Business Stationery
If a letter supposedly from your bank doesn’t feature the bank’s letterhead or logo, would you believe its authenticity? A lack or misapplication of corporate branding – of which business stationery is a vital element – can cause problems even for well-established businesses, as shown by a Harvard case study. Lime’s business stationery design service ensures that your brand presents itself consistently and professionally, always making a great impression on your customers.
What is branded stationery?
What should my business stationery include?
All items of stationery that display your business’s logo, brand name, and other statutory or relevant information (such as your ABN and ACN, for instance), are considered branded stationery, also called corporate stationery or business stationery.
Regardless of what industry you’re in, at minimum, your branded stationery should include:
- Business card
- Letterhead
- Email signature
Most businesses with a physical presence, or that have physical touchpoints with customers, suppliers, or associates, also require:
- Envelopes (sizes DLE, C4 and C5)
- Folders
Depending on your business’s operations and interactions with customers and other partners, your business stationery should include at least the first three of the elements listed above, if not all five.
Why is corporate stationery important?
What makes for good business stationery?
How much does stationery matter? Imagine for a moment that you’re visiting a trade show to scout for a supplier for your business. You collect details and business cards from several vendors, to call back the few that you’ll later shortlist.
Most have given you flimsy sheaves of paper cluttered with messy fonts, and pinned-on business cards, often with hastily scribbled names and numbers. But one has a distinctive folder containing well-formatted spec sheets, and a business card with raised lettering – all sporting the company’s branding. Which company stands out, makes the most professional impression, and is likely to earn your next call?
Clearly, in today’s competitive business environment, it’s no longer enough to just have a great product or service. That’s only the beginning, because like it or not, consumers unconsciously judge businesses by their branding. For instance, everyone knows that BMW makes great cars, but they still take the effort to ensure that even their stationery makes a great impression. Visit a dealership, and the business card that the salesperson gives you feels smooth, weighty, and distinguished, consistent with the BMW brand. As does the letterhead on which they print you a quote, and the envelope in which it’s enclosed.
Whether it’s business cards, letterheads, or anything else, well-designed business stationery is characterised by:
- Clearly highlighted brand name and logo
- Well-thought-out text that includes all necessary details, without information overload
- Well-balanced layouts that guide the reader’s eye
- Colours that are consistent with your brand, provide enough contrast for legibility, and also work for single-colour printing or photocopying
- Typestyles that are in-line with your brand identity
- High-quality stock (80 gsm or higher for paper, 350 gsm for business cards), with smooth or textured surface finishes based on the application
- Specialised printing techniques, such as spot UV, to highlight logos or important elements
- Uniform, consistent design style with matching stock amongst all stationery
Why should I choose Lime to design my business stationery?
Here are a few key advantages to having Lime on your side:
Holistic approach
Being a one-stop shop for all marketing communication needs – from logos, ads, and design audits, to websites and store signage – lets us stitch everything together, providing multiplicative benefits to your business. Whether you choose Lime for a one-off project or a comprehensive brand-building exercise, you rest assured that we deliver work that is harmonised with the rest of your brand communication.
Proudly Australian
Based in Melbourne since 2000, Lime is proudly Australian. Unlike many competitors, we don’t outsource work to low-quality overseas contractors, as we’d much rather keep things in Australia. For you, this means professional, reliable, on-time delivery.