Earlier this week I started out thinking about and playing with business card designs for the commissioned sewing and quilting that I do. To this point I've done work based on word of mouth only with and had nothing that I could give out to people who were interested in my services for the future....hence thinking about business cards.For the designs used the name of my blog as the name of my business, and what I came up with are shown to the left. Any ideas on them or what you like to see in a business card?
But after talking the head of my company (I've known her for 9 yrs or so), and listening to what she had to say, I've got some things to think about. Things like what kind of an image do I want it to have, what kind of connotations do I want the business name to have when people see it for the first time (things like would "The Quilted Snail" tell people that I don't get work done fast because snails are slow moving), what kind of work / business do I want the business to encompass (the commissioned work, designing and selling patterns and so on....), and other questions.
At the moment I'm thinking I might use a company name like "Designs by Moira" as my company name. How would that sound to you?
Gratitudes:
1. 2 months has passed at work and I'm still enjoying the work.2. Time to sew is on the horizon for the weekend.
I think your boss's comments are good to hear. I also think that in the quilting world, the concern about snail connotating slow might not be a concern. Quilters don't think like everyone else. We would just think, "Oh how cute!" I.E. Quilted Apple, Quilted Bunny, Quilted Basket, etc. I think it's always better to stick with something that has some reputation and recognition than to switch, but that's only my opinion. This might be helpful. It has some good general ideas, too. Even if you become a business entity, it will most likely stay part time for quite a while. You could add a small tag line to change anyone's thinking, such as "taking the time to do it right".
ReplyDeleteIf you do decide to change it, do it now, though, rather than later. I have no options to suggest, except the name ought to offer a clue to the wide range of things you offer. Of the two card options you showed, I liked the top one best. 1) It shows exactly what you do. 2) It's a different orientation, which will help me remember it. 3) It's easy to read. 4) It's attractive and appealing. 5) It doesn't seem crowded like the bottom one does.
I think a business card is an excellent idea.
ReplyDeleteBut I do agree that if you're going to sew as a business, you need to separate it from your blogging activities. If you're going to sew anything other than quilts, using Quilt in the title is going to inhibit that, and as a quilter myself, I worry about the implications of Snail in terms of deadlines! As a sole trader, it's good to have your name first, so they remember it. How about something like:
Moira McSpadden
A Stitch In Time
(brief description of the kinds of sewing you'll be doing)
Rest of the detals (including your blog address)
I like the top one, personally. The image of a sewing machine is very common in this context, whereas the 'snapshots' of your work add colour, vibrancy and individuality. You could sample say three of them in black and white for invoices, letterhead, etc, if you wanted a simplified black and white version for ease of priniting.
Sorry to be so specific, but as account director at various major design consultancies for 25 years, it's the kind of thing I did professionally! I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with!
I know this if off topic but I'm looking into starting my own blog and was curious what all is required to
ReplyDeleteget set up? I'm assuming having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny?
I'm not very internet savvy so I'm not 100% sure.
Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Actually you can create a blog for free by working with either blogger (google) or word press. I've got the free one from Blogger and it works for me for the most part.
ReplyDelete