We analysed 18 months of business card orders and surveyed hundreds of customers to answer one question: does investing in premium business cards actually work?
The results were clear. Between 2022 and 2023, customers who upgraded to luxury finishes grew by 16%, average spend per order increased by 13%, and orders featuring specialty papers jumped by 22%. More importantly, our customer survey revealed that 86% believe thicker business cards look more professional, and 82% think standing out from a stack of standard cards matters when networking.
With 88% of business cards thrown away within the first week, we wanted to understand what makes people keep one card over another. The data shows a decisive shift: customers are moving away from quantity and towards quality, choosing fewer cards with premium finishes rather than bulk orders of standard stock.
Here's what the numbers tell us about the real value of upgrading your business cards.
Standard Business Cards Are Uninspiring
In 2022, 46% of customers chose specialty paper stocks over standard options. By 2023, that jumped to 56%. As demand for premium finishes grows, we continue to research new paper stocks so we can offer even more new and exciting ways to meet the demand for premium finishes that help cards compete in increasingly saturated markets.
88% of business cards are discarded within the first week. Our response has been to expand our range of premium paper stocks: pearlescent, kraft, textured cards, duplex cards with painted edges, spot UV, and soft touch lamination. These options give cards a better chance of survival.
The data backs this up. Between 2022 and 2023, customers choosing specialty stocks over standard options jumped from 46% to 56%. While standard gloss, silk and uncoated cards remain adequate for basic needs, customer preferences are shifting towards finishes that help cards compete in saturated markets.
As this trend accelerates, we continue expanding our paper stock range to meet growing demand.
What Does This Mean for You?
Our customers are keen to make their business cards stand out, because it lowers the chances of cards being discarded. This is why we offer an extensive range of premium options.
Data shows that 92% of customers see the added value and would upgrade to a luxury finish over a standard 350gsm business card if they had a larger budget.
86% of customers agree that a thicker business card looks more professional when surveyed.
Your budget doesn't need to increase to improve retention. Choosing premium finishes over bulk quantities can deliver better results for the same spend. With 88% of standard business cards discarded within a week, investing in specialty stocks, foil details, or textured finishes gives your cards a significantly better chance of being kept.
Survey results from our customers about the likelihood of choosing a special finish, such as metallic foil (58%) for their business cards.
Our Survey Found:
92% of customers see the value and would upgrade to a luxury finish over a standard 350gsm business card if they had a larger budget.
58% of customers agree that adding metallic foil to a business card will make the card more likely to be kept.
Is It Right to Have a Budget?
This is a much more personal view, but when we surveyed our customers, only 24% had a budget less than £49. That means that over 75% of customers had a budget large enough to order 250 double-thick business cards with soft-touch laminate to both sides. This is probably one of the simplest ways to upgrade your business cards while still being on a budget, and as we’ve already touched upon, our survey shows a thicker card is more professional looking.
Quantity and quality are totally subjective, and another deciding factor is whether this will be a business card you hand out en masse or one you’re likely to offer more selectively.
If slow and steady is for you, then a double-thick card will stand the test of time and will not hold an unwanted fold.
How Many Business Cards Should You Buy?
Speaking of 250 business cards, you may wonder if this is enough. Before looking at the sales data, I’d have thought that the average order may look something like 100 or 200 business cards. Between 2022 to 2023 the average quantity of business cards per order rose by 13% from 500 to 565.
That’s not to say that 250 business cards aren’t enough, we have customers that order 10,000 business cards at a time for all their staff, so these numbers are impacted by large orders like this.
To find out more about this data we surveyed our customers to learn what they are doing with their business cards.
Some notable facts are that 34% of customers have started to include business cards with their orders and 20% of customers are actively trying to hand out their business cards more as they think it helps their overall sales. Perhaps being selective of whom receives a business card is the best way to be budget-orientated while minimising waste.
Interestingly, through COVID, 8% of customers started a new business and needed to hand more business cards out for that initial boost of exposure so this will also be bumping up the average order quantity for business cards.
No matter if you're a printer like us, or re-sell our services to your own customers, it seems that customers love to take advantage of bulk ordering (12% mentioned this as an additional reason).
While we’re not trying to push you towards ordering more business cards, but if you were to purchase 250 double-thick business cards at £58.95, you could double that order to 500 for an extra £27. Rather than having to pay another £58.95 later when you need more. It also saves on delivery charges too so budget-conscious people could genuinely have wiggle room to print fancier business cards if they order in bulk rather than smaller orders more often.
How Much Should Business Cards Cost?
Next, let's look at how much customers are spending on their order of business cards. While we must keep the actual amounts a secret, what we can reveal is that from 2022 to 2023 the average amount spent on a business card order increased by 13%.
This is partly attributed to the number of business card orders using a luxury finish increasing from 62% of orders to 72%, which is a huge 16% increase. In our survey, this data is backed up with two stats:
58% of customers choose to spend more on luxury business cards so their customers will complement their card and notice the extra attention to detail.
24% of our customers think that making their business cards stand out will increase the chances of their card being kept and thus increase their ROI.
You may think that throughout Covid people have scrimped or ignored business cards as they worked from home. This data seems to indicate the opposite though. It also shows that our customers are receptive to the growing number of unique paper types we are offering them and sees the true value in luxury business cards.
Our Survey Found:
Only 24% of customers had a budget less than £49/$65. This means that over 75% of customers had a budget large enough to order 250 double thick business cards with laminate to both sides.
58% of customers choose to spend more on luxury finishes so their customers will compliment their card and notice the extra attention to detail.
24% of customers think that making their business card stand out will increase the chances of it being kept and thus increase their ROI.
Foiled Business Cards Are Still Our Best Seller
One statistic that hasn’t changed is the number of business card orders that include a metallic foil finish. In both 2022 and 2023, while the total orders we took increased, the number of foiled business cards remained at a hearty 25% of the business cards we produced.
This is hardly surprising as our foil cards have been a massive hit since we’ve introduced them, and customer reviews seem to tell us you can’t get enough!
When we surveyed our customers about metallic foil business cards, a whopping 58% of customers agree that adding metallic foil to a business card will make the card more likely to be kept. An additional 30% think that it probably will but they're yet to try it.
We might sound like we’re beating a drum here, but there is value in luxury business cards, especially if it means your business card stands out and is kept by your clients.
Standing Out From the Stack
Speaking of standing out, the theme continues to be a key feature our customers love, especially our offering of die-cut business cards and colour core cards. Mainly due to the fact that they stand out from the crowd even in a compact wallet. It adds a visual impact to your business card, making easy work of dominating any cards in their path.
From 2022 to 2023 customers upgrading to use painted edges or colour core business cards grew a huge 84% and it now sits at around 11% of all orders. We think it's the best way to stand out, especially if your clients keep all their business cards in a pile. As the competition gets stiffer, we offer all that we can to get your business card noticed!
When asked about standing out, specifically in a stack of business cards, 82% of customers think that it's an important factor when it comes to ordering their cards.
Survey results for how many customers (82%) believe it is important to stand out from a stack of business cards and how many (86%) believe a thicker business card is more professional.
Our Survey Found:
82% of customers think that it's important for your business cards to stand out in a stack of cards.
86% of customers agree that a thicker business card looks more professional.
Environmentally Friendly Business Cards
Eco-friendly print remains at the forefront of our customers’ minds, as climate change and deforestation continues to receive increased public attention.
We have seen that as the public opinion about our planet changes, the increase in customers using recycled stock on their business cards has grown 63% over the period between 2022 and 2023. This is encouraging news, and it’s worth pointing out that eco-friendly is no longer synonymous with a lack of quality. On the contrary, our recycled business card stocks are very luxurious.
In our survey, we asked "Do you care about printing on a recycled paper stock?". 54% of customers said they care about printing on recycled paper stock if they can.
Around 13% of customers choose a recycled paper type for their print media and we can see that trend continuing to grow at a quick rate in the coming years. At the end of the day, it makes total sense to invest in eco-friendly materials. Not only do they offer some beautiful textures, but the very fact that you’re using them speaks to your audience on another level, it tells them that you care.
As printers, it is difficult to print on anything but paper, but we’re always looking to add more choices of recycled business cards for our customers to choose from. Our current eco-friendly paper range is going from strength to strength, with our range including cotton, cannabis, wheat, rag, kraft and of course traditional recycled paper.
But we don’t just stop at the paper stock, we also use a range of vegan inks and ensure that we’re using the latest available technology so that we’re minimising our carbon footprint as much as possible from start to finish.
Print Your Business Cards With Us
Business card buying behaviour is evolving, and customer expectations are on the rise, which means increased competition for attention. Understanding these trends helps you make informed decisions about where to invest your print budget and how to ensure your cards don't get discarded.
Upgrading your business cards is often a great way to freshen up your branding, kickstart new motivations and level up your marketing efforts. We have guidance on what exactly to put on your business cards so you don’t miss those perfect networking opportunities.
Browse our full range of business card options, order a business card sample pack to examine our paper weights and finishes for yourself, or contact our team to discuss the right finish for your branding.
