Prepare Your Business Cards like Patrick Bateman in American Psycho

“Look at that subtle off-white coloring. The tasteful thickness of it. Oh my God, it even has a watermark!” That was a line uttered by Christian Bale’s character, Patrick Bateman, in the movie American Psycho as he looked in amazement and envy at a colleague’s business card. Well you don’t need to be as obsessed about your business card as him but it does not hurt to have some vanity involved when preparing your business cards.

Your business cards represent you and your company. It is not like a pamphlet or a brochure that sells your product or service. It is selling you. Your business card is what you are, so if you start handing out cheaply made cards, then that is also what people might think of you.

You have to remember that business cards have been the go-to-tool for building a network, so making it as professional looking as possible will definitely raise a few positive feedbacks for you and your company.

So here are some tips that you can follow when creating your business card:

1. Update your information – List the contact information that you want to be seen on your business card. Even a full-featured RingCentral phone system would be useless if you can’t be contacted because you printed the wrong number on your business card.

2. Go to a professional printer – A lot of people print their own business cards, which is fine if you have the creative aptitude for it. If not, you might end up with unevenly cut cards that are made of cheap cardboard paper. Paying for the services of a printshop can be more practical. You can even get suggestions from someone who knows their craft.

3. Plan the look of your business card – How do you want your card to look? How big should the company logo be? What font should you use to print your name? There are a lot of things to consider and everything should always look professional. Collaborate with your printing service to find the best look for your business card.

4. Keep the cards in a case – Keep your business cards protected. Keeping them in your pockets or your wallet subjects the cards to wear and tear. Wont it be embarrassing to hand over a worn out business card to people you want to make a good impression on?

Now that you have your business cards at the ready, you are now ready to go out, attend business events, meet different people from different industries, and generally just expand your business network. Just don’t get psycho if you find a better looking Patrick Bateman business card.