Thoughts on business cards

I wanted to create a business card that would look and be presented in a professional manner, with the layout of the text and the position of the image being legible and aesthetically pleasing. I mainly found inspiration from business cards I had collected from Thought Bubble and other conventions through the structure and the size of the cards. I found that a common link between some of the business cards that I had collected, had the front of the card filled with one of their works, the majority only including their name and practice on the back of the card. I felt that this worked well as it made it seen as if it was a piece of work itself and would be nice to keep. I did prefer the smaller business cards that reminded me of mini bookmarks rather than a business card, however I liked how different it was. I found that the artists that had these style of business cards offered more than one design, which I felt worked successfully as again it felt that you were given a piece of work to take with you. I debated creating a business card in this size however I felt that a normal sized business card would be better for the final outcomes for the module. I did however like the idea of creating a business card much like Jake Lava's one, through how the business card opens up to show a few comic panels with his details on the back. I felt that this would work really well with one of my storyboards or just a very short story with 4 frames so that the visuals can be easily depicted. However due to time I wouldn't be able to create something like this due to not having a short story to put into the inside. I could have cut some of the frames from a storyboard I had already done, however I felt that there wouldn't be a nice end to the last panel, making it not work as successfully as I would have wanted to.

Primary Research 

I then researched into creative business cards, as during my time at college I created my CV to replicate tarot cards, which worked with the style and line of illustration that I had used. I wanted to consider to create something like this for at least next year as I love the idea of creating something that is different, it makes people remember and keep the business cards. I felt that for summer and in time for Thought Bubble, I wanted to have a simple business card that would be cost effective so that I would be able to print a few at once. I want to ensure that I have a business card in time for next years career track tuesday and networking events so that I can build up my confidence with networking in a more professional manner.

I researched into a range of professions for the business cards, I loved the use of having the business cards within a sleeve that gave something to the silhouette that was cut out of it. The use of the business cards being practical was a fantastic idea to go along with the profession that it was advertising, I found a range of interesting designs stemming from bottle openers to tape measures. Thinking practically for my profession, I felt that the style of Jake Lava's business card would be the most efficient if I was to make the business cards more creative however if I was creating an animation style business card, I felt that the use of a mini flipbook or in the form of lenticular imagery to give an understanding of movement.