25 Embossed Business Cards for Your Inspiration

Designers are often looking for examples of creative business cards for inspiration, whether it be for designing their own cards or for client work. In the past we have showcased letterpress business cards, die cut business cards, and double sided business cards. Today we’ll look at 25 examples of embossed business cards.

Jaclyn Studor

15 Proven Ways to Gain Exposure for Your Design Portfolio

With so many web and graphic designers out there, getting the attention of potential clients and landing work can be a major challenge. The portfolio site is one of the most important assets for a designer, and an effective portfolio site will be an invaluable resource for keeping the business moving forward.

For many designers creating an attractive portfolio site is not the problem, getting people to see it is often much more of an issue. In order for the portfolio site to truly do it’s job it must be well-designed and it must attract the right types of visitors. In this post we’ll look at 15 things that you can do to increase the effectiveness of your portfolio site by getting more exposure for it.

1. Have a High-Quality Design for Your Portfolio Site

Not only is the quality of design of the items in your portfolio important, but the design of your portfolio site itself will also have a big impact on potential clients. Clients will expect a designer to have an attractive and usable site, otherwise they will question the work that the designer will be able to do for them.

When designing and coding your portfolio site be sure that it is getting all of the attention that it deserves. After all, it will be one of the most important aspects of your business, so it should not be rushed.

Impressive portfolio sites are great for encouraging visitors to contact you about their project, and they are also more likely to attract links and attention from other designers and bloggers.

23 Double Sided Business Cards

Designers love creative business cards, and they can have a big impact on potential clients as well. One way to have an impressive card is to use both sides for a purpose. In this post we’ll showcase more than 20 examples of beautiful double-sided business cards.

Model Republic

33 Excellent Business Card Templates for Your Own Use

Business cards are a necessity for freelance designers. If you need to save some time or don’t have the experience to design your own cards, templates can be a great option. many printing companies offer templates to choose from, and you can also find others available from different sources. In this post we’ll feature 33 templates, 11 are free and 22 are premium. The premium templates generally only cost a few dollars and can be well worth the expense.

Free Business Card Templates:

5 Business Card Templates Pack (Photoshop)

Pros and Cons of Package-Based Pricing for Web Design

Pricing services is one of the most challenging parts of being a designer. Most designers have an opinion of what their time is worth and what they want to make on an hourly basis, but accurately estimating everything that will be involved with a project and how much time it will take can be very difficult.

In attempt to simplify pricing for both the designer and the client, some designers and agencies use package-based pricing with prices listed on their website. While offering proposals or quotes for each project is more common, package-based pricing is used frequently enought that it warrants consideration from the designer or agency.

In this post we’ll take a detailed look at both the pros and cons of listing your prices publicly. It may be worth noting that Vandelay Design does not use package-based pricing, although this has not always been the case. A few years ago packages were listed on the site before deciding to price projects on a case-by-case basis.

Pros of Package-Based Pricing:

1. Gives Visitors a Clear Picture of What to Expect

Many visitors and potential clients really have no idea what to expect in terms of how much they will need to spend for web design and development services. In some cases this is a result of a lack of experience in dealing with the subject, but another contributing factor is that prices can vary so drastically. If a client is looking simply for a low-cost provider, regardless of the type of project there will always be someone who is willing to take on the work (not necesarilly qualified) for a fraction of what most of the competition would charge. This variance in pricing can make it difficult for clients to know what is included at that price, what quality of work and customer service they will receive, and how this compares to their other options.

Clients like to know what to expect, and package-based pricing can give them the general information before they even contact the designer. If the pricing is out of their budget they can move on to another designer, or they can re-consider what they are willing to spend. Clients can make comparisons much easier with package-based pricing, assuming the details and any potential add-ons are clearly provided.

Showcase of Die Cut Business Cards

Last month we published a post that showcased letterpress business cards. Today we’d like to share another showcase, this time focusing on business cards that use die cuts to stand out. Die cut business cards allow for some creative ideas to become a reality, and these cards are certain to be noticed when they are handed out.

Zing Consulting

33 Letterpress Business Cards for Inspiration

Business cards are a necessity for designers who want to market themselves and their services to people that the come across. They also provide an opportunity for the designer to make an impression with a stylish, memorable card. Letterpress business cards are a popular choice for designers, and in this post we’ll showcase 33 high-quality letterpress cards. Hopefully these examples will provide some inspiration if you are considering designing some new business cards.

Jason McGrew

Guide to Using Social Networking to Promote Your Services

With so many freelancers and design agencies out there, finding work can often be a major struggle, especially for those who are just getting started. A growing number of designers are using social media as a means of marketing their services, in addition to simply using it for interacting with friends. While social media marketing can be extremely effective, it can also be a big waste of time. In this post we’ll look at some tips that should help you to ensure that your time with social media is well spent.

1. Know What You Want to Accomplish

One of the most common mistakes that is made in social media marketing is not having a purpose or a goal. Many businesses and entrepreneurs recognize the power and potential of social media and social networking, so they feel that they need to be involved. However, simply having a Facebook fan page or a Twitter profile is not going to make a real difference.

Developing a social media marketing plan requires having a specific purpose or goal (if you’re using social networking only for fun or personal reasons then, of course, this does not apply). Web designers may want to use social media to find more clients, network with other professionals, or maybe to build links to their blog or portfolio site. The first step to using social media effectively is to have a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish. This will shape the approach that you take and the way you use the social media sites. Without having a goal or something that you want to accomplish, there is really no way to know if it is working for you and your business.

Networking Tips for the Busy Designer

Professional networking is an important part of being a designer and working towards a challenging and rewarding career. Unfortunately, most designers are so busy with client work, or trying to find more clients, that networking-related activities are more of an afterthought that get attention whenever the time happens to be available. While networking is critical, it doesn’t have to adsorb huge amounts of time that prevent you from getting other essential tasks completed.

In this article we’ll look at a series of tips and suggestions that are aimed at designers who want to network more successfully, but without committing large amounts of time each day or each week. The idea is to get as much benefit as possible from a reasonable time commitment that can be accommodated by just about any schedule.

9 Tips for Establishing Your Own Marketing Method as a Freelancer

Being a freelance designer brings great opportunities for creating a working environment that matches your particular lifestyle, but without enough clients to support the business it will be an unsuccessful venture. Many freelancers go into business because of their technical skills and a desire to bring great end results to clients, but marketing is usually not given much consideration until it becomes a necessity.

Because there are so many designers out there competing for work, knowing how you plan to market yourself is critical. Some freelancers who have had a few years to establish their businesses are fortunate enough to generate most of their work through word-of-mouth marketing, but this is the exception, not the rule.