Business owners, graphic designers and people who represent many other professions, are interested in creating very attractive and useful business cards. It is good to know some basic rules associated with designing and using these cards.
The process of creating a professional and attractive business card is not very complicated. You only need to have special software or tools installed on your computer. It is possible to start from the beginning in any layout program like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint or Publisher. What is more, people who are interested in creating business cards can also use traditional graphics programs like Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. They are not very complicated, so even beginners can learn very fast how to create business cards. Many online services and websites offer free business card templates to download and most of them are available for free.
Basic information about business cards
The standard, commonly used size of a business card is 3,5 x 2 inches and it is the size of a finished card. Some types of business cards include bleed. This is a special, small area that extends beyond the borders of a finished card. This extra space is about 1/8 inch long. Business cards with bleed are printed oversized and after printing, they are cut down according to selected size, so they do not have white borders.
Some people are interested in creating vertical business cards. In this case, it is required to switch the width and height of a page, so there will be no necessity of rotating the whole card to see the intended design of a business card. The standard size of 3,5 x 2 inches is 8,9 x 5,1 cm in metric system (88,9 x 50,8 mm).
Be careful around the borders of a business card
The process of cutting can be different in different situations, so keeping all important information (text, logo, etc.) in a safe zone of design, can be a very good idea. This safe zone is the 1/8 inch around the card margin, so the text has to be located within a 3,25 x 1,75-inch area of a business card. You will avoid trimming off the phone numbers or letters in the e-mail address.
Creating a design with borders can be a difficult task. In case of thin borders that are smaller than 1/8 inch, the trimming may not be done evenly. Borderlines should be located away from the edge of a business card. Thanks to this solution, a business card will not have an off-center look.
Other types of business cards
Two-sided business cards provide more space for valuable information, special offers or other types of data. While creating these types of business cards, it is important to create a separate page in a file for the backside. Of course, both pages have to meet the aforementioned size specifications. What is more, people who create business cards can use special options like round corners or other custom effects.
Not everyone can create a good project or has got enough time for printing business cards. Fortunately, we can find many professionals and special companies that are specialized in creating these elements. They include their offers on the Internet, so it is easy to find them.
