What are the best business cards that you have come across that displayed the person's dedication and knowledge of six sigma or quality?

I was thinking of getting one for myself, I was thinking more in terms of like a puzzle and six sigma, lean, quality.... I figured I would post this on elsmar and see what everyone has to say.

Thank You for your help.

I've never seen one with anything like that on there. Does anyone actually read business cards?

I've never seen one with anything like that on there. Does anyone actually read business cards?

I read them....if you give me one I'll file it away and then someday when I'm told to do something I've no expertise in you'll get a call from me trying to pick your brain. my motto? use your friends wisely.

"Cute" business cards seem to run in cycles. I remember one company specializing in photoetching and laser marking had credit card type plastic cards engraved with everything a regular business card had, including a photo of the person. They were indestructible, but you couldn't make a note on them. Tsk. Tsk.

I once went to a trade show (the biannual Machine Tool Show?) where the folks in one of the booths took my business card and duplicated it with a laser on a sheet of stainless steel.

One consultant I met, who was from Germany, had a small book as his business card which gave a brief biography and synopsis of his practice in 3 languages. The whole thing was about the size of a stack of ten business cards, including relatively stiff laminated covers.

In general, I want the person's name, company name, phone, email, and address to be relatively large print. I'm not impressed by fancy logos which take up card real estate, but end up squeezing the contact info down to microscopic size. If the person's business is unique, use the back of the card or get one of those folded ones that hold a lot of text to put the synopsis right in my hand.

The biggest thing I find as a shortcoming is folks who put an alphabet soup of letters before and after their names which mean absolutely nothing to me or the average recipient of the card. Heck! I'm a long-time member of the ASQ and I still need a cheat sheet to interpret some of the certifications when they are only listed as letters. If I can't instantly recall what they stand for and know the underlying body of knowledge that goes with them, can we expect non-ASQ members (most of the folks who hire us) to have a clue?

"Cute" business cards seem to run in cycles. I remember one company specializing in photoetching and laser marking had credit card type plastic cards engraved with everything a regular business card had, including a photo of the person. They were indestructible, but you couldn't make a note on them. Tsk. Tsk.

I once went to a trade show (the biannual Machine Tool Show?) where the folks in one of the booths took my business card and duplicated it with a laser on a sheet of stainless steel.

One consultant I met, who was from Germany, had a small book as his business card which gave a brief biography and synopsis of his practice in 3 languages. The whole thing was about the size of a stack of ten business cards, including relatively stiff laminated covers.

In general, I want the person's name, company name, phone, email, and address to be relatively large print. I'm not impressed by fancy logos which take up card real estate, but end up squeezing the contact info down to microscopic size. If the person's business is unique, use the back of the card or get one of those folded ones that hold a lot of text to put the synopsis right in my hand.

The biggest thing I find as a shortcoming is folks who put an alphabet soup of letters before and after their names which mean absolutely nothing to me or the average recipient of the card. Heck! I'm a long-time member of the ASQ and I still need a cheat sheet to interpret some of the certifications when they are only listed as letters. If I can't instantly recall what they stand for and know the underlying body of knowledge that goes with them, can we expect non-ASQ members (most of the folks who hire us) to have a clue?


Thank You Wes. I have always wanted a business card, since I was in high school, so I was just entertaining the idea of getting one and seeing if it would be helpful. I have a bachelor's and a master's degree in engineering and recently I got the CQE. I also started to put my degrees behind my name along with ASQ CQE, because I wanted people with whom I communicate with know my qualifications for some reason. I agree with having listing a lot of certifications behind one's name, but what is your take on listing education and possibly one or two certifications? I am curious to see what your take is on this. I have read numerous posts of yours and I gather good info from them, thank you.

Thank You Wes. I have always wanted a business card, since I was in high school, so I was just entertaining the idea of getting one and seeing if it would be helpful. I have a bachelor's and a master's degree in engineering and recently I got the CQE. I also started to put my degrees behind my name along with ASQ CQE, because I wanted people with whom I communicate with know my qualifications for some reason. I agree with having listing a lot of certifications behind one's name, but what is your take on listing education and possibly one or two certifications? I am curious to see what your take is on this. I have read numerous posts of yours and I gather good info from them, thank you.

This is a personal business card, as opposed to one provided by an employer? What would you do with them? I'm with Wes on this one. For me, a business card is nothing more than a simple way to give contact information to customers and suppliers. Name, title, phone number(s) and company location and email address--nothing more is needed. Having a lot of other stuff, especially academic details, tends to look like needless self-promotion rather than communication of helpful information.

This is a personal business card, as opposed to one provided by an employer? What would you do with them? I'm with Wes on this one. For me, a business card is nothing more than a simple way to give contact information to customers and suppliers. Name, title, phone number(s) and company location and email address--nothing more is needed. Having a lot of other stuff, especially academic details, tends to look like needless self-promotion rather than communication of helpful information.Thanks, Jim for adding an aspect I hadn't considered - whether this is a personal card or a business-provided card for which the employee has some input on content/title/etc.

The very name "business card" should be a road map to what is contained on one. In times past, my grandparents and great-grandparents all carried personal "calling cards." As gramps described it, houses of substance had the door answered by a servant (the bigger the house, the more specialized the servant out of several servants.) A visitor would place a calling card on a special tray for the purpose and the servant would carry it in to the lady of the house, who would decide whether she or any of the famiy were "at home" to the particular visitor and her response returned to the visitor. A husband and wife would each have cards. Generally, the card would have the name and person's location (often, the houses had names - Sworthington Manor, for example.) Gramps said the practice died almost completely with the crash of 1929. There was always a distinction between a person's business card (if he had one) and his calling card. Unless he was calling on legal business, an attorney would never present his business card when a calling card was expected.

Some of the hoity toity debutantes use the cards today as they go through the "season," but rarely do the young men who are their escorts use them. Today, especially when folks use pdas and the like to maintain contact, the use of a personal card (except, in my case, for some of the non-profit associations and fraternities I belong to where we frequently exchange personal (not business) contact information) has almost completely died out.

I have seen some of those calling cards at antique shops in my state - I think I bought a couple for my sister. They were pretty cool looking.

Aw shucks - I was going to wait to get business cards made until I had some alphabet soup to put on them: SSBB and CQMOE. I have been at my present job for three years and have been too superstitious to get cards made, as the last time I did that my company was bought--er, merged with another company, and I was laid off nine months later.

When job hunting I had personal cards made, and really struggled with what to call myself.

Thanks everybody for your ideas and opinions. I have decided that I am not going to get a "personal" business card. The reason for me to get one was just so that I have one in case someone asks. Also after reading the above replies and I started thinking what I do with business cards that I receive, I usually record it on my computer and I put the card away, I never look at it again. But anyways thank you all.

Two more bits, sgurusaran:

If you sell anything person to person, for yourself or your company, you need cards.

Different countries have different standards for what to display after the name on business cards. As has been pointed out, placing your degrees after your name is frowned upon in the USA, but in the rest of the world such practice is common (particularly in some industries, i.e. architecture). I'd advice you do or not depending on your local practice and whether it matters to your clients.

I have seen some of those calling cards at antique shops in my state - I think I bought a couple for my sister. They were pretty cool looking.

Aw shucks - I was going to wait to get business cards made until I had some alphabet soup to put on them: SSBB and CQMOE. I have been at my present job for three years and have been too superstitious to get cards made, as the last time I did that my company was bought--er, merged with another company, and I was laid off nine months later.

When job hunting I had personal cards made, and really struggled with what to call myself.If I had been you, I would have gone with "Jennifer!";)

If I had been you, I would have gone with "Jennifer!";)

Yes, and you should never call yourself after 10:00 PM.

Two more bits, sgurusaran:

If you sell anything person to person, for yourself or your company, you need cards.

Different countries have different standards for what to display after the name on business cards. As has been pointed out, placing your degrees after your name is frowned upon in the USA, but in the rest of the world such practice is common (particularly in some industries, i.e. architecture). I'd advice you do or not depending on your local practice and whether it matters to your clients.

In the US, in real estate and insurance sales, to name a few, there are many "certifications" that result in long strings of mostly meaningless letters on business cards.

How about doctors visint cards?
I came accross doctors visiting car which mentioned his education, acadamics!:notme:

If I had been you, I would have gone with "Jennifer!";)If that would be enough for them to care, fine. With you good people it would suffice, but I will confess to feeling somewhat like a wallflower. The business card is of course the wrong way to deal with that. I think it's tempting to try to compensate for feelings of inadequacy in one of the vew immediate ways one can actually control: a 2"x3.5" card.

an effective network is not a one-way street. you also have to give enough information about yourself and what you do. remember that remember it's hard for someone to make a mental note. so always bring several business cards whether you go, so that when an opportunity to network presents itself you can give your new acquantance a card. if your contacts know more about you, they are more likely to assist you and refer you to job or business opportunities.

a detailed and well organized contact information will quickly show you who among your contacts who can help you when you need assistance.

it is said that success in your career or in business is "not about what you know but who you know!" Your vast yet inexpensive resource can help you achieve your goals. your network of contacts can be a valuable source of information on job and business opportunities, industry trends and outlook, marketing strategies, client prospects, expert assistance, role models, mentors and friends - all of which can help you succeed at work or in business.