These cards are designed the way any other card is and given to the printer via a digital file. For most designs the printer will use an offset printer to apply the design to the card. Instead of using thick paper, or art board as is usual, these designs are applied to a magnetic sheet. This is a sheet of thin steel with a magnet on one side and a thin veneer of vinyl on the other. It comes in large sheets which are imprinted and then cut to size. They come in varying thicknesses depending on requirements but start at 15mm thick and go up to 30mm. Deciding on thickness is a choice between size, weight and cost versus longevity.

The vinyl coating allows the ink to bind to the surface to take the imprint, and special solvent inks are used to provide a more durable and fade resistant finish. Ink needs a key to be able to bind to a surface. The steel/magnetic sheet is too smooth and the molecules too close together for the ink to be able to penetrate. By adding the vinyl coating, which has purposely loose packed molecules, the ink can stick without adding any more bulk or weight to the surface.

The ink is added to the plate as usual for offset printing and the sheet is fed into the press. The imprint is passed to the rubber blanket which is in turn pressed against the sheet, vinyl side to the ink.

Once printed, the sheet then has a coating of UV laminate to further protect the finish and allow the card to be cleaned without damaging it. Once dried the sheets are cut into shape, trimmed and rounded off to create a soft edged finish. Then they are ready for use.

Magnetic business cards aren’t that new, or that clever. They do offer something a little different, a variation of a theme that can be enough to get a business the attention it needs. While the market is as challenging and as competitive as it is now, it pays to explore every avenue open to you in order to get publicity and promotion.

The first mention of magnetism was between 625 and 545 BC, where Aristotle attributed a discussion about it to the Greek thinker Thales. It was around a similar date that an Indian surgeon called Sushruta allegedly used in it medicine. He is regarded as the father of medicine and was the first to recognise that Angina or heart attack was related to body size and obesity.

The next earliest mention of it was in China in the 400’s BC in a book called “Book of the Devil Valley Master”. Things have moved on a lot since then. We have navigated with magnetism, repelled objects, run trains cured disease with it. The latest use for this wonderful discovery? Business card magnets.

Many people like to have contact information handy for businesses or service companies without having to sort through piles of paperwork or going on the internet. Magnets are a fun yet practical solution for being visible in these situations as business card magnets can be stay on refrigerators and filing cabinets for years. It is a sure fire way to remain accessible to your clients while also providing other uses, such as holding up pictures or recipes.

Any business can take advantage of the marketing miracle that business card magnets can provide. All you have to do is hand them out whenever you are pout and about, doing business or otherwise. A novelty type card is a great way to break the ice or avoid the awkwardness of foisting your business card on someone, especially if you are actually doing business.

Your audience will be able to stick you on refrigerators, filing cabinets, vending machines, lockers or any other metal surface. This exposure makes a magnet card a very powerful advertising tool. If your clients have your stick on business card magnets, you already have an advantage over your competitors as your business cards are always in front of your customers eyes. For example, if you sell organic vegetables, providing your customers with a magnetic business card is ideal. Your details are right there when they are thinking about food, which is an ideal emotional connection to make. Alternatively, if you sell tools or auto parts, a business card magnet could be placed on the case for each item, or on the clients toolboxes. Chances they will be there for years to come.

Using a little imagination and proper placement can make these ideas work for you. They don’t have to be exactly like these examples, but making a connection between your product or service and the type of magnet or design used can directly influence how much extra business it gets you. If you can add a practical element to the card too like having a magnet strong enough to hold shopping lists on someone’s refrigerator or “stop stealing the paperclips” sign in an office the likelihood of it staying in place for a while increases exponentially. It just goes to show what a little imagination and creativity can achieve, even with such a normal item as a business card.