Three places to get affordable artist business cards

Artist cards in a series: circa 2004 and 2005.

The relatively recent revolution in printing has had enormous impact on the small business person, and that includes us artists. 20 years ago, just thinking about full color cards could set you back easily $500 or more. These days, you can compete with your peers in brilliant full color for less than the cost of meal out, in some cases.

A bit of detail, for the detail minded: Prior to current methods of modern printing, commercial printers used the Four Color Process (and many high-end houses till do). Recall our earlier discussion on Photoshop Tips about CMYK vs. RGB? CMYK refers to the inks in the four color process: Cyan (blue), Magenta, Yellow, and Black). Artwork had to be mechanically (or photographically) separated into four plates; and each printed sheet had to be run through the press 4 separate times. These are a couple of reasons why it was so costly.

More artist cards I like:

(more fun artists business cards: the one of the left uses a closeup of a large painting; the center one is a nice example of a simple black ink on cream card stock; the right one features on of the artist's sensitive pet portraits)

Modern offset printing, on the other hand, streamlines the color spearation and printing process making it much more cost effective. Here are some things to consider when looking for a printing supplier:

• What kind of quality do I want? Good enough, pretty good, really great?
• How much am I willing to spend?
• Can I have business cards printed and still be environmentally conscious?
• Am I happy to have one card with one or two images, or do I need lots and lots of variety?
• Do I have the software I need to set up my own card, or do I need an online template that will help me set it up?

Here's a quick run down of several printers who may meet your needs, based on your criterion above. I'll include a brief bit of information on each one; please refer to their websites for more details. For a fair contrast of pricing, each price mentioned is for a single sided full color card, and includes the least expensive postage, and any other standard charges. Postage may vary according to your location.

VistaPrint.com is the low price leader. If price is your main deciding factor, they will be hard to beat. Like all the other printers, they produce a wide variety of items, including biz cards, post cards, brochures, mailing labels, etc. There is a $5 upload fee for any design or image, but you can use that on multiple items, if you wish. This is currently my printer of choice for postcards.

Price:

• Orders start at about $11 for 250 cards
  (this includes their 'free' business card option, with one image upload charge (about $5) and slowest shipping (about $6). Choices on matte or glossy paper may change from day to day; paper upgrade is about $13)

Pros:

• low price
• some online design capabilities -- also offers a design service for an additional fee
• often runs specials and price breaks
• delivers all over the world

Cons:

• Slightly lighter card weight than other printers (-- still far superior to print-your-own variety; they do not curl and the ink won't run or rub off)
• Cards are slightly undersized (1.93" x 3.43"-- standard is 2" x 3.5")
• The gloss card stock coated is on one side only

PSPrint.com
is a reliable mid range online printer. One different thing about their process is you place the order and pay first, and upload your artwork later. They do offer an online design tool, Design It!, if you do not have access or skill to design your own card (caveat: I haven't tried this tool, but it looks interesting). PS Print is currently my printer of choice for business cards.

Price:

• With the current special 250 cards start at about $32; the regular price is about $54 (both with with standard shipping).

Pros:

• Heavier card stock, gloss on both sides
• Full size cards
• Recycled card stock available!
• Current special: 50% off business cards until May 31

Cons:

• Pay first/upload later is confusing to some users
• a lot of choices to wade through in terms of turnaround (printing and shipping)
• This both pro and con: Small orders starting at 50 are available, but it is much more cost effective to start at the 250 amount.

Moo.comThis European printer (but now with a plant in the US) is new to me, but both Kim Denise (see her special offer below) and Manon Doyle give it excellent reviews (see their card sets on last Friday's post). The biggest attraction: you can have multiple images printed in a single order.

Cost: (does not include shipping; I was not able to ascertain this in time for the post)

• $24.95 for 50 (upload up to 50 images) plus shipping
• $70 plus shipping for 200
• 100 mini cards for $19.95 (upload up to 100 images)

Pros:

• Great print/color quality
• Heavy card stock with a smooth matte coating -- nice to touch
• Environmentally conscious paper available! Choose from 'Moo classic" sourced from sustainable forests OR "Moo Green" 100% Recycled Fibre
• Multiple images available in a single order
• Upload is very simple
• Trial ten-packs available for no cost except shipping

Cons:

• A more expensive option than some
• Shipping was slow (2 weeks) because they came from England, but it should be a lot faster now that they've got a printer in Connecticut.
• "One more negative about the cards is that everyone loves them so much they want more that one.....lol!" (says Manon)

Kim Denise has put a promotional code in the comments on her blog post. Click here to use it for your first order and get a 20% discount! Thanks, Kim!!!

Other vendors to consider: If this hasn't confused you enough, a couple of other reputable printers are Modern Postcard (Cathyann mentioned she likes them, and I had my first color postcards printed by them years ago) and Overnight Prints (a super-glossy favorite of one of my design clients)