Karaoke Forums

Does everyone use business cards?

I use them and pass them out liberally. Word of mouth and having that card can be handy, especially if someone asks another person if they know anyone who does karaoke, they then have my card with my number on it.

I do also there is a place on line where you can design your own and their pretty cheap.

go to vistaprint.com

Lone Wolf

I really recommend that you don't use Vistaprint. Maybe what I have experienced with them is a reflection of the size of the area BrowardCounty/Ft Lauderdale which I come from?

But... I have received three business cards, from three unrelated businesses that are in the "entertainment" field, that were produced from Vistaprint. And they are exactly alike.

It didn't leave me with a good impression and when I check through my file, I can't simply tell by the design of the card that I grabbed the one I wanted.

And... one of the most important functions of any marketing material is to == distinguish your business from others!

same as Eric- have seen too many of the SAME business cards from vistaprint from a lot of kjs and djs over the years. They're free in most cases, from what i remember (just pay shipping), but it's wise to seperate yourself from the rest of the crowd whether it be books, buisness cards, or style of hosting, imo. I know of djs that desing/print their own on their computers and printers but i've never been impressed by the overall quality of those. most of the time they were just trying to save money, but it showed in the end.

I fortunately have a college buddy that majored in graphic design and he's been doing all of my advertisements and web design for years.

I believe it's WELL WORTH IT to get company literature and business cards done VERY professionally if that's what you want to project to future clients.

...some things you might not wanna skimp on with first impressions in business, imho.

Interesting. I have already gotten my business cards. They are from vistaprint and I finished them earlier today before my OP. I didn't get the free ones, I designed mine and if it isn't what I designed, I will be very disappointed. I bought 1000 and it cost me 38 bucks including a metal holder to carry with me. My cards have my logo on them and my quote on the back "C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!!" The cards are glossy and will be solid purple (I love purple!) on the back other than the font. They also have my phone number, my email address and my brand new website listed on them. I too felt that if I was going to use these, I should not skimp. I figure one good show coming from these cards will pay for them a few times over.


The purpose of my OP was to find out, how do you distribute them? Just to anybody and everybody you talk to? Did you send them in the mail to establishments?

I do use BC's but I hand out more brouchers than anything else.

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I do hand them out to almost everyone I talk to.
Anyone wanting my phone number, even non-business related, will get my card.
The more you put it out there, ther bigger the chance that someone who wants to hire you will see it.

I do cards for hubby's band members (including sound guy and light guy) as well as personal cards for our karaoke business, and personal cards for DJ'ing. I use the Staples high gloss clean edge cards and a good quality Kodak printer and they are very high quality and hard to tell from professionally done cards. I can print them off when I need them instead of having a box of 100 that I may want to change part-way through using them. I also change them occasionally. There are a lot of publishing software programs available for doing cards, etc., that make it very simple. Most of them provide great templates as well so you can jazz up your cards. I hand out a lot of cards and really find it handy to be able to do them at home.

I like vistaprint, but I do the CUSTOM route with them, paid for it initially, and then the reprints cost the same lowly $5 a box!

pardon me- didn't know vista did custom cards. I've only seen mostly the same reddish card that has a pic of an old condenser mic on it.

And on the back of those cards it has a vistaprint logo about ordering free cards- thought that was a bit tacky, as most people know they're an inexpensive brand.

Karen, i hear what you're sayin'- it sucks to be stuck with hundreds of extras if you want to change designs midway through. The ones i've seen made on home computers are usually too flimsy for my taste. I like the one that don't bend easily.

Answering OP's question- I hand mine out when people ask for my phone number wherever....and always include one stapled to a full color brochure when i make the 'rounds yearly at various hotels, catering halls, and restaurants that offer entertainment.

Buy the Avery business card stock and they have a free download for software.

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I do have a flyer/brochure. I have mailed it to the local lodges, but not the bars yet. Here is my finished product.

I love VistaPrint, but I also design my own card and send them the graphics. This guarantees a unique card and the same low price - after the initial custom card fee- for future cards, and they also do specials. They do not re-use custom graphics ( illegal), so you're good to go.

I just got another quick 500 for a total $13.21 ( 250 free- 6.22 shipping, and I added 250 more for $7+), but remember, this was a re-order. They WILL initially charge a fee for custom work and colors.

I usually get 1000 at a time, but this was a great re-order deal. 500 at my local printer would have been over 46.00 with tax.

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I'm with karyoker on this one, I use Avery, put mine, and my girlfriend's (co-host) avatar on them, with our names, business name, and contact info. On the back, advertising of services offered, Wi. newest SMOKE FREE Karaoke. I think for the price, the Avery system is hard to beat. Especially with all of the clipart, etc. available now.

Rosario

I create my own on either Photoshop or Illustrator and upload them to be printed. Price is very reasonable, about $15-20 per 1000 for 4/0 (about $35-40 for 4/4) but they are much better than anything VistaPrint can do.

The stock is twice as thick, they are coated with AQ coating, which is highly glossy coat that makes the business card look professional. They standout from other business card so people don't tend to lose them.

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