The Business Card vs “Bump”

On November 9, 2009, in Business, Paper, Technology, by Deb Lee, Certified Professional Organizer®
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I read a very interesting article last week about whether or not the business card can be retired.  Afterall, isn’t that the way we keep in touch with the other entrepreneurs we meet?  Well, if you’re an iPhone user, you might do away with the business card altogether.  Yep, you guessed it, there’s an app for that and it’s called “Bump.”  Basically, you “bump” your iPhones together and, presto! – you each get the other’s contact information.

Other benefits:  you’ll save a bunch of trees and get rid of all that business card clutter on your desk (say goodbye to buying rolodexes and biz card binders).  Sounds great, right? Well, at least one other professional organizer and I say yes. Here’s how we weighed in on the article, Can’t We Retire the Business Card, by Jennifer Walzer…


November 3, 2009 2:30 pm

Here are some tools for capturing b-card info:  Using Evernote Mobile, you can take a picture of the card and the text becomes searchable. You could certainly take a picture of the person and add it to the same note.

And Bump technologies makes an iPhone app that allows you to transfer contact information by literally bumping iPhones.

Oh, and let go of the old business cards and make room for new opportunities!

— Lauren Halagarda


November 4, 2009 8:50 am

I’m with Lauren on this one. There are other options out there to explore. Evernote and Bump (I use both) are great at capturing the information you need.

If you make it a point of calling/e-mailing those people that you meet at networking events soon after meeting them, the problem of remembering that you have their contact info in your phone (or other gadget) will be a non-issue. Actually contacting the people that you meet seems to be a core networking principle, yes?

— Deb Lee


It turns out that Lauren and I were in the minority…


November 3, 2009 1:49 pm

I agree with many of the other commentators. Business cards help you to look established and they are a great way to have everything on one simple sheet that you can just pass over. In some industries I could almost see people going digital with them – especially tech industries – but for your average retail store owner or general business person I think they’ll stick around for a while yet.

First of all, not all of your customers are going to have smart phones or an easy way to copy the information – and giving your info to them then requires THEM to do something. One of the major rules of marketing is to make it as easy to understand/follow through on as possible. People aren’t as likely to do something complicated or that requires work on their part.

Business cards are a create chance to give someone something that makes a statement not just about you but about your company. I think that a physical reminder is much better than a digital file for networking/marketing and branding purposes.

— Melissa Breau


November 3, 2009 8:32 pm

I love the convenience of the digital information swap, but there is something lost in the exchange. The tactile feel of a business card, as well as a sharp design, can elicit a small Wow factor. It will make people recognize you more.

— Barry
.

.

…and what does being “green” have to do with it anyway?


November 3, 2009 2:10 pm

Green Solution? Come on! I’m with Bill P. I’m weary of hearing about “green solutions” to everything, especially non-existent problems of the politically correct crowd. Business cards are an essential and simple tool. Its the first thing I hand a prospect and I ask for theirs. It only takes a few minutes at my computer after the meeting to enter the data in the CRM along with the details of our discussions. It is polite, respectful, and does not require anyone to beam signals, or enter data interfering with the few relationship building moments you are looking for in the networking process.

— Steve N


November 3, 2009 2:43 pm

I have to say that I am partial to business cards, because that is a large part of what my business does. It can express your business in an instant if done right.

For people who are worried about their carbon footprint, try 100% recycled paper w/ soy inks. Make sure your printer is FSC Certified. You don’t lose print or paper quality anymore with recycled papers.

Also, only order the quantity that you need. Most of us change our information frequently enough that we end up throwing piles of our business cards away. Ordering smaller quantities really reduces waste.

— Concept Design Studios


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Other people just find it too cumbersome (if you’re a non-iPhone user) to type in the name, phone, number, address, etc. in their smart phones.  Here’s a chat I had with Scott Gentzen (@scottgentzen) on Twitter…

___________________________________

Scott: I don’t think it’s possible til there’s an electronic alternative that’s as easy to use and universal (sorry iPhone Bump’ers)

Deb: Is it too time intensive to manually input contact info in non-iPhones? Perhaps limit it to just name and web address?

Scott: iPhone or not, that’s a lot of time spent spelling and typing that one could spend interacting in more meaningful ways. it just seems a clunky awkward way to exchange contact info to me.

Deb: Hmmm…we trade info after mtg, yes? …after the meaningful interaction is over? …on the walk back to the car…

Scott: I would tend to exchange info at the beginning but that’s just me. I’m not a biz guy though, or much of a networker. To me, fiddling with gadgets is a big issue. I don’t tweet during tweetups either.

Deb: Good point to make, i.e., networking style…hadn’t thought of giving card at the start of convo…

___________________________________


Now this exchange led to a whole other conversation about about stereotypes about men, women, and gadgets (more on that later).  So, what do you think?  Who wins?  Paper or Technology?  Should we just accept the paper clutter generated by business cards and/or find a work around?  …or should we start exploring tech options?  If you use both,  leave a comment with the paper (diary, notebook, etc.) and tech (Outlook, smartphone, etc.) that you use.


Should the business card be done away with?

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  • http://twitter.com/therichbrooks Rich Brooks

    Admittedly, I often throw business cards out after I’ve entered them into my contact database, but that doesn’t mean they’re useless.

    They’re essential for branding, no matter how Web 2.0 or eco-friendly your business is.

    The iPhone penetration isn’t as ubiquitous as we geeks like to think, the Bump penetration is even lower, and giving/receiving business cards can be done much faster, not waiting on Bump to fire up and get ready.

    Not only that, I find many people don’t complete their Bump profiles, limiting the benefit of the Bump.

    Bump is fun, hip and cool, but I just ordered another 500 business cards and I know this won’t be my last order.

    I did, however, add my blog URL (http://www.flyteblog.com) and my Twitter handle (http://twitter.com/therichbrooks) for the first time ever, and dropped our fax number.

    I wonder what I’ll change after these 500 are gone.

  • http://www.2OrganizeU.com Lauren Halagarda

    Love the conversation and differing points of view (even if it’s only Deb & I ;))

    However, I would like to clarify…Jennifer, the author of the original post “Can’t We Retire the Business Card” was ruminating about keeping the stash of business cards she had collected over the years.

    My comment “Oh, and let go of the old business cards and make room for new opportunities!” was referring to the b-cards she had collected, NOT to printing and distributing her own. Additionally, the author had asked for suggestions for capturing contact information b/c of her inability to match cards and faces, I was merely responding to her inquiry for additional options.

    I do still believe business cards have a place, regardless of technology AND I recommend recycling after capturing the information.

    Guess it’s not a coincidence that Deb and I (we’ve seen our share of piles, drawers, stashes of business cards) prefer a streamlined approach! ;)

  • http://www.productiveandorganized.net Stephanie Calahan (@StephCalahan)

    Sorry Deb. I have to agree with the majority on this one (which is odd b/c I am a big techie…) While I love my technology and use it every chance I get, I still have over 70% of my clients that are uncomfortable with technology. I’d hate to alienate 70%+ of my prospects because I wanted to share contact information electronically.

    A lot of my coaching/consulting work is directly related to helping clients more effectively use their technology — email, smart phone, etc. However, I want my contacts to be comfortable with me vs. shoving technology the minute we meet.

    I’m with Rich too. I don’t save the business card after I have entered it into my CRM system, but there is a level of personal interaction that happens when networking as well as visual branding that happens. We have people that comment on our business cards frequently and it is even a conversation starter for us. It has become much more than contact exchange.

    In addition, the branding on someone’s card is an excellent memory device for me. I can remember colors and logos better than faces. Having the card reinforces who I talked to and the conversation we had. I believe different learning styles will respond in different ways to the value of a physical card.

    I do recycle the cards in a form of referral giving, however. Rather than throwing the card away, I think of one other person that could use the services/products of my new contact. I then share the card with that person. It gets the card out of my hands and into yet another prospect for my new contact.

    Now, if your conversation had been on brochures…. I’d be all for not having those! Give me a small business card (that has a smaller footprint) and put web info on the back where I can go find all of the information I want!
    To your success!
    Stephanie
    Productive & Organized – We’ll help you find your way! tm

  • http://www.dallisonlee.com Deb Lee, Certified Professional Organizer®

    @Stephanie: I agree with you that branding is very important, and if someone’s business card is memorable, it will help me remember them, too. Lauren’s right, too – there is a place for biz cards. I also think that we need to find a way to use technology when it’s available and a viable option, otherwise we keep adding to our paper piles.

    @Rich: You, Sir, are also correct – business cards seem to be here to stay, especially because it’s easy to pass them on (no waiting to get Bump right, if you have it). I am concerned with what we do with them after we get them. Personally, I’d prefer not to give my card to someone who’s going to throw it out. I’d rather type in my contact info in your phone for you, and stop the paper trail before it begins. =)

    @Lauren: Looks like it’s just you and me, kid. =)

  • http://www.clicktoclient.com Marjorie

    I love both paper and electronic contacts. Business cards are great for networking events, and a lot of people (including yours truly) don’t yet have the ability, functionality or desire to just “wave” their smartphones to pick up a contact’s info. I’d rather just get their biz card, slip it into my pocket and enter it into my contact database later. Gives me more time to actually chat and less time fumbling around with my phone!

    Plus, I like the way they see business cards in Japan and have always honored it: over there they consider it almost a personal signature of the owner and are very respectful of the card. They don’t just stick it into their pockets but consider it almost like a conversation piece, reading it carefully and perhaps making some comment about the person’s title or company. Great way to start a chat. So I try to do the same. Hard to d that with an electronic card.

    Cheers,
    Marjorie

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