketing tool of all time… the Business Card 

Express Printing & Graphics prints business cards everyday from our Sunnyvale, California location. We specialize in creating custom business cards for our clients. There are numerous papers to choose from and over a thousand ink color combinations. Two sided business cards are very popular today and will add to the impact of a well designed card. 

If you have multiple locations or have numerous employees that need a quick, easy and accurate way to ensure that your business cards are right the first time and every time, then our online gateway ordering system may be right for you. We can create a Web-based ordering site customized for your company that will take the hassle out of ordering business cards. You control access to the site and who can order; ensuring consistency, saving time, reducing waste and helping you control your costs. 

Express Printing & Graphics wants to be your printing company. Whether you need a one color or a full color business card we are here for you. The next time you need printing, copying or mailing services call us at 408-400-0223 or click on our web site, www.expressprintingusa.com. We want to serve you.

The Bracebridge Dinner Company — Photo by Lani Spicer

Last summer I had the great pleasure of having dinner with Andrea Fulton, producer, director and star of The Bracebridge Dinner at Yosemite, and her partner Lani Spicer.

Andrea Fulton

It was a very fun dinner party with our friends Howard Ennes, who invited me in the first place, and Cindy Frank, whom I have known and loved for years, at a little restaurant that overlooks the Noyo Bridge and the fishing boats making their way in from the day’s work.

We had such a great time that evening, I invited Andrea and Lani to come visit my shop on their way out of town the next day. They did come, though later on, Andrea told me she had not really been that interested in seeing a printshop, but they decided they liked me enough to make the stop. When they came in and saw all the work and designs and samples we have around, Andrea and Lani both kind of flipped about everything.

We ended up spending a couple of hours showing and telling, laughing and screaming, and then sending them off with piles of samples to show to her business partner, Margo McCarty. It turned out they had been trying to get a business card they really loved for ages, and when she saw all the stuff in my shop it seemed they had finally found the person who could give it to them. They had.

Fast forward several weeks…all three of them made a field trip to Fort Bragg to see what I could come up with. They had certain elements already in place, like the jester’s hat, and strong ideas about what they wanted the card to “say,” that impression that had to have so much in it about their incredible work.

It’s not usual to have this happen, but we spent most of the day working away, all putting in opinions, dreams, ideas, on all the elements, sort of “design while-u-wait,” with a wise break in the middle when they all traipsed off to get a coffee and ended up going on a shopping spree. When they finally got back with valises full of clothes, I had came up with a design they absolutely adored.

After our day’s labors, we all went out to dinner again to celebrate our long collaboration and happy success. These foodies are definitely my kind of people!

As you can see, we printed the cards up on our favorite, super-thick, 600 gram Cranes Lettra, using black ink and copper foil on both sides. The cards embrace both edges of the personality of the amazing extravaganza Christmas pageant, held each December at The Ahwahnee in Yosemite — the opulent, artful, delicious side…AND…the funny, goofy, tongue-in-cheeky side as well.

We are beside ourselves to be going to The Bracebridge Dinner at Yosemite this year, the SIXTIETH anniversary of the show. The experience of doing these business cards with Andrea, Margo and Lani was so much more than a business transaction. We all ended up falling in LOVE with each other. How can I possibly be so lucky in this life and work I do? I dunno. I am so happy about it though.

Preview

Click here to download the FREE business card 6-Pack. Hope you like it and be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments section.

By Lani Rosales on November 18, 2009

Stand out in the crowd

In a world of high volume, high velocity social networking, it’s no longer good enough to just be present, you have to find ways to stand out so you don’t look like every other real estate agent who is following people on Twitter, Facebook, etc. So we found a quick way that you can aggregate all of your social networks that doesn’t take technical knowledge!

Getting set up

There are many options for creating an online business card that shows all of your social networking and blogging profiles, but our two favorite are card.ly and magntize because they are easy to use and have the most modern themes on the market.

Here are some screen shots of the final result of both online business cards (click the image to see a live demo):

To get started, all you need is a list of your usernames and URLs for your social networks. There are many themes available (themes are like templates or skins) and I chose the ones above because they were clean and streamlined. As a side note, the black and white design has more colorful options, and is the only of the options that offers a capture mechanism, making it act almost as a website and makes it possible for people not using social networks to reach out.

Bonus tips:

Almost all social networks have a spot in your biographical information for you to share your website and the international standard is to share your blog URL. But imagine someone visiting your new online business card instead and seeing not only your main blog but your other social networks and any other blogs you create, giving people the option to reach you in whatever way they are most comfortable. That is awesome!

Another tip is instead of typing http://lani.magntize.com into your social network’s bio position, go to a URL shortener (like bit.ly or dwarfURL) and create a shortened URL not for the convenience of being short but for the ability to track clicks to your online business card, so http://lani.magntize.com has just become http://bit.ly/47MhiY and now I can tell when someone is clicking on it from Twitter or Facebook or otherwise. Don’t just blindly use social media, measuring ROI is possible!

The last tip for online business cards is to use the url on your own business card. Instead of typing in each address you are using and having 20 lines on your card, send people to one place and let them choose their final destination. The era of being able to point people to your blog is not over, but in such a noisy world, it’s nice to be organized about it.

http://agentgenius.com/real-estate-technology-new-media/showcase-your-networking-presence-with-an-online-business-card/

Check-out the Holiday Specials.  Eco-Friendly Company.  Go Green.

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Marketing Materials, Greeting Cards, Business Cards, Catalogs and More.

Special Offers. Color Printing. Check-it-out!

-Glenn

www.glennisgreen.com

www.glennishere.com

Glenn’s Green Holiday Gift Guide:  Go Green!

(http://www.glennisgreen.com/Glenn’s-Green-Holiday-Gift-Guide.html)

Gifts available through: www.GlennisGreen.com
Give the Gift of a More Eco-Friendly World: Buy a Green, Eco-Friendly Gift.  Every Step Counts.

OK, It’s Time to Shop!

(1) Clothing, Jewelry, and Accessories:
Give the Gift of, “Thanks for Growing MY Organic Cotton T-Shirt without Pesticides. And Cool Upcycled Necklace.”

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Pure and Natural Cosmetics with Minerals and Organic Infusions. Get your lipstick here.

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(5) Items for Little Ones: Babies and Toddlers
Gift the Gift of Baby wants to be Eco-Friendly from an early age. And Baby
say, “No Pesticides.”
Gift Ideas: A Toy. Some Organic Cotton Clothes.

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BPA Free (Bisphenol A Free) Items.

(6) Interesting Gifts: New Product Offered Each Day.
Give the gift of, “That’s a cool green gift thing you bought me. Thanks.”
Gift Ideas: The cool thing being offered Today.

•Cool Eco-Friendly Products by Guffly:  A NEW DEAL (Daily Guff) EACH DAY
At A Special Discounted Price. $2 Shipping.
New: Best Sellers and Consumer Favorites (Top Guffs) are now also available. But,
the “daily guff” (product) is offered at a special price. Great Green Gifts. Cool, Hip Products.  A new special offer each day.
Recycled Products. Biodegradable Products. Natural Stuff. Organic Stuff. Reusable. Fair Trade. Sustainable.

(7) Celebrate the Holidays with a Naturally Cleaned Home
Give the Gift of “the Natural Clean” and the Fewer Chemicals in My
Home is Better.
Gift Ideas: Natural Cleaner, Natural Air Freshener, Natural Yoga Mat Wash.

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Some Other Gift Ideas: Give the Gift of Helping Another.

•Resources for Helping Others
Make a Small Donation on Behalf of A Friend or Relative
Plant a Tree
Give Money to Organizations that Give Microloans To Help People Across the World.
Work with Your Child to Learn More about Going Green and Helping Others.
•Going Green Resources

Thanks for Shopping Buy!

Check-out all of these gift ideas at www.GlennIsGreen.com

-Glenn

founder,

www.glennisgreen.com

www.glennishere.com

25% off this Thanksgiving week only

Full color business cards available here for online design and free upload. Create your own unique design using our online designer, or upload and see your proof using our Insta-Proof system. Business Cards and many other great printed products designed or uploaded online and printed overnight.