01. Business Card Research

ASSIGNMENT BACKGROUND / WHY WE’RE DOING THIS

Business cards are an important part of professional interaction. Although there are numerous alternatives — apps, digital address books, etc. — physical cards are still integral in face-to-face interaction. I often tell people that a business card is like your second chance to make a first impression: long after you have met someone, you may stumble across their card again. How well that card speaks to you can affect the way you remember him / her. Business cards are also an opportunity to show off your sense of style or professionalism without having to show your actual work (which is often difficult in chance meetings). With this assignment, we will understand the basic process of shopping for, designing and printing business cards for our professional endeavors.

///////// OBJECTIVES

By the time we’re done with this project, we will be able to do the following:

  1. Determine what makes a ‘good’ business card.
  2. Look for companies to print materials.
  3. Understand basic concepts such as 4-color and bleeds.
  4. Make individual choices on the look of personal cards.
  5. Order cards that are professionally printed.

STEPS

\\\\ RESEARCH

  1. Research online about what makes a good business card. Find two resources online (or in other books or magazines) that describe what makes a business card good or successful. Come up with a list of at least 3 things.
  2. Based on your research, then find 5 examples of what you consider to be ‘good’ business card designs. You must be able to give 2–3 concrete examples of why the card is successful base on your research. For example: You cannot explain why a card is successful by using personal feelings. If you find an example of a green business card, you cannot say that it’s successful because you ‘like the color green.’ You would need to look at the card critically, using the information you learned from your research.

\\\\ PRESENTATION

Once you have done your research and found your examples, put together a brief PowerPoint presentation with your list of 3 elements that make a business card successful and your 5 card examples. This is not a stereotypical PowerPoint presentation because it will be downloaded and viewed by your classmates, so make sure it clearly and succinctly  explains your views on each slide.

GRADING

To get credit for this assignment, you will need to submit the following:

  • Submit your presentation via Blackboard.
  • Research findings (3 pts – 1 pt / item)
  • Successful card examples (5 pts – 1 pt / example)
  • Presentation Creation (2 pts)

 

///////// AUTOMATIC FAILURE

  • Required elements are missing within your submission
  • Submission is received after the 5:00pm deadline
  • PowerPoint presentation does not work
  • Presentation is incomplete