Elements of Business Stationery

These days everybody realizes the importance which business stationery plays in an enterprise. Gone are the days when one could afford to officially communicate with their customers, suppliers, lenders and other business associates on non-official paper. Even in this day and age of internet and online communications, the need for custom stationery has not diminished.

It is essential that one knows about the basic elements of stationery. There are a number of elements, both for interoffice and external use, which form to make a company’s stationery, however we will restrict our discussion here to the three most commonly used items, that is, the business card, letterhead and envelope.

Business Cards

In most cases the tiny business card, a card made from card stock paper and usually measuring 2 ¼” x 1 ¼”, is the first thing your potential customer, venture partner, loan provider or even competitor will see from your business. That is why it is essential that your business card creates a fantastic first impression on its audience. For this, special emphasis should be given to their design and printing should be done on a good quality paper with either a glossy or matte finish.

The main objective of a business card is to provide its viewer simple information about the card holder such as his/her name, designation within the company, the company name and logo, and contact details such as postal address, phone number, cell phone number, fax, email etc. A general rule of thumb is to not feature any marketing or sales pitch like company slogans on the card as this is not what it is meant for.

Another important thing is not to put too much information on the face of the business card as the viewer will find it difficult if the information is too cluttered. If the card seems that way, it is better to also utilize the back side of the card.

Letterheads

The actual communication itself, whether it is a project proposal, contract between two parties, sales letter, or even a letter of recommendation for one of your employees is nowadays done on the letterhead. In most cases, it is also a legal requirement to conduct all important business-related correspondence in writing on official company paper, the letterhead.

Letterheads also give business correspondence an air of professionalism and sense of purpose. Generally, a letterhead features the company’s logo and name, postal address, phone and fax numbers and company email and web site address and serves as a reminder of the business to the recipient. While designing a letterhead, it should be ensured that plenty of writing area is available so that the actual correspondence does not find itself short of space.

Envelopes

The main purpose of a business envelope is to take its contents, such as company letterhead, business cards and other business stationery items to their intended destination. Envelopes should feature the company’s logo, name along with the return address in case it fails to reach its destination.

It is a prudent practice for companies to have readily available different types of envelopes, such as booklet, ‘A’ size, invitation and shipping/packaging envelopes as their need could arise at any time.

By Logo Design Next

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