April 2013

A 2012 survey indicated that 59% of buyers expect a salesperson to hand over a business card, confirming how important plastic business cards can be.

Plastic business cards are more than just a means of introducing yourself, they’re a representation of the person you are. Your card should contain your contact information, including a direct line number, your company name, job title, company phone number, URL and email address.

Most countries, apart from in Western Europe and North America, have a ceremonial approach to the exchange of business cards. If you travel for business, it’s important to bear some of these points of international business etiquette in mind.

It can be helpful to translate the information on the front of your plastic business cards into the language of the country you are visiting on the reverse of the plastic cards if you are travelling to a non-English speaking country. You should also resist the urge to hand out your card to everyone you meet.

Business cards are treated with special care and respect in Asia where they are seen as valuable. People exchange cards, usually at the beginning of business meetings, with both hands with a small bow or with a handshake.

Business meetings don’t start in Japan until business cards have been exchanged between all participants. The person with the highest rank or company position is presented with the card first and then cards are exchanged between the rest of the group in order of importance. Status and hierarchy are extremely important in Japan so be sure to include your company title on your business card.

In India, education is more highly valued than status so if you have academic or professional qualifications consider including them on your business card.

In China it is considered polite to offer a card before asking for one in return and considered rude to put the card away without first looking at it and familiarising yourself with the name and the job title of the person who presented it to you. If you do translate your personal information on the card, do it in simple Chinese, either Mandarin or Cantonese and print it in gold ink, which is considered auspicious in China.

If you want to taste international business success remember your business etiquette. Why not explore the rest of the site for more information as to how to get the best out of your plastic business cards, plastic membership cards and plastic loyalty cards.

Plastic membership cards have been around for a while but new technologies have made the simple plastic card smarter than ever.

Hundreds of organisations give their members plastic cards indicating their membership of, for example, libraries, social clubs, gyms or bingo halls. Supermarkets and retailers also hand out plastic membership cards to their customers in order to provide access to a store’s loyalty or reward scheme.

A membership card not only makes the holder feel a valued part of the club or association that issues the card, it can also convey a warm feeling of exclusivity to customers who are granted access to special events, deals or offers on the basis of their plastic id cards.

Traditionally, membership cards contained some basic printed information and a few personal details; name, address and membership number. When manufacturers incorporated a magnetic strip into the card design, this advancement ensured that plastic membership cards could be used to store relevant customer details on the card that could be accessed via a computer.

It is the use of the latest technology of embedding a microprocessor chip into the card that has made the plastic card smart. Not only can the card store personal information and account details, it can also hold a history of interaction between card holder and issuer; for example the number of books withdrawn from the library or the type of products bought in store.

It is these developments in plastic card production that have significantly improved the tracking of a cardholder’s relationship with the organisation or retailer issuing the card. As a result, the humble plastic membership card has become one of the most important sales and marketing tools a company can employ.

Access to a membership card holder’s history with the organisation or company allows the card issuer to tailor special offers and rewards schemes towards individual customers using details stored on their plastic membership card. Card carriers can also access their own account details and make amendments to the information stored there, such as a change of address or account preferences.

Plastic membership cards are low cost and are highly customisable. They are also durable, making them both an economical and long term means by which to improve advertising and marketing. Research has also indicated that the use of member’s loyalty and reward cards builds an organisation’s customer base and increases customer satisfaction.

To take full advantage of one of the smartest means by which to look after your clients, why not explore our site or contact our team for further information?

Plastic card printing has developed at a staggering rate since the first ever plastic card was introduced in 1959. Read on to find out more.

When credit cards were first introduced in America, by Diners Club in 1950, the cards themselves were made of cardboard and celluloid. Nine years later American Express brought out the first ever plastic card. Within five years, one million plastic credit cards were in use in and outside the United States.

American Express launched its card in the UK in 1963 which was usable in 3,000 outlets in this country and over 80,000 abroad. The first ever British credit card was issued by Barclays three years later.

When a year later the world’s first ever cash machine was installed in the Enfield branch of Barclays in Middlesex, customers were given cardboard punched vouchers worth £10 each from the bank to use in the machine when needed. Within five years the plastic card printing technology had moved on sufficiently for Lloyds to introduce the first ever on-line verified Cashpoint that used plastic cards and could read the embedded magnetic strip, developed by IBM in 1960 as a security feature.

Over the past 30 years, plastic card printing has kept pace and inspired new banking ideas and practices. Today we take using a chip and pin card for granted and in 2004, plastic card payments surpassed payments made with cash for the first time ever.

Initially expensive and difficult to produce, rapid developments in the technology involved in plastic card printing has meant that they have become increasingly common. When in 1993 plastic card printing was changed with the development of the dye sublimation process which allowed for full colour edge to edge printing, the future of the plastic card was changed forever.

The development of re-transfer printing technology at the end of 1999 was yet another milestone. Today there are three main plastic card printing data technologies in use, the magnetic strip, smart cards and optical cards and everyone has one or two in their purse or wallet.

The use of plastic cards is no longer restricted to credit cards, cheque or ATM cards. They are now used everywhere and for everything. Our driving licences, loyalty cards, store cards, gift cards, plastic business cards and membership cards are all examples of this technology in daily use.

Why not take a look around the rest of the site to see what plastic and our new plastic card printing technology can do for your business?

If recently proposed Government plans go ahead, the much protested introduction of plastic ID cards to the UK is not very far away.

Plastic ICE cards can be an essential tool for anyone, especially in the work place.

Here at Company Cards we see the plastic card product used for a variety of purposes, from traditional plastic membership cards, to loyalty cards, plastic business cards and photo identity cards. However over the past 18 months we have seen a rise in new uses for the plastic card product, one of which is the increasing popular ICE card (Incase of Emergency Card). Many companies across Europe are now introducing the ICE card and providing copies to their employees to be used as a first point of contact in an emergency or crisis situation. The ICE Card is designed to fit in a purse or wallet, or to be carried on your keys, so that it is always easily accessible.

ICE Cards came in circulation several years ago and was mainly used as an information tool which could be kept about your person, detailing any medical conditions that you may have, prescriptions that you are taking, contact details for next of kin etc. The idea behind the card was that should you be injured or taken ill, those tending to you will have all the necessary information to hand to act quickly and in your best interest. The success of the ICE card in the medical world was astounding, saving many lives using such a simple, inexpensive tool.

Over recent years the ICE card has been adopted for many different uses. Many parents now provide their children with an ICE card which displays their emergency contact details. Children rarely have a form of identity to carry with them at a young age and some parents have commented how their child carrying an ICE card helps to give them a little piece of mind when their children are out on their own.

The corporate ICE card is now being introduced into many businesses and organisations throughout the UK. The information which the plastic card contains is bespoke to each client, some cards have emergency evacuation procedures printed on them, whilst others have emergency contact numbers. The information is ideally kept short and simple, preferably in a bullet point format to save time when the card has to be used. As with all plastic cards created by Company Cards we produce ICE Cards in full colour to both sides with the print protected behind the laminate overlay to prevent text fading or wearing away over time. Our plastic cards are the perfect solution for ICE Cards as they are not only durable but water proof and can be used in all types of working environments.

For more information about ICE Cards from Company Cards please contact our Sales team today.

Adding variable data to your plastic cards could not be easier when producing cards digitally with Company Cards.

When it comes to manufacturing plastic cards, digital print technology allows for high quality personalised print jobs. What’s more, it also enables us to fulfil short run orders of just a handful of plastic cards, which can all be customised on press. Digital printing also makes possible a faster turn around time than the more traditional methods of printing.

Digital press uses technology called a Photo Imaging Plate (PIP) and traditional printing plates are not required. The PIP is made from a photo sensitive material which can be re-written with a laser up to 100,000 times before it needs replacing. The laser technology enables us to rewrite the image on the PIP with every revolution; this is what allows for the variable data on our plastic cards.

Here at Company Cards, we pride our selves on the ability to produce high quality personalised plastic cards. The laser writing head within the press controls the location of the ink particles with such precision, that we can accurately place particles which are as small as one micron.

We produce a wide range of on-press personalisation on our plastic cards. Another benefit of digital personalisation, as well as the high quality image and fast turn around time, is that the images and data are printed onto the core material, which is then PVC laminated. This means that the variable data on our plastic cards is protected underneath the laminate and can never be washed, scratched or rubbed off.

Traditional methods of printing in the plastic card industry will thermal the personalised data onto cards. This is done over the top of the laminate. This type of personalisation does not stand the test of time and does wear away if the card is used frequently.

At company Cards we produce thousands of membership cards and loyalty cards every day, the majority printed with variable data; whether that be a name, sequential number, barcode, QR code etc. We also produce photo ID cards, with a high quality photographic image. Due to the digital technology we can produce as little as one plastic card, we specialise in fast turn around small run orders.