Why You Should Be a Business Card Packrat

Most employment experts advise job hunters to have business cards made up for networking purposes. They're portable, a great marketing and branding tool, and can give new contacts a quick summary of what you're all about.

You can't always have a resume handy, after all. But almost everyone has enough space to carry a small stack of business cards. Job hunting business cards, the experts advise, should contain the candidate's name, title, a brief career summary, and contact info (including email address and website/blog).

What the experts don't mention, however, is that collecting business cards - even being a business card pack rat - is even more important than passing yours out. Here are a few reasons why:

Data rich. Business cards, by their nature, contain contact information, company, name and title. You can't do better than that - particularly when it's handed to you for free! If there's a website listed, be sure to visit it before calling your new contact. With the information provided on the business card, you will also be able to look up even more info online or in print. Your contact may have been mentioned in the news, written an article or received an award - all of which can be worked into your follow up conversation.

Space for notes. When you collect a card, it's important to write the crux of your conversation on the back after you speak to your new contact. This will serve to jog your memory - and your new contact's - when you follow up ("Hi Stan. Jim here. We met at __ and talked about __. I was wondering if..."). Jogging the memory with a summation of your conversation is a great icebreaker, too.

Index ease. One great way to index or sort the cards is by company. For instance, if you have a card from three people at XYZ Corp., grouping them together will make it easier to follow up ("Hi Jim. I was just talking with Bob..."). It will also help put pieces of the company puzzle together (Jim tells you X, Bob tells you K). And, if they're in the same department, you can make regular contact without tapping the same person repeatedly.

IN A NUTSHELL: Becoming a business card pack rat - and using them properly - is even more important than passing your own out. Used properly, the business cards you receive can provide a rich source of data, space for valuable notes and categorization.