Instructions on Designing Business Cards

Business cards come at a standard size of 3 1/2 by 2 inches.

Business cards are one of the best things to have on hand when you're out on the town networking. They are small and easy enough to carry in your wallet, but they can pack a lot of punch when it comes to getting out the word on what you do and where you do it. The design of your business card should draw people in and help explain what you do as quickly as possible.

Things You'll Need

• Photoshop or similar computer design program

Instructions

1. Open Photoshop or your imaging program of choice. Begin a new document, and set the project's dimensions at 3 1/2 inches by 2 inches. For reference, a standard letter-size document is 8 1/2 by 11 inches.

2. Choose your background color or image. Your business card should reflect your job -- if you work with kids, you might want your card to be bright and fun, if you work in a financial field, you may prefer it to be simple and neutral.

3. Type in your contact information and place the text on the card wherever you want it. If your background has an image, make sure your text can be read over it. If the image is dark, keep your text away from the image.

4. Experiment with fonts. Playful fonts such as Comic Sans will be laughed at in professional business settings, but might be just the ticket for nursery administrators or preschool teachers.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are having your business cards professionally printed, refer to the printer's suggested dimensions for your cards. This may require you to adjust your design slightly.

• Some designers, artists and others with creative jobs may choose to step outside of the standard business card dimensions and designs and make their cards more eye-catching with multiple designs.

Resources

• Webdesigner Depot: How to Design Your Business Card