Hows my business card?

#1

Hi Guys =)
Im doing a business card for my online store (Not live yet - had an ebay store for ages and just finishing off my web site)

Im no designer thats for sure. So just looking for feedback and what i can do to improve my design. The colours match my website and the lines to the side of the name represent 3 different widths of webbing witch is where my store started with just 1 roll of webbing.
The pints on the top of the lines are at different angles to represent different knife grinds as i sell products to sharpen knives and make leather and kydex sheaths etc.

anyway any feedback would be AWSOME as i have no idea about design.

Thanks =)

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#2

The card is serviceable.
The only thing my brain is taking exception to is your tag line.

When you mention webbing, knives, leather and kydex, and that you are thinking the angles in your logo bars will have meaning, I have a fairly good idea of the demographic you are trying to hit with all that.

So here’s the question.
Are you a crafts store…or are you targeting the guys (and more than a few gals) who make knives at home from scrap metal to finish?

A “crafts” store always gives me the impression of wreaths and bows, scrapbooks and knitting first. Very rarely kydex and whet stones. A “maker” store is a little more on the hmmm rougher, more industrial side.

#3

From a print and design perspective I think it’s quite alright. That vertical line that cusps your contact info breaches “phil” at the top, but doesn’t quite make it past “facebook” at the bottom. It’s enough to trigger my mild OCD.

If being printed digitally, you may want to thicken the type on the web address. And ensure your black is 100K and not a rich black. I foresee the registration of the black creeping into the web address.

Otherwise I enjoy the logo a lot. I like the typeface. It’s simple, clean, easy to read. I like it.

#4

Yes i here what your saying.
My store started by accident, and yes the plan was to target guys that like to make stuff with leather, kydex, metal wood, etc. I was even thinking about calling it something like “Man Crafts”
I have had an ebay store for a year or to and my buyers are probably 50/50 men and woman. Guys buy webbing for tactical sewing but then the woman also buy webbing for dog collars etc. The men buy Chicago Screws for there kydex but then just as many woman buy them for binding books n stuff.
No matter what i do i get an even mixture of customers maybe even more woman than men if anything!

So even though my logo is inspired by more manly crafts and the kind of things l like to make, there store is more unisex than anything. Its just happened organically.

I may not even call it Make it store but thats the only thing i can think of that is kind of “accurate” Its a store for people that just like to make stuff.

But yes i totally agree with you, crafts sounds “girly” but then DIY and Makeing stuff may sound a bit more “Manly” thats the very thing im battling with at the moment.

Thanks very much for your feedback =)

#5

Tell us more about your store, please.

You have a large “get creative” on the back, and the front talks about “craft and DIY supplies.” This makes me think that you sell creative supplies, art supplies, and craft supplies – like Michael’s Craft Stores in the U.S.

Then your post mentions knife sharpeners and sheaths. This makes me think more military, military surplus, hunting, prepper, etc.

So, at least in my mind, there is a disconnect. That’s why I asked you to tell us more about your store.

Either way, if you’re more of a Michael’s store or more of a knife store, I feel like the card and logo aren’t working. It’s clean looking, and it’s corporate looking; but does it really represent your business? Does it appeal to the target market?

I’d be happy to critique the card as it stands, but a more general observation is that the overall concept needs to be hashed out.

Just my two cents.

#6

Can you provide a list of the specific items that customers make from your supplies? I’m looking for a pattern that might suggest a name.

Also, it looks like the url is really close to the bottom edge. I’d bring it up higher and leave more room for the bottom edge.

And what about adding QR codes? People use their smartphones’ qr code apps these days.

#7

Haha yes the line is annoying. Dont know what i did there, but i did notice it after i exported it as a jpeg from illustrator but was to lazy to do anything about it. Wish you hadnt of mentioned it as its doing my head in now! haha.

I see what you mean about the web address. I work for a printing company doing signage but ill give it to the digital print people to do me a proof and thicken it up if needed.

Thanks again =)

#8

Actually, I agree with Steve. It’s not ready for prime time yet, including the colors.

#9

Thanks for the feedback, muchly appreciated.
As far as what people make with my supplies, its all over the place as my reply to /PrintDriver explains its hard to pin a demographic down.

#10

As you describe it, your customers are split between two different audiences who just happen to buy the same kinds of things. Your card reflects this inconsistency in that you’ve used masculine colors (DeWalt tools come to mind) and wording that might suggest things like scrapbooking.

Trying to be both things creates a split personality that’s a little confusing. One possible solution might be to create a more neutral look that is neither masculine nor feminine — something that’s more neutral, corporate and descriptive. I’m not suggesting that you make it boring — just more gender neutral. You could even do something subtle, like a varnished word cloud on the back listing the kinds of products you sell.

Another thing to consider is who receives these cards. Unless you’re including a business card with the products people order, your customers might be different from those who actually see the cards.

And, of course, another consideration is whether or not this business card matches and reinforces the look and feel of all the other printed materials you might have.

#11

I don’t think I’d change the name.
It’s fairly “unisex” as it is. But I would reconsider the tag line.
Something other than “craft and DIY supplies”

I’m part of your demographic on the leatherworking/hardware side of things.
I don’t make knives, that’s way too much work, but do sharpen my own knives and working tools.

#12

Yeah, it can be hard. But it’s worth doing, because it leads to design decisions that the demographic will respond to.

For example, the mustard yellow and black in your logo. How did you choose those colors?

Given the little I know about your target market, I would have considered a dark, woodsy, green color (masculine), maybe combined with a light peach (feminine). With black accents, possibly. My point is I would choose colors deliberately that would appeal to your customers.

#13

I really like this idea. The specific products would help clarify your business.

#14

I like the name, but not crazy about your treatment. I’d prefer to see something like, “Make-It Store,” or “The Make-It Store.” I found myself asking, “Make it store? make it store what? What is it storing?”

Are you operating solely online? Do you plan to run your own e-commerce site, or are you only operating on eBay? If it’s the latter, it would be nice to see the eBay logo somewhere, as long as it conforms with eBay’s usage guidelines.

Moving on to the design of the card. Why do you want a business card? I have follow-up questions based on your answer.

I think you can save yourself some money and ditch the “Get creative!” on the back. It doesn’t add anything to the card or any value to your business. If you really want a double-sided card for aesthetic purposes, maybe just add your logo and URL to the back.

Finally, pay attention to your spacing. I’m worried that your web address may get cut off towards the bottom, and your name and contact information are a little too close to the top of the yellow box. I would either center it vertically or get it closer to the optical center.

Good luck!

#15

I would consider going on a stock photo website (such as iStock Photos) and looking for a well photographed image of a craft tool and then incorporate it into the design of your card.

Take a look at this knitting business card. The actual design of this business card is hideous as the text is difficult to read and it has been placed in a chaotic manner. But it does have a rather smart looking photo of knitting needles. It will catch the eye of anyone who likes knitting and they will be drawn to the card and motivated to read it.

Although your card has a much better layout, a person would have to make the effort first to read in order to find out if it is relevant to them. There is nothing to catch their eye. A smart looking stock photo would do that.

Obviously, it’s a business card. So you don’t want to use any image that is too complicated. And don’t feel that you have to use the whole image. If you look at the knitting one, it only uses part of the image. Our minds fill in the rest (which helps to make the card feel bigger than it really is).

Check out this video of business cards, which contains some good examples of photos on business cards (especially the fish one). You card is already strong, but I think the right photo could make it jump out to it’s target audience.

#16

What if he only wants to pay for a 2-color business card, not a 4-color?

#17

That’s a good point! Yeah, if going for a 2-color card then the photo image wouldn’t work.

Best to double check the prices. Where I live all the print shops charge the same for 2 and full colour (but I know it’s not like that everywhere).

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