Copyright © 2006 by Habiba Abubakar and Emprez. All rights
reserved.

Note: You are welcome to republish this article as long as the
resource box at the end is included fully and unaltered.

Not many business owners take advantage of the FREE advertising
space on the back of their business card, and those that
actually do, often use the space ineffectively.

Most business owners don’t consider their business card a
marketing tool, but in fact, it is! And not only should it be
used to attract clients to your business, it should also be used
as a vehicle to attract joint venture partners.

Have you ever attended an event, talked to so many people and
collected their cards, then went home, looked at the cards, and
discovered that you don’t remember exactly what the person who
gave you the card does? You probably file the card away for
future reference, knowing that you’ll almost certainly never get
round to looking at it again. And then, after a few months, you
spring clean and throw the card away? Yes! We’ve all been there.
That’s why you should ensure that your business card is one of
those that reminds the person you give it to of who you are, and
what you can do for them.

So how do you do this? Try one of these tips below, and watch
your joint venture network and your client base increase
significantly:

Tip #1: Offer an irresistible freebie that compels the recipient
of your business card to get the freebie, and also share it with
their clients and associates. The freebie should be something
that relates to your products and services. For example, if
you’re a realtor, you may offer a special report entitled “20
Deadly Home Buying Mistakes To Avoid.” If the recipient of your
card is perhaps a financial planner with a client base of
first-time home buyers, it’s likely that he’ll mention your free
special report to his clients, so as to add value to what he
already offers them.

Tip #2: Have a marketing-driven testimonial behind your business
card, and make the testimonial indisputable by including the
name and contact details of the client who gave it to you (ask
their permission first). Your prospects should be able to relate
to the testimonial. This will increase your credibility in the
mind of a potential joint venture partner because a testimonial
is proof that you deliver on your promise.

Tip #3: List a few problem-solving tips that your target market
can benefit from. You’ll be surprised how much you can fit in on
the back of your card. The brief tips are a way of showcasing
your expertise, and will in turn position you as an expert that
can be trusted to meet the needs of the clients of a potential
joint venture partner.

Tip #4: Add your tagline or motto to your business card. It must
be something that stresses the client-focused benefits of
working with you, otherwise the tagline or motto will just be
taking up valuable space. The reason for including your tagline
or motto is to explain what your business is about to a
potential joint venture partner and to their clients.

These are only a few of the things you can have on the back of
your business card. The objective is to make the recipient of
your business card remember what you do, be keen to do business
with you, and send clients your way.

Before you print large quantities of your business cards, hand
out some of them and observe reactions from the recipients. What
did they say? Did they laugh? Did it create more interest on
their part? Did they turn it over to see what may be on the
back? All of these observations will give you clues about what
potential joint venture partners and their clients expect from a
business card.

What you have on your business card will make a difference
between the recipient wanting to recommend you to their clients
(if they’re a potential joint venture partner), or wanting to
call you as opposed to you calling them (if they’re a potential
client), and your card being thrown in the trash after a few
weeks or months.

Everything you put on your business card should have a purpose
that ties into what you can do for your ideal client. This will
make potential joint venture partners regard you as a
value-adding expert they must team up with.