How To Manage Your Business Cards At A Conference

Can we really say blog conference season is here again?

At this point it seems like it never stops. At last count I knew of 54 conferences held sometime from January to October of this year. Add to that the blogger outreach from brands for local events and I think it's a safe bet to assume you should always have a media kit and business cards at the ready.

Having been to professional conferences before I came to the wonderful world of blogging, I have to tell you that business cards are currency at blogging conferences in ways that they just aren't at other conferences.

You. MUST. Have. Them.

Keeping that in mind, here are some helpful tips to managing your business cards (both those you give away and those you receive) while at a blog conference.

One.

My advice is to keep YOUR business cards in one pocket and those you collect in another. Personally I put mine in my left pocket and those I collect in my right. I used to do just the opposite, but have since found it advantageous to put my cards in my left pocket, allowing me to grab one while simultaneously shaking a hand.

If I'm wearing a dress or skirt I put MY cards to the outside of my purse pocket and those I collect to the inside.

Thus, making sure I don't hand someone a card that isn't mine and it helps me know when I need to replenish my stock

Two.

Go with a standard size card. While there are adorable mini-cards and lots of fabulous larger size cards that will allow you to put a ton of information on them, most people stack their cards up all together and those that are larger or smaller have the unfortunate possibility of being lost or worse thrown out by bloggers and brands alike.

If you really want to customize your card, add color, round the corners, or publish a vertical card--but keep the size traditional.

Three.

While we all love a beautiful and snazzy card, keep in mind that they really are there for the receiver and not the giver. Add a photo if you can, often it is difficult to remember where or how exactly you met someone at a conference and a photo will go a long way to jogging a memory. Put down the essentials for contacting you, but don't go overboard. And, try to steer yourself away from a double-sided glossy card. It makes it very hard for bloggers/brands to make notes on. Speaking of which, you should always carry a pen with you, so you can make notes of a meaningful conversation or about how/where you met.

I also like to keep my cards in the order that I collected them. I find this incredibly useful in placing people and conversations after the whirlwind of a conference is behind me.

Four.

Lastly, how do I keep my cards organized after returning home? As often as I can during the conference I punch a whole in each card and place it on a ring. After arriving home, I finish up with any cards I might have missed and add them. I have one such ring for each conference that I have attended. It makes it a cinch to follow up with brands and bloggers after the conference and doesn't take up any space in my office.

What tips do you have for organizing your conference business cards?

Disclosure: Tiny Prints compensated me for this review. However the opinions expressed in this review are mine and mine alone and were in no way influenced by Tiny Prints. I wouldn't have written about them if I didn't love them.