| Product: |
Vistaprint.com |
| Date: |
15/07/05 (942 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Business cards for the cost of postage; good range of designs; easy registration
Disadvantages: In-your-face advertising
When you give out a business card, you don’t want the ink to come off in your potential client’s hand. Free business card offers abound, but the quality can be variable to say the least. So when a family member showed me a business card that she had got FREE from Vistaprint.com, I decided to check it out for myself.
As it turned out, there was also a UK version, but when I looked at the available designs, the one I wanted was only available on the US site, so that’s where I went.
Registration
When you get to the site, the free business card link is on the top left. Clicking on this takes you to a page where you can browse the designs. However, before you can start the process of getting something for virtually nothing, you need to register.
Registration is simple: you provide an email address, last name and first name, and set a password . You can also fill in a company name and provide a password hint in case you forget your password later. I chose not to provide a hint, then had to rely on my faulty memory on my second visit to the site.
You then need to tick a box to say whether the card for business or personal use (why does this matter, I wonder) and then need to untick a box to opt out of the company’s special offers and stop them from passing your name on to others. Finally, you need to specify whether emails should be sent in HTML or plain text, press register and you’re off.
You will then get an automatic registration confirmation (it does not include your password for security reasons) and a link (http://www.vistaprint.com/vp/ns/default.aspx) where you can go back and design your business cards.
Design process
First, select a design. These are divided into categories: most popular, new arrivals and business, high impact and stylish. Clicking on a design brings up a larger image and a left hand column with spaces to enter your company name, message, full name, address, phone, fax and other. At each stage – or at the end – you can click on the preview button below the image to see how it looks. Be warned, though, if you change your mind about the design at this stage you risk losing your text and having to enter it again, so make sure you’re happy with the design before you start entering text. I looked at all the designs and there were at least three (of a total of about 20) that I liked.
Checkout and other options
Once you’re happy, enter your initials in the proof approval box and proceed to the checkout screen. You are then presented with a list of options that you can change, with the default ones pre-selected. These are:
1. Quantity – you can get 250 free, 500 for $9.99 or pay for quantities up to 5000
2. Backside printing – the free business cards have a Vistaprint advert on the back. You can also choose to have them plain ($9.99) or choose black and white printing (at $19.99) or colour printing (at $24.99) on the back. In this case you can select from a range of calendars, appointment cards and thank you cards. I didn’t think the designs were particularly inspiring.
3. Paper. Matte is included or you can have a glossy front at $9.99.
Each of the card options is an *additional* cost, so make sure you only select the options you really want.
You then have a number of delivery options, from slow (21 days, $5.51) to standard (14 days, $8.95) to priority (7 days, $13.95). Prices vary depending on the options you have chosen. You get another chance to sign up for special offers and when you press proceed to checkout you can also opt to buy 25 matching magnets at $9.99.
You’re then taken to a secure site where you can enter shipping information, then view an order summary, enter credit card details, and can opt to buy 140 self-adhesive address labels at $3.99. Click on accept (with or without labels) and your order is processed, confirmed by email and shipped within the specified time.
Annoyances
As a business, I suppose Vistaprint have to use their site and emails to advertise products, but I found the advertising obtrusive. Unwary shoppers could well reach the checkout and find they’ve amassed a huge bill, having ordered magnets and labels as well as the free business cards.
The bottom line
My order was shipped five days after I placed it from their Netherlands office and was in my hands a week after the order, much quicker than the advertised 21 days. Ordering from the US cost me £3.14 instead of £3.08 from the UK but an extra 6p was a small price to pay for having the design I wanted. When I’m ready for a new batch, I’ll definitely be using them again.
Summary: Good service, especially for small home businesses
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