Some questions (with a minor rant in front)

[chrisvenus]

I dislike people who don't follow instructions. You say "copy these files up first and once these are done you can do this lot". Then you look at the live website and see he has put them all up together and as a result you have a link on your front page that doesn't work. Oh well, its his job to fix it now anyway since I have given him all the stuff he needs and told him where it should go.

Anyway, minor rant over. :)

I have a question for people:

How do you go about getting yourself a decent set of business cards? At the suggestion of ealuscerwen I am thinking about getting some business cards. What is the best way to get them? I could buy some card and print them at home but that will be a bit cheap (ie poor quality, I don't actually mind about low cost ). Similarly I am not desperate to go to one of those "print your own business card machines" cos they are almost certianly recognisable as just cheap cards again. On the other hand I don't want to pay the several hundred quid that a professional company would pay. So what do I do? where do I go?

I know that Xan has cards so if he could say how he does his that would be helpful. :)

Also on a similar note to looking business like and professional I want to redo my webpage (or perhaps that should really be "do" my webpage) to look nice and stuff. Anybody got suggestions on what should go on it and so on? I can write web pages but I never know what to put on them that will be interesting. This has to be stuff that won't scare people that might want to employ me as well. :)

Comments

[susanofstohelit.livejournal.com]

I rather doubt it would cost even a hundred quid, unless you wanted a thousand cards. Check at Kinkos or a copyshop, they could probably do it fairly cheap. I know $50 or $60 is standard for a couple hundred cards in the states.

also with the print your own, they look fine if you can access a laser printer. it's just when they're done on low-quality ink jet they look bad.

Business Cards

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

I recently got sets done for myself and John. Drew 'em on Illustrator plus Photoshop and got 'em digitally printed onto card (way cheaper than conventional printing, especially for small print runs and quality is at least as good).

Cost was £40 for two sets of 50 cards. So about £20 for 50 (don't know whether the price was discounted either for being two sets at once or because Dawn ordered them and she sounds cute on the phone). <grin>

If you send me the text and graphics for the cards I'm happy to get the files print-ready for you. Or you can do it yourself, but don't let the print place do it for you 'cos they'll charge for it if they take any time over it (which they'd need to for it not to suck).

Re: Business Cards

[chrisvenus]

Is that something that most print shops will be able to do (thinking could I find somewhere in oxford that will do it)? Also how long did it take cos as I said to bob I'd preferably like to have them for next Monday. I'd suspect that wandering in to a printers will get them done same day but I may be wrong...

I may well take you up on the offer of doing the files for me but I'll at least give it a go first. I know you are a whole lot better at anything arty or graphics related than me though. :)

Do you have any reccomendations for what to put on the cards? You mention graphics but I'd have no idea what graphics I might use. I have no real logo or indeed company. If I was going for a logo I'd vaguely consider just an outline of a polar bear because I like polar bears and they are me or something. Hmmm... time to go play I think... :)

Re: Business Cards

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

I don't know if all printers do this stuff, but certainly there'll be several places in Oxford that will have the tech.

If you need them for next Monday morning you're cutting it a bit fine. The process is quick, but printers tend to work on a first-in-first-out basis with jobs so you may have to look around for one which will quote same-day. (We were initially quoted 3-4 days, which they reduced to 2 days when we pointed out that was when we needed to use them.)

Also, don't use an outline of a polar bear. Use a photo of a polar bear against (say) a blue fade. Line art is so 80s ! What else to put on ? Your contact details and what you do (New Media Design ? Web Designer ?) - keep it slightly minimalist for preference since it looks nicer and you work in a visual industry !

[borange.livejournal.com]

www.vistaprint.co.uk

they almost ALWAYS have a deal for 250 free business cards

will try and fin d the exact link tomorrow if its not on the frontpage

they ARE good and free no less :o)

[chrisvenus]

That looks pretty good (the free stuff was obvious). My only problem being that I would preferably like them for next Thursday when I am going to be at a big corporate BBC party with lots of people who might give me work in the future. I might order some from them (since they might get them to me quicker) and look around some normal print shops in oxford for people who will do same day stuff if I provide them with source images.

And they are free except for shipping which is a difference. :) Still cheap though. :)

[borange.livejournal.com]

heh I only know cause I get spam email about them every other day :o)

have never actually looked so had no idea about shipping stuff

also look in whsmiths for business card printing things - they used to have some cheap ones which were pre-cut which didn't have the same raggedy edge problem the Avery ones do

tho I seem to remember they were layed out funnily which meant they were ahrder to set up to print than the Avery stuff but you only need to do that once I suppose :)

and in all this you have reminded me I need to get some business cards doen seeing I'm job hunting and my current work ones probably aren't the smartest plan ;o)

Cool

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

The way this works is that because the colour parts of the designs are standard they can print them in huge volumes which makes them very cheap. Your details are then printed on in black, which being a monochrome print is far cheaper and gets paid for by their frankly absurd postage costs.

It's still good value, though, which makes me suspect that the back of your business cards might end up saying 'Vistaprint' on them ! Don't know for sure, but I'm a cynic. <wink>

Re: Cool

[chrisvenus]

It does say vistaprint on the back. You pay an extra 7 quid to not have it which is still not bad. :) You're cynicism is proved worthwhile. :)

Re: cards

[liriselei.livejournal.com]

mine are just done on one of those machines (in Ryman's on the High), hence the dodgy printing