The meaning of business cards has three aspects. The meaning of these three aspects should be determined according to the specific situation of the business card holder.

These three aspects are:

1, promote yourself. The main contents of a small business card are the name, occupation, work unit and contact information (telephone BP machine, e-mail) of the holder of the business card. Through these contents, the concise personal information of the business card holder is clearly marked and spread to the outside world by the media.

2. Promote enterprises. In addition to clearly indicating personal information, business cards should also clearly indicate enterprise information, such as the name, address and business field of the enterprise. Corporate brands with CI image planning are included in office supplies planning. This kind of business card information is the most important, followed by personal information. In the business card, the logo, standard color and standard words of the enterprise are also required to become a part of the overall image of the enterprise.

3, the contact card of the letter bureau era. In the digital information age, everyone's life, work and study are inseparable from all kinds of information. Business cards convey information about enterprises, people and businesses in its unique form, which greatly facilitates our lives.

(2) Classification of business cards

1, classified according to the nature of business cards.

(1) ID card. This kind of business card is mainly used in government agencies, research institutes, schools, finance, insurance and other units. The contents of a business card mainly identify the holder's name, position, unit name and necessary communication methods, and the main purpose is to convey my personal information.

(2) Business behavior identification business cards. This kind of business card is mainly used in the field of production and circulation and service industry. The holders of business cards are mainly the buyers and sellers of enterprises and the operators of small enterprises. The content of a business card not only identifies the holder's name, position, unit name and necessary communication methods, but also identifies the business scope, service direction and business field of the enterprise, with the purpose of transmitting business information.

(3) Business card of enterprise CI system. This kind of business card is mainly used in larger enterprises with overall CI planning. As a part of corporate image, business card aims to improve corporate image and enhance corporate image.

2, according to the production process classification

(1) Offset business cards.

(2) Color printed business cards.

(3) Laser printing business cards.

● Key points of business card design

(A) the basic requirements of business card design

As an independent media of a person and a profession, business cards should pay attention to artistry in design. But it is obviously different from works of art. Unlike other works of art, it has high aesthetic value, which can be appreciated and pondered. In most cases, it will not attract people's attention and pursuit, but it is easy to remember and more recognizable, so that people can get the information they need in the shortest time. Therefore, the design of business cards must be concise, with distinctive fonts, emphasizing design awareness and novel artistic style.

The basic requirements of business card design should emphasize three words: simplicity, desirability and conciseness.

1, Jane: The main information conveyed by business cards should be concise and clear, and the composition should be complete and clear.

2. Work: Pay attention to quality and efficiency, and try to make the information clear.

3, easy: easy to remember, easy to identify.

(B) Business card design procedures

1. Before designing a business card, you should first understand three aspects.

(1) Know the identity and occupation of the business card holder.

(2) Understand the nature and function of the business card holder's unit and its unit.

(3) Understand the business scope of business card holders and units.

2. Unique concept

Unique creativity comes from the reasonable positioning of design and a comprehensive understanding of business card holders and units. A good business card idea can withstand the following tests:

Whether (1) has visual impact and identifiability.

(2) Whether it has the working nature and identity of the media subject.

(3) Whether it is unique or not.

(4) Whether it meets the business characteristics of the holder.

3. Design orientation

According to the understanding of the first three aspects, determine the design concept, composition, font, color and so on.

(C) elements in the design of business cards

In the design of business cards, there are indispensable elements. The so-called constituent elements refer to all kinds of materials that make up a business card, generally referring to signs, patterns and copywriting (name, mailing address and communication mode of the business card holder). These materials are endowed with different missions and functions, which are collectively called constituent elements.

There are two types of constituent elements:

1, which belongs to the elements of modeling.

(1) logo (a trademark or corporate logo registered with patterns or characters)

(2) Patterns (unique color blocks that form business cards)

(3) Outline (several borders)

It is a part of this plan.

(1) Name and title of the business card holder.

(2) the name card holder's unit and address.

(3) communication methods.

(4) business areas.

The above elements have their own place in business card design, and the design points are determined according to each type of business card.

(4) the design of business cards

In the design of business cards, the design of patterns is an important link. The success of pattern design directly affects the visual effect of business cards and people's psychological feelings towards business card holders and their units. Patterns have a fixed function in business cards.

1. These functions are classified as follows:

(1) attracts attention. A good business card pattern design should not only meet the needs of picture composition, but also attract people's attention strongly, so as to achieve the purpose of self-promotion by the holder.

(2) the professional characteristics and industry characteristics of the business card holder. The form and color of the business card pattern should reflect the professional characteristics and industry characteristics of the business card holder.

(3) Guide readers to pay attention to the induced effects of important schemes.

2, the composition of the pattern

Gradient of (1) mode

The application of monochrome gradient in business card design can not only maintain the integrity of the design, but also enhance the visual impact.

Mixed color gradient has more than one or two color gradients, and the effect of this picture is more active, but attention should be paid to the contrast of color force and the proportional distribution of composition when applying.

The image gradient takes the logo of the business card, the name of the factory or the products sold, and carries out light color weakening, color gradient and size gradient on the screen to form a richer visual effect.

(2) "Contrast and unification" of patterns.

The role of the pattern in the business card is to set off the theme, enrich the picture and remind readers. Therefore, the design of patterns should not only pay attention to contrast, but also be complete and unified. Contrast mainly refers to the obvious difference between the pattern of the picture and the background of the picture. Unity means that the level of painting should be clear, and the pattern exists to highlight the theme, make the composition eye-catching and full of personality, without usurping the role of the master.

(3) The expressive methods of patterns are given different expressive methods according to the personality characteristics of business cards. The performance skills are as follows:

Image texture method This method is to texture the image related to the business card holder's industry to form a pattern with distinctive personality.

The image photography method carries out various artistic treatments on the image photography pictures related to the business card holder's industry, forming a figurative artistic pattern.

Painting texture method is an abstract pattern, which mainly shows the texture effect of various paintings and gives business cards a strong artistic personality. Such as: oil painting texture, scraper texture, sketch texture, sketch texture, watercolor texture, Chinese painting texture and so on.

Flat coating and shading performance of color blocks on business card paper

(E) the proportion of business card design

Although the business card is small, it is a complete picture, so there are problems in the proportion and balance of the picture. This includes two aspects: one is the overall content of the business card, including the scheme, logo, the proportion of color blocks, and the other is the proportion of border lines. Here are some ratios for your reference:

1, golden ratio (golden section)

The golden ratio is widely used in design. The length-width ratio of gold to rectangle is 1: 1.6 18. Postcards, paper cards, stamps and national flags in some countries that are common in daily life all adopt this ratio. The golden ratio was calculated by French architect Corbusier according to the proportion of human body structure and mathematical principles. A man named Gleps in the United States conducted a public opinion survey among the masses with five different proportions of rectangles, and the highest recognition was the golden proportion rectangle. Gold comparison (1). Find a golden rectangle with one side of the square as the width. The method is: firstly, measure a half point on one side of the square, and then take this as the center and the connecting line between this point and its diagonal as the radius, draw the extension line from the arc to the bottom of the square.

On the long line, the intersection point is the endpoint of the long side of the golden rectangle.

Gold contrast (2). Take one side of the square as the length and find a golden rectangle. The method is as follows: first measure the midpoint of one side of a square, draw a line from this point to its diagonal, then draw an arc with the midpoint as the center and half of the square as the radius, and then draw an arc with the diagonal as the center and the intersection of the arc and diagonal as the radius, so as to reach the opposite side of the square. The rectangle formed by parallel lines at this point is the golden section rectangle.

2. Fibonacci series

This is an approximate golden ratio series. That is, the proportion of the golden rectangle is applied to the continuous line group, and the interval composition is obtained. This is a beautiful scale model. This mathematical order is lively, with obvious contrast, rich graphic changes and wide application.

The solution of Fibonacci series is that the sum of the numbers of two adjacent items in the series is the third value. For example, the series starts with 1 and the first item is 0 1 or 1. The third term is 1 1=2, the fourth term is 12=3, the fifth term is 23=5, and so on.

(VI) Logo design in business card design

Generally speaking, the signs of business cards are provided by users themselves. But sometimes the logo is also designed with the business card. Business cards of general enterprises and institutions, leaders and ordinary employees have dual appearances, one is the appearance of the unit, and the other is the appearance of the business card holder. The image of the former is mainly expressed by signs, which shows how important the signs are in a small business card. In terms of the material of business cards, logo is simple, compact and uniform, and has the most easily recognizable visual effect in an instant, which is suitable for impression, memory and association. This feature is the most important condition for it to attract attention and memory in business cards.

The idea of logo design should focus on the following points:

1, personality characteristics. Strive to express a unique symbol form, with an easy-to-identify, clear and eye-catching artistic image, which is different from peers and similar signs.

Step 2 send a message. The image of the sign should express the meaning immediately, convey the connotation with the appearance and play the role of the media.

3. See the big with small, and win more with small. Trademark design should be refined, accurate, vivid and clear at a glance, and the artistic form should be more concentrated and representative, so as to deepen the theme of trademark patterns.

Basic forms of trademark design:

1, a symbolic shape with personality;

2. A person with personality;

3. A comprehensive form of characters and patterns with individuality;

4. Individualized abstract geometric figures.

(seven) the outline of the business card

The outline refers to the physical boundary shape of the picture, which can be the picture in the picture or the ground of the picture. The task of the outline is to quickly control the reader's line of sight, so as to keep the picture complete. The outline of the business card should not be too strange and dazzling, and don't pretend to be the owner.

(eight) a copy of the business card

The business card copy is divided into two parts, one is the theme copy, and the other is the auxiliary explanation copy. Subject words generally refer to the name and work unit of the business card holder. The auxiliary explanation copy includes the title, communication method and unit address of the business card holder. Whether it is the theme copy or the auxiliary explanation copy, it must obey the overall composition. Pay attention to the following points in the arrangement of composition:

1. The copywriting content of business cards should be concise, the information transmission should be accurate, and the theme copywriting and auxiliary explanation copywriting should be clear. Theme copy and auxiliary explanation copy should be different in font usage and font scale.

2. The layout paragraphs of the copy should be neatly arranged, beautiful and generous, and pay attention to formal beauty. Don't be sloppy and messy. In our daily work, many business cards are used to communicate with each other, and everyone's reading of business cards is pleasing to the eye, so whether the layout of the copy is reasonable is very important to lock the reader's sight.

3. Visually speaking, the line spacing must be greater than the word spacing. This can strengthen the neatness and clarity of lines, help to eliminate the visual fatigue caused by reading and improve readability.

4. The font of business cards should be standardized. As early as 1992, the State Press and Publication Administration and the State Character Committee jointly issued the "Regulations on the Use of Characters in Publications", which repeatedly emphasized the use of standardized simplified characters issued by the state. Moreover, few people know traditional Chinese characters, and printing business cards with traditional Chinese characters brings a lot of inconvenience to users.

5. The design of Chinese and foreign business cards should be based on Chinese. The blocky structure of Chinese characters is more readable than any foreign language visually. It is more convenient for Chinese-based business cards to transmit information in foreign languages. The design of business cards not only pays attention to the sense of form, but more importantly, the function of the business card itself. The social scope of each of us is diverse and complex, and so is the business field, so focusing on Chinese can make it more convenient for more people.

6. Combination design and arrangement of characters in business cards. In a business card, the largest proportion is words, so the design and arrangement of words is very important. The combination and arrangement of words that conform to the law of art form also have beautiful enjoyment.

Design of (1) character. The writing design of business cards is divided into two systems. One is the theme writing, which generally adopts dignified, generous and bold, song style and official script. Sometimes, free bodies related to the business card holder's work and the nature of the unit are adopted. The general text is slightly larger than the auxiliary explanation copy. The second is the auxiliary explanatory text, which is usually in Song style, sometimes in bold or italics, and the text is slightly smaller.

(2) The layout design of the text. In the design of business cards, all kinds of characters should have proper positions, and the arrangement of characters should be rhythmic and hierarchical, emphasizing the division of points, lines and planes, visually emphasizing the picture, and emphasizing the change of font form and priorities. More specifically, there are many forms of characters in business card design, such as end to end, end to end, virtual reality, front and back, center, division, combination and so on.

Flush: the first word of each line or paragraph is arranged in the first cell of the same line, and there is no space at the beginning of each line and paragraph.

Tail alignment: the last word of each line or paragraph is arranged in the last cell of the same line, and then aligned.

Reality: Due to the different positions of characters in business cards, the design methods should be different. Solid, hollow, stroke thickness, font size and color contrast can be considered to emphasize the primary and secondary relationship.

Before and after: between the theme of the business card and the auxiliary text, different colors are used to make the text far and near under the influence of color, which enriches the picture level.

Center: The scheme of business cards is arranged up and down or left and right according to the needs of the theme and design, and the center of the picture shall prevail.

Segmentation: mainly consider the needs of composition, and separate the theme from the auxiliary text with colors and lines, which makes people easy to understand, clear at a glance and clear in hierarchy.

Combining and arranging the characters on business cards in various ways will form colorful visual effects.

7. Contrast between business card copy and blank. The words and blanks of business cards are the relationship between the map and the ground, which set off each other. Designing business cards includes logo, color theme scheme, auxiliary scheme, etc. These contents must always be planned as a whole, with clear priorities, so as to form a unified picture and pay attention to the contrast relationship. It can be seen that the contrast between copy and blank is very important. Some business card designs exaggerate the theme of the business card, regardless of the overall elements of the picture. I think this can make the theme of the business card more clear, but it is not. The reader's reading of business cards is the overall feeling of business cards, and this overall composition is more formed by the contrast between the copy of business cards and the blank. The copywriting of business cards is generally summarized into various geometric shapes in the overall composition, such as equilateral triangle, right triangle, rectangle, square, circle, semicircle, ellipse and so on. In this way, the copy is integrated into one, which forms an overall regional contrast with the blank space, making the overall composition of the picture clearer and the theme copy more prominent.

In addition, the contrast between the scheme and the blank can also enhance the rhythm of the picture. Generally, blank space is left around the picture or interspersed in the whole picture to avoid staying in the center of the picture, which can avoid the centrifugal theme text and reduce the attention value. As for the appropriate proportion of blank, it should be decided according to the specific situation.

Design conception and composition of business cards

(A) the creativity of business cards

The so-called conception refers to the designer's overall thinking before designing business cards. The conception of a business card is mainly considered from the following aspects: the identity of the user and the nature of the work, the nature of the work unit, the personal views and opinions of the holder of the business card, the technical problems of making, and finally the artistic composition of the whole picture. The completion of business card design is to form a picture in the form of artistic composition, so the artistic conception of business cards is particularly important.

1. Information source of business card design. It seems simple for us to make a small business card design, but it is not easy to come up with excellent products and excellent works. So how can we design better works? First of all, we should analyze the extended information of the constituent elements. A comprehensive analysis is made on the personal identity, work nature, unit nature, business behavior and business field of the business card holder. Analyze the personal identity and work nature of the holder; Analyze whether they are leaders or ordinary staff, national civil servants, teachers, lawyers, doctors, businessmen, self-employed businessmen or freelancers. The analysis of these personal data has a direct impact on the composition of business card design and the use of fonts. For example, the business card holder's work unit is a government agency, the nature of his work is a national civil servant, and his personal identity is the leader of a competent department. The idea of this business card design should be clear theme, obvious level, simple and serious color and stable and concentrated composition. From the unit nature of the business card holder, it is analyzed whether it is an institution, institution or enterprise, and the business nature and direction of the enterprise are analyzed to determine the composition, color and copywriting style of the picture. For example, the business cards of the manager of children's toy store, the director of steel plant, Green and members of the organization are obviously different in composition, color and font.

2. The role of imagination in conception. The whole conception of business cards is completed on the basis of imagination, which is an important part of the ability training of designers. The methods to cultivate imagination are: analogy and association, logical reasoning, reverse thinking beyond common sense, addition thinking of variable units, subtraction thinking of divisibility, collocation thinking of permutation and combination, and so on. With the way of thinking, the imagination is naturally rich.

3. The source of inspiration. Artists, designers, scientists, musicians, etc. Everyone has the problem of inspiration, and inspiration appears in their own works. Some people say that inspiration is accidental, but it is actually incorrect. Artists, designers, scientists, musicians and artists are inspired by their long-term pursuit of career, long-term concentrated thinking, rich knowledge accumulation and rich personal experience. As a designer, don't expect inspiration, but actively learn positive thinking, and inspiration will always meet unexpectedly. Inspiration is sporadic and ephemeral, so designers should seize the time to create when inspiration appears, which will greatly improve work efficiency and design ideal works.

4. The conception process of business cards. The conception of business cards can be roughly divided into the following stages: information collection, which is mainly a comprehensive false collection of personal information of business card holders. In the information analysis stage, the collected information is comprehensively analyzed and then developed in form. In the stage of form combination, the expanded forms are combined into various forms. In the table positioning stage, the combination business card is selected and positioned to determine the business card design scheme.

5. Image enlightenment of business card design. The image enlightenment of business card design includes two aspects: (1) the business personality and product personality of the business card holder; (2) The abstract thinking personality of modern graphic design.

(2) the composition of business cards

1, the size of the business card. The size of a general business card is 90mm55mm.

2. Horizontal composition.

3. Vertical composition.

4. The composition is stable. The stable structure is that the theme and logo of the picture are in the middle and upper part of the picture, the lower part is the auxiliary explanation copy, and the logo, theme and auxiliary explanation copy are divided into regions.

5. Rectangular composition. Rectangular composition refers to a relatively complete rectangle with theme, logo and auxiliary instructions, and the text and graphics are restrained and concentrated. This composition is complete and neat.

6. Elliptical composition. Elliptic composition is a relatively complete ellipse composed of theme, logo and auxiliary instructions, and the text and graphics are more concentrated inward, making the composition picture more complete.

7. Semicircular composition. Semi-circular composition means that the auxiliary explanation copy is formed in a semi-circular pattern area, and the main