Let your card do the talking

You would not dream of meeting someone socially or professionally without handing a business card.

While they serve a very practical purpose, the majority follow the same tired format; white rectangles with the company logo; English on one side, Arabic on the other. But now more companies are wising up to the advertising potential of having quirky business cards.

Lego's cards, in the shape of its toy figures, have proved popular since they were created two years ago and while these have a direct visual relationship to the company, not all gardeners must produce them in the shape of a tree or mechanics like cars for them to be a talking point.

The One founder Thomas Lundgren made cards akin to theatre entry tickets in keeping with the theme of outlets.

"You don't need a business card to gain entry to our stores – it's just a cool way to communicate our theatre concept from the first point of contact with someone who might not know what The One is about," says Lundgren.

He, like advertising and PR agency Memac Ogilvy, has also produced more than one card, each with a different wisdom, or thought for the day, such as "Love thy neighbour. But always have more stylish furniture" on the Love card or "Live the dream. But do it from a comfortable chair".

Ogilvy's cards are smaller than normal in response to the recession and have phrases on one side that include: "Saving on paper, not on creativity" and "Cut on costs and let loose imagination".

Its Regional MD for the GCC, Ronald Howes, who is one of a number of senior executives to have them, says: "They have made पीपुल टेक नोटिस. If you look at Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, both do the same thing but what's different is the perception of the brands. Virgin is seen to be more quirky, innovative and exciting and that's what we are trying to do."

With 10 in the collection, some associates have asked for them all, which poses the question of whether they do in fact save paper, but Howes says they are having a positive effect on business.

"Clients have been amenable. With a lot of brands, it's a question of attitude and these cards show we are bring proactive and dealing with the changing landscape," he says.

Although Ogilvy's were only introduced recently, The One's were created two years ago. When Lundgren meets someone, he dramatically fans out all four designs and asks the recipient to choose one – live, love, dare and believe. He closes his eyes, breathes deeply and says, "Think carefully before you choose, as your choice will reveal a lot about your personality".

"Once the slightly nervous recipient makes their choice, I tell them that they will shortly receive an e-mail "revealing their path to Enlightenment". And sure enough, within a few days, mysteriously accurate words of wisdom are sent from the guru."

Branding consultants agree that business cards can go a long way in creating a first – and lasting – impression.

Matthew Laubscher, Executive Creative Director of The Brand Union Middle East, says, "Even a simple business card begins a conversation but it needs to reflect your brand. Too many times companies take their logo and simply apply it to anything that they could possibly fit it on. While this obviously propagates the distribution of your brand, it is often meaningless and does not allow for a deeper interaction with customers. The business card must be designed around a truth and be relevant for your brand."


And this is true for Howes. "They are cute but the messages put a little smile on your face. I feel we have picked up on our character and personality and that's important," he says.