QR codes for business cards
A business card has room for a name, a title, and one or two ways to reach you. A QR code on the back lets whoever is holding it open your website, your portfolio, or a booking page without typing anything.
Pay $3 for a code that opens the page you choose, and print it on every card in the run. The code never expires, and there is no subscription to keep it working.
What the code should open
The best page for a card does the next obvious thing. For a consultant that is a booking page. For a tradesperson it is recent work and a phone number. For a freelancer it is a short portfolio with a contact button.
Pick a page that loads quickly on a phone and has your contact details at the top. If people only open one thing from your card, they should see how to reach you before they see anything else.
Where it goes on the card
Keep the front for your name and title, and give the code its own space on the back.
- Put it in a lower corner of the back, with a short label beside it such as 'Scan to see my work'.
- Make it at least 0.8 inch (2 cm) square. About 1 inch (2.5 cm) scans more easily.
- Leave a clear margin of plain color around it, roughly the width of four of the code's small squares.
- Avoid placing it over a photo or a dark pattern, which hides its edges.
Paper and finish
Matte or lightly textured stock scans reliably. Glossy lamination, foil, and spot gloss can bounce light and stop a phone from reading the code, so keep special finishes away from the code area.
Print a proof before the full run and scan it with at least two different phones, in normal room light.
Keep a human way to reach you
Don't swap your phone number or email for a code. Some people prefer to type, and a code is no help to someone reading your card in the dark. Print your web address in short text beside the code too.
Example signs
Each example code opens threedollarqrcode.com. Your code can open any page you choose.
Questions
Can I update the page after the cards are printed?
Yes. The code opens whatever page lives at your link, so edit that page. The cards only need reprinting if the web address itself changes.
How small can the code be?
About 0.8 inch (2 cm) is the practical minimum on a card. Slightly larger is better.
Should the code be on the front or the back?
The back keeps the front clean, and people tend to flip a card over anyway.
Make your code for $3
Pay once. Pick the page your code opens and print it wherever you need it.