Does anyone have suggestions for a place to get good quality business cards? In the past I've printed off sheets on my inkjet and cut them out with a laser cutter (which I no longer have access to). So if there's a high quality and cheaper alternative I'd love to hear it, otherwise I've got lots of work to do...
And if you think I should print them myself.. what paper would you recommend for the cards? I use Harman glossy for my prints.. but it's not exactly business card material I think. Some kind of thick paper with a light gloss/fiber or light luster and durable surface would be ideal I think.
(I like having a collection of different ones, each with a different background photo so I can give an appropriate one to whoever it may be.. perhaps that won't be possible if getting them printed elsewhere?).
I don't know who you are handing these out to, but if you have a number of union members that might need your services, having them printed at a union shop and having the union 'bug' printed on it will get you smiles. It is a very small mark, but very noticeable to union folk.
awesome price. you generally get 250 free to start
then just wait for the email offers to come in that are often for free or super cheap 250/sets. good quality and timing.
I don't have any specific recommendations but everytime I do BCs I just research the cheapest 4-color offset printers who mention business cards as a product service. I guess I've had BCs printed up 20 times over the years, never by the same co. twice and never been disappointed.
silkcards.com has some unique materials from silkcard to credit card weight clear material. I have use overnightprints.com and like others have said great price and near color matching for a mass print card. WHCC has some if you want exact color reproduction.
Others I have seen are www.gotprint.com and premiumcards.net
Second to jefferies1, I went into partnership with a friend and we ordered business cards from gotprint.com; their prices were good and the quality was also quite nice.
gheller wrote:
FWIW, most photographers will NOT choose Vistaprint (don't know why people still recommend them).
IIRC, they put their logo on each card, they are flimsy, and very pedantic.
If you want to make a good first impression, look almost anywhere else.
Do you really think that saving a few bucks on a crappy card is the impression you want to give
HTH
greg
I don't completely agree with you on this. Yes, the "free" cards from VistaPring are pretty horrible, but they do sell better quality and don't have thier logo on the back of the better cards.
As a disclaimer I will say that I used to use VistaPrint, but don't any longer.
I have had very very mixed luck with VistaPrint.
My free cards came quickly and were decent aside from paper. However when I ordered my premium cards, I paid for full color front and back with my own card design on each side. I order 1000 of them. when I got them, I had my company name, my name, and my services on the front... and a calendar on the back.. No contact information (Was supposed to be on the back side). I was livid, and called for an immediate refund, but was told I signed off on the proof and there was nothing i could do. I have not ordered since.
However, a few months ago I had some postcards printed to circulate to client, and was extremely impressed. high quality, very short lead time (had them in a few days), were printed exactly to spec, etc. And they were for about half as much as any other company I got quotes from.
I have had very good luck with Zoo Printing. You can get 1000 cards, full color and gloss UV coating on both sides for $19 plus shipping. Although I have not ordered business cards from them, I have seen their sample kit and their heavier stock is really nice. Also, I have ordered postcards from Zoo Printing and they were beautiful! I actually ordered and paid for 250 postcards, full color and gloss coating both sides and it cost about $150 including shipping. Well, they ended up sending me over 2000!
Another option to consider for short runs is WHCC. You can get 50 cards for $12 and 100 for $16 (standard paper). I use this option to test a design before ordering large quantities.
