Here it is -- I DO NOT HAVE ONE!
You read this correctly. I do not have a business card.
Am I crazy?
I do not think so. I just think that business cards have been held in such high esteem for so long from a marketing standpoint, people do not understand how this is possible.
Oh, I use to have business cards and I would hand them out every place. And, frankly I did not mean to stop using them.
It is not really a matter of money for business cards were never that expensive to print. The truth of the matter, however, is that we all concentrate and worry too much about our business cards. They take up more time in thought, preparation and gaming that one would think. But, that is not the reason I do not have one.
I just ran out of cards, got busy, and never replaced them. I guess I never replaced them because after I ran out nobody really much asked for one. That says something about how successful business cards really are in this day and age.
What I have come to find out (or at least suspect) is that these small rectangular pieces of cardstock with your name, phone number and any stupid or cute thing you might think to add are going the way of the land line and yellow pages for lawyers. Business cards are just not that effective any longer.
Here is the truth of the matter. Only old dudes like me still try to keep up with cards. I can hand out a bunch of business cards at a meeting or conference, for example, but I later find them on the floor and in the trash. Hardly anybody holds on to business cards for any length of time.
The reason is that Google is the new business card. If people want to find you they do not dig through a drawer or business cards. they Google your name. This is the reason it helps to have a blog, Facebook and other social network sites. People need to find you when they need you, and business cards no longer hack it.
It use to be that I would hand out tons of cards to my referral sources to hand to their clients, and that use to work well. People would show up to meetings with the cards. Only two problems exist now. One, I rarely meet with clients in person. Two, referral sources do not meet with clients as often either and, when they do, they no longer hand out my business cards. Referral sources are more likely to tell the client over the phone to contact me and they will provide them my URL.
The courts in which I appear say they want business cards before a hearing, but they really do not. They have problem giving up paper and they want to make sure they do not have spelling and memory issues later concerning the court's record. So, they ask for a business card with the case number written on it, along with who I represent. Then they complain because they cannot read the handwriting on the card. So, I never end up in court by accident. When I know I am going to court I print off an appearance sheet with all of the information court personnel could possibly want. It turns out they like this better.
If I make a contact, I give them my URL. I also collect their contact on my phone or somewhere and then put them in my system. First, I send them a follow up email, and this has my contact information. Second, I might call them to follow up, but this is not always certain. Third, I establish their email and fax number so they start receiving email and fax blasts from my office on a regular basis.
As for the business cards people give me. More often than not they do not make it back to the office with me. I record information and throw them away. I sometimes forget business cards in my pocket and they tend to get washed or dry cleaned. Most business cards are of little use after this point.
I participate in a lot of CLE and seminars. I meet people afterwards. But, my contact information is plastered all over the printed material or the PDFs provided to the participants.
Wow! I finally got that secret out. I have been keeping it to myself, but now I feel better. I feel some relief getting that off of my mind. I know, I am a radical. I hope you will not think less of me because I have abandoned a tradition and do not have a business card.
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