Some historians say business cards emerged in the 15th century, when Chinese aristocrats spread them around to announce they were in town. They became indispensable tools for sharing business contacts in the pre-computer, pre-smart-phone era. Nowadays, we are more cautious about touching things other people handled. Will we see business cards fade away in the pandemic?
Are Business Cards Still Relevant in This Day and Age
Boileau Communications was quite disparaging about business cards when we asked. In fact they seemed to consider them outdated nowadays. But then that’s perhaps not surprising given their preoccupation with ‘communicating with discernment’, which the pandemic is making more remote.
Boston Business Journal tells the wry story of a wannabe business lady who paid $68 for 100 business cards, pre-COVID. She still has half that number to share. She dishes them out in packs containing a card, a personalized note, and a face mask with her information.
Business Cards Fade Away in a Pandemic of QR Squares
BBC’s Adrienne Murray believes barcode black squares are seeing business cards off, because they are simply smarter. She envisages encountering them on lapel pins, and cufflinks she can scan without touching them.
She could even download the company annual report and brochure if she wanted. There’s no doubt business cards could fade away in the pandemic because technology overtook them. Adrienne Murray mentions 27 million business cards were printing daily before the pandemic, so there are loads of trees to save too.
We wrote the other day how we need to adapt as the pandemic becomes a less harmful, enduring endemic. Perhaps technology will do away with most of the inconvenience. Many of us already work from home in a paperless society. Virtual business cards seem a logical transition.
Recent
What to Expect from COVID Booster Shots
Double Vaccination Cuts Long COVID by 50%
Preview Image: Card Making Machine (1889)
