The first business card I created was a banknote called The Ego. This business card looks and feels like real currency, because I researched the paper and printing processes that countries around the world use. The Ego even gained a real-world exchange rate when I sold it online – and the exchange rate is still growing, currently way better than the dollar. 

Another surprising effect of my banknote business card was that because it’s far too big to fit in to a traditional business card holder, not only does this immediately mark it as “unusual” right away (and as I always say, if you want to get noticed, look at what everyone else is doing – and then simply do something different), what it also means is that any person I give it to often leaves it on their desk for ages, meaning that other people ask them about it, and this then keeps me in their mind for a long period of time and beautifully enhances brand awareness too. 

Because my Ego banknote business card was such a success, I capitalised on this and launched The Shed Two Cents – a large and heavy coin that showed my head on one side (heads) and my bum on the other (tails). 

This also got great reactions when I handed it over and pushed my brand forward even further. 

Recently though, I took a diversion from the “currency” path to create a brand new business card that was born from my experiences of attending networking events. 

I decided that I wanted a business card that, at first glance, would look like a normal business card, but on further investigation would contain layers of relevance about the actual activity of “giving a business card”. I also wanted it to have an interactive element, so that I could personalise it for each person I gave it to, thus making the giving of my card even more memorable. 

Thus, the Honest Business Card™ came to life, a card covered in five options for precisely why I’ve decided to give someone my business card. 

It has tick boxes against each reason, so that I can choose one as I hand the card over. The listed reasons for me giving the card include, “The conversation lulled so I did something to break the boredom”, “I wanted to show how much better my card was than yours” and (only for the lucky chosen ones) “I want to sleep with you”.

I hope the card delivers a refreshing take on business interactions. See what you think. Which one would you tick?

Shed Simove is an entrepreneur, author and corporate speaker on innovation and creativity. Find out more about Shed at www.ShedSimove.com.

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