Are business cards still a thing?

⁨124⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨governorkeagan@lemdro.id⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

Do people still hand out physical business cards at events or is it all digital now?

i should have asked before ordering 50, lol

source

Comments

Sort:hotnew top

SatansMaggotyCumFart@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Look at that subtle off-white coloring.

The tasteful thickness of it.

Oh my God, it even has a watermark…

source
- ms_lane@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Image
  
  source
  - Drummyralf@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    That original video is so weird
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
MudMan@fedia.io ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
For a while I stopped bringing cards to situations where a card would be a thing and instead I put a QR code on a widget on my phone and told people to just scan that to add my contact info to their phones.

Results were... mixed? For a few people it was a cool conversation starter. Others fumbled a bit with what to do.

One guy, though? He was NOT amused. Apparently he made a big point of collecting all of his connections' cards in binders, and cataloguing them, both as bragging rights and a hobby. I may as well have walked into his house and peed on his stamp collection. It was very awkward.

source
- wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  “the future is now, old man”
  
  source
- thermal_shock@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  when I was a designer and printer, I loved collecting cards to compare prints, designs, paper stock, etc.
  
  source
- moistclump@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  But that’s like a stamp collector being mad at email. Wait, are stamp collectors mad at email??
  
  source
PolydoreSmith@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I carry them because I’m a professional musician and I just get sick of spelling my name for people. It has my booking email, instagram, and phone number on it. Super handy.

source
Ziggurat@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Sure, if you deal with customer

It’s still a nice way to get someone coordinates, like who is the sales person, or the tech support tech, or the researcher.

If you go to conference/trade fairs people willstill exchange cards.

source
NeoNachtwaechter@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
It is about the act of giving that physical thing to someone, like a present.

It helps with building a connection to people. It cannot be replaced by anything ‘digital’.

source
- w2tpmf@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  QR codes on cards really bridge the gap between the physical card and the digital presence.
  
  source
  - wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    “scan the one on the front for my LinkedIn, and the back for my OnlyFans” smirk and wink
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
Today@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I do. People usually don’t have time to chat when i stop by so i drop a card and ask them to reach out. I get them at Staples. Dony remember the exact price - maybe about $40 for 500.

source
Thorny_Insight@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I handed out 4 just yesterday. I guess it depends on the kind of work you’re doing. I’m a home improvement contractor and people often ask if they can give my number to their friend/neighbour etc. so I just hand them few business cards to spread around.

source
Skanky@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Our company recently switched from paper to digital (popl).

It’s incredibly clunky and frustrating having to explain to literally every new contact that we don’t have cards and they have to use their phone to share info.

So, yes. Please keep paper cards a thing

source
aseriesoftubes@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
If you do any business with Japanese or Korean people, then yes, definitely.

source
funbreaker@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Absolutely! I collected a bunch at a craft fair on Saturday.

source
neidu2@feddit.nl ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes. Not as important as they used to be, but they’re still highly useful in some situation. I use(d) them a lot in my current as well as my previous job. Long story short, these jobs involve showing up on site in the middle of nowhere, meeting someone who I’ve never met before. I then set up thingamajig A as well as fix thingamajig B. Before I leave I make sure to leave a card with my contact details in case they have questions or anything more is needed.

source
j4k3@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Some people like to get super nerdy with them now. If I were in better shape physically, I’d probably etch my own out of some PCB copper clad and mix up some tinning solution.

source
- Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Why does that require to be in better shape?
  
  source
  - j4k3@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Disability. Plus no reason to when I never leave the house or engage with others in meaningful ways.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
Cryophilia@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yeah, they’re really handy. I work for a big company who deals with other big companies, it’s often very helpful to get a specific contact person’s info so a future request isn’t filtered through layers of bureaucracy.

source
Monument@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I don’t need business cards, but I want to get some nice ones with just my name that I can write the information I want people to have.
I guess it’s more of a calling card, really.

source
Thavron@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
At my job we recently got 15 plastic cards with an NFC chip. Scan the card and you go to a page where you can add the info to your contacts. There’s a qr code for when NFC is disabled and too complex to turn on for some people (i.e. CEO’s and the like).

This being Lemmy, this’ll probably get comments like “never scan an unknown NFC tag blah blah blah”

source
- mvmike@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Why is NFC needed in this case? Regardless of this being a potential security risk (which it is, but it’s not my point here), does it provide any additional value over a QR scan, which can easily store a URL or a contact information?
  
  source
  - Thavron@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Not needed, but convenient. NFC is enabled by default on most phones so all they have to do is touch the card.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - Chozo@fedia.io ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Contact images, perhaps? Or maybe just aesthetic purposes with however they're choosing to distribute their contacts, and don't want to paste QR codes in places. For contact transfer, I don't think there's much technical advantage to using NFC over a QR code, since QR codes can fit a lot more data than most people realize.
    
    source
- Warl0k3@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Man, I cannot possibly imagine why CEOs never have phones with working NFC. Cannot possibly be because IT disables it so the brainless cretins don’t scan the unknown NFCs they get from conceited industry randos.
  
  source
- Brkdncr@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Our phishing training specifically says don’t scan random QR codes or nfc tags.
  
  source
  - Thavron@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Yeah but it’s not random. It’s a business card. Surely some trust in other people can be possible.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - thurstylark@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I mean, random NFC tags, I can understand. But, isn’t advising someone to avoid QR codes obsolete by now? It was a pretty worthwhile attack vector at one point, but nowadays most phones will ask “Do you want to <handle> <contents in full>?” before actually doing anything with it…
    
    Although, now that I think about it, it is best practice to advise to the lowest common denominator… Sometimes I overestimate users’ ability to avoid doing stupid things…
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
rasterweb@fedia.io ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes. I work for a small company and we do give out business cards at events if someone asks or if we really hope they'll follow up with us later. To me they often serve more as a helpful reminder more than a device to convey contact information.

source
kandoh@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes, giving someone a disposable card is still better than the awkwardness of tapping phones or whatever nonsense they do now.

source
TrickDacy@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

I’m based in Europe and not Japan

Ah, thanks for clarifying that you’re in the non Japanese part of Europe

source
foggy@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes, absolutely.

Depends on your profession, but yes.

source
BlueEther@no.lastname.nz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I will take a small amount with me to trade events, and collect a few. There are still a lot of old school folks out there

source
noughtnaut@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I carry some because it’s no longer a thing. My card has only the information that I know will not change: my name, email address, and mobile phone number. On the back there’s a QR code.

I hand out perhaps one per month so not super often, and many times the most appropriate thing to do is to simply tell people my phone number. But sometimes, especially when we’re in a situation where phones are not nearby, it’s quite effective to hand over a pre-made card with that info.

source
theskyisfalling@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I am a print finisher in the UK and yes we still do a lot of business cards for people. More often than not these days though it tends to be more high end finishes things like foiling, duplex or triplexing with different coloured stocks, round corners etc.

Ten years ago and back we did a lot more high quantity shitty cards but I also worked in a more generic print place then so they may still get pumped through bigger places.

I’m actually foiling some business cards right now xD

source
danhab99@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I put a QR code on my smart watch with a 🔗 nk to my website

source
Gradually_Adjusting@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I dunno. Paper ones are kinda like tiny junk mail to me, but with the added guilt trip of being tied to a real identity. If someone handed me a business card that was actually a sticker though, I’d be quietly delighted and think of them every time I saw it.

source
Steve@startrek.website ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yes, for anyone who sells services in person, like a mortgage broker, notary, handyman, painter, etc.

I sell stuff entirely via the internet, never needed a card.

source
pearsaltchocolatebar@discuss.online ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
My wife is a tattoo artist, and she hands a decent amount of them out. But, really the point is that it has a QR code to her Instagram.

source
empireOfLove2@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Oh yeah. At in person networking events they are still a big thing. There just aren’t as many in person networking events these days (like trade shows), although they’re picking back up.

source
rufus@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Is there an alternative?

source
laughterlaughter@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
There are digital business card apps like cardee.me and hihello.

I’ve used both and they’re decent for networking in tech events.

source
AgentGrimstone@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Yep. We just ordered a big batch for some upcoming events. Print is still alive.

source

-> View More Comments