Why do Crafty Bloggers need Business cards?

I got business cards recently. I feel like a grown-up now! A bit more like a serious blogger and crafter.

As a teacher, I never had much need for cards. (Although I did have some very nice ones with English on one side and Japanese on the other when I was taking students to Japan.) But as a Mum, there’s not a lot of call to give out your business cards.

Lately I’ve started to get a connections between my “online” life and my real life. Business cards are a way for me to promote my blog and my online shop to the people I meet in real life – potentially a whole new audience who might not find me online otherwise.

Here’s a few of the things I’m thinking:

• New blog readers: I talk about my blogging to lots of people. Now I can give them the blog address on the spot.
• New store customers: I talk about my store a lot, too. The address to find that is on my card as well and hopefully that means more customers finding me.
• Customer referrals: I had a customer asking me to send extra cards for her friends with her order. Hopefully she would pass those on and create contacts for me.
• Price tags: I’ll be using my cards to price the items that I’ll take for the stall at Creative Craft Retreat.
• My family and friends don’t all know where to find my shop and blog online so cards are great to give them when I see them.

{These cards and chocolates will be giveaways at Craft Retreat}

What’s on my card? And why?

• “CraftyMummy” – I chose to use my “online” name rather than my real name. That way I reinforce my branding. I can add my name by hand at the time I give it out if I want to, and most of them people I give them to know my real name.
• Blog address: That’s the main place that I spend my efforts online.
• about.me address: This is a site that summarises all the other places I can be found online.
• Shop address: This is tricky to remember and I want to sell my items so it made sense to include this.
• Email: This is the best direct contact for me.
• Phone: It would be standard to include this on a business card but I felt that, like my real name, I could add it for those who needed it rather than have it on all my cards.
• The picture is one of the coin purses from my store in fabric that I love. I took the other colours from that image.

I made my cards via the Vistaprint site. It took an hour or so to get it looking the way I wanted – I’m picky! – but the site was easy to use and reasonably priced compared to the other online options I looked at. They have lots of pre-made design, or you can upload a picture of your own like I did.

Do you have business cards for your online business or blog? Any more reasons to add to my list?