So far in our series, we've covered the basics: business letterhead, printed envelopes, business cards and correspondence cards. Now it's time to look at things you might take for granted or that don't come to mind as often. Your desk is probably chock full of sticky notes, jotters, calendars, and all the little things that make your office function day to day. Well, all those little day to day necessities come in a variety of styles and designs to match the ever evolving corporate cultures of today's business world.

Memo and Note Pads

Not all business and office stationery is designed for outside correspondence. Memo pads and sticky notes, note cards and jotters make interoffice communication easier. Sticky notes printed with your name and company name are a contemporary solution for the times that you want to pass on a catalog or reference book and enclose a short note to call attention to certain sections or point out a few important bits of information... or just to say "Thought you'd find this interesting."

Desktop Office Stationery Products

Blotters, calendars, memo cubes and notepads are all important pieces of office stationery. Desk blotters and calendars printed with your company logo can help keep your entire workforce organized, and give all the desks in your office a uniform appearance. Desktop organizers are another staple in the office supply category. The newest styles are metal mesh that makes it easy to see and find what you need.

Special Office Stationery Gifts

Holidays and special occasions are often tricky to navigate when you are buying gifts for your staff. Office stationery gifts can make that much easier - and be good for your office morale as well. Business card holders embossed or engraved with the company name or logo are elegant, contemporary gifts for all of your sales or consultant force, as are day organizers or business appointment books.
(See our Business Stationery section for more stationery products)

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Read the following articles to come on new styles in:
- Business Letterhead and Printed Envelopes
- Business Cards and Correspondence Cards
- Memos, Desktop Stationery and Office Gifts

 

 

Aside from business letterhead and printed envelopes, your corporate stationery arsenal almost always includes business cards for corporate travel and industry conference exhibit halls. Business correspondence cards are less widely used, though their uses are probably the most diverse of any stationery that leaves your office. They can range from short, formal requests to a quick note to a colleague about fourth quarter performance. Either way, there are some new styles we think you should be aware of.

Business Cards

Business cards are among the most important pieces of business stationery a person will order. Traditional business cards follow a strict set of guidelines - engraved in black on white card stock, with the placement of contact details prescribed by business etiquette. If you have been collecting business cards lately, though, you will notice that traditional cards are in the minority these days. Full color printing, photo process printing and all over designs are among the newest styles in business cards. Some of the freshest contemporary business card designs feature bright color accents, your company logo and dark backgrounds.

Business Correspondence Cards

As we said before, for those times when you want to include a personal note with a business communication, correspondence cards are an excellent choice. Traditionally, business correspondence cards are simple correspondence cards with your name and the name of the company. The newest correspondence cards feature bold borders and colors that make a contemporary statement. Choose high quality card stock correspondence cards with borders and engraving in a color chosen from your business logo to present a coordinated image to your customers and colleagues.
((See our Business Stationery section for more stationery products)

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Read the following articles to come on new styles in:
- Business Letterhead and Printed Envelopes
- Business Cards and Correspondence Cards
- Memos, Desktop Stationery and Office Gifts

Most likely, two of the staple office supplies in your corporate stationery arsenal are business letterhead and printed envelopes. They are traditional cover sheets and matching envelopes imprinted with your company logo, name, title, etc. While most businesses are represented very well by this traditional approach, small changes to the layout of the text might bring about a more modern office stationery ensemble that more suitably fits the corporate culture of your office.

Business Letterhead

Your business letterhead is the most visible office stationery that your office will use. If is used for official correspondence with customers, business associates, the press and anyone else with whom you regularly do business. Generally, business letterhead has your company name printed at the top and contact details across the bottom. If your company desires a twist on this classic approach, turn the whole thing topsy-turvy. Some contemporary office stationery styles are printed along the side rather than the top. The biggest bonus to this modern approach is a change in the width and height of the printing area.

Printed Envelopes

You business may use printed envelopes in a number of different styles and sizes. The most common size, of course, is made to match your business letterhead, and usually has your business return address printed in the upper left hand corner. Newer styles incorporate your business logo into the return address or place the return address along the left have side of the envelope. While it is traditional to use plain white envelopes for printed business letterhead, you may choose a professionally crafted color that reflects your business as well to make your business correspondence stand out from the crowd.
(See our Business Stationery section for more stationery products)

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Read the following articles to come on new styles in:
- Business Letterhead and Printed Envelopes
- Business Cards and Correspondence Cards
- Memos, Desktop Stationery and Office Gifts

Each correspondence and piece of paper that leaves an office provides a reflection of the company. What is your office stationery telling your customers and prospective customers about you and your office? You can modernize the impression you leave on your customers with some new styles in office stationery.

We feel it is important to have a clear idea of what items are included under the basic heading of office stationery. Office stationery includes more than just the printed letterhead and envelopes on which you send out correspondence to your customers and associates. Other important pieces of office stationery are memo and notepads, business cards, portfolios, folders, address labels and printed envelopes. When choosing office stationery, it is important to choose high quality paper with printing that reflects your business.

Our goal for next week is to go through each of these several office products in detail, describing how each one can be used for your small business or corporate office, and how each is vital to the image you put forth to your customers. Some of it will likely fall under common sense, but there might be some uses you have never thought of for some very common office supplies.
(See our Business Stationery section for several of the items mentioned)

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Read the following articles to come on new styles in:
- Business Letterhead and Printed Envelopes
- Business Cards and Correspondence Cards
- Memos, Desktop Stationery and Office Gifts