Virtual Business Cards: The new way to share your details
The way we do business has changed so much in a very short period of time. With all the social restrictions, everything has had to move online. Instead of holding face to face meetings, we are all on zoom, teams, and google meets. Networking has evolved so much, and we must also evolve to fit in.
For many years, I've attended Business networking meetings such as Chamber of Commerce, BNI, Business in Heels, and many others. These groups are a very effective way to meet like minded business owners for the purpose of sharing ideas, encouraging each other, and referring business to each other. I'm an extrovert, so networking is certainly a happy place for me. I really enjoy the social interaction, the wine, the keynote speakers, the nibblies, and expanding my referral network. However, some people find it daunting to introduce themselves, and having a business card handy sometimes helps them to make conversation. Hi, lovely to meet you... what type of business do you have... that sounds amazing, tell me more about it... do you have a business card, I'd love to give your details to a friend of mine...
When I attend a networking event, I arm myself with about 25 business cards with the aim to gather just as many as I give out. It's so interesting hearing about peoples passions and the various business ideas people have as I'm gathering their cards. After the event, I usually get in touch by email with each contact I've made to say hi and follow up on how we could possibly support each other. I've managed to forge some really successful and productive connections by reaching out this way. And I now have a network of service providers I can call on for expertise in so many fields. I often refer potential customers to them too. As a bonus, they have referred potential customers to me, and some of those referrals have become my best clients.
So, we are all left wondering, in this virtual world we now live in, how do we pass on our details to each other since we are no longer meeting in person? It's not appropriate, or even possible most of the time, to hand out cards. So, I've recently set up a virtual business card with an app called Haystack. The app was fairly easy to use and free if you only make one card. I have a paid subscription, and I was able to make multiple cards to include members of my team and some of my trade business owners. People seem to be really impressed when I'm able to send my business card by text, email or QR code, and they can save my details into their phone directly from the card. My card is really attractive and I feel proud to be saving paper too.
In my opinion, physical business cards will eventually be extinct. So, will you get onboard, and impress people with how tech savvy you are? And if you're sitting there thinking, but I don't even network.... what are you waiting for? Join a local online business networking group immediately! You will meet amazing like minded people, you will learn from each other, and you open up a whole world of opportunities to reach new customers.