Over the last few days I have once again observed how many small companies that export do not clearly describe their various corporate roles on their business cards.
Here are some common mistakes:
- For fear of appearing “too full of themselves” many owners (who are, in fact, also the head of the sales department) write things like sales office or, if they really want to overdo it, sales director. This excess of modesty – I do not know how else to call it – has, as its consequence, that those people who meet them for the first time, like at a fair, for example, do not know who they are talking to. They can be told verbally during the conversation but once they return home it may be forgotten considering all the people they are liable to meet at a fair
- Another mistake is to write just your name on the card without any role and perhaps, also, with just a generic company e-mail address such as info@…. I wonder: if the company is organized through specific roles why not communicate them to others? Selling today is already difficult; why complicate prospective clients’ lives even more
- Going down the hierarchy, I often find employees who participate in fairs (because they know the language, for example) who aren’t given their own business cards. What sin have these pariahs committed? Don’t tell me that it’s too expensive to print cards for them?! With digital printing today costs are so reduced it’s ridiculous. Therefore, when these employees introduce themselves to others they give neutral business cards? Our potential customers will never know who they spoke with
- I have also seen business cards made quickly before the fairs, using fonts and logos that are not coordinated with those in the catalog or on the website. In other words, there is no coordinated image of the company, and this can also create confusion.
A business card must give information about the company but also about the people. Clarity is important!