How to Design Your Business Cards Using the Golden Ratio

Whether you are printing cheap business cards or premium cards, remember that the most important aspect of the business card is how you layout your information. There is no alternative for standard good design that is easy to navigate through.

Business cards are a business commodity. Its primary function is to get your contact information the hands of the client, and second do it in a way that appeals to them.

When having business cards printed, you should be careful to avoid both extremes of choosing to print specialty cards for their added appeal but are given away sparingly due to their cost. On the other hand, some may choose to print economically while foregoing print quality.

Offset printing allows you the best of both scenarios. It gives you full colored photographic quality prints for the price of a dime a dozen. With the proper layout, you can have expensive looking business cards you can give away without second thoughts.

Below is a methodical guideline you can follow in making the layout for your business card.

1) Golden Ratio or the Fibonacci number :

In simple terms, it was discovered that there are patterns in nature that account for their looking aesthetically balanced. The ratio is discovered to be 1:1.618.

Your 2×3.5 inch business card approximately follows this ratio, and so do most of the business card layouts, even though the conversion is often inexact. Follow this as a guide and use your intuition to make it functional.

o Layout: There should be a 1:1.618 proportion between the colored and non-colored area, or the graphic and non-graphic space.

o Text: The smallest text should begin with a 9pt font size while the name directly above these texts should use a 14 or 15 pt font sizes. Your business name should use a 22pt text.

o Use this proportion to come up with various formulas for your business card graphics and overall design.

2) Rule of Thirds

o You can also substitute the rule of thirds which is also another design concept and is a rough estimate of the Fibonacci number.

o Perfectly centered designs are boring, thus the term dead center. The rule of thirds uses an asymmetrical balance that gives your design more tension and therefore more appeal. Simply create a nine by nine grid and place important elements in the four points created when the lines intersect.

o You can also use the rule of thirds when trying to create divisions for your design. There is the bottom third, middle third and upper third. The bottom third can be used to contain your contact information, where your name is right in the middle of the lower third grid.

o The middle third can hold the empty space which is important in giving your business card breathing space. If your text is on the right panel, you can place your graphics on the left. Remember to still observe the three point rule for vertical divisions. The topmost third can contain your business name and your slogan.

Whether you choose to print cheap business cards, create a good layout to make it look like a million bucks. It combines having aesthetically pleasing cards that are easy to navigate at very inexpensive price.