In 1995, Jan Brandt, Director of Marketing at AOL, did something that no other online company had done. She got her disk (and later cd-rom) physically in the hands of potential customers. At the time, the cd-rom was a unique marketing tool. It offered custom brand retention and aroused curiosity about their product in a way that traditional marketing could not touch.

The marketing effort paid off in record proportions, beginning an industry rush to offer marketing material via a shiny, high-tech CD. Today, the novelty factor of the CD has passed. AOL CDs no longer stand out from the crowd. Still, the CD remains one of the most versatile forms of marketing media in existence. The storage capacity and nearly universal compatibility are still strengths. Their main weakness has been a lack of innovation… until now.

Di Interactive proudly introduces the development of the Virtual Business Card (VBC). About the same size and shape as a standard business card, our Virtual Business Card goes where no paper card has gone before; in your computer. A paper card might use embossed lettering painted in a reflective color to “lift” the message to the eyes, but imagine a high-impact, dynamic custom message jumping to life on your computer screen. The applications are only limited by your imagination, such as the delivery of your entire sales presentation along with your traditional name and contact numbers. Basically, if you can dream it we can develop and design it, putting the interactive cd-rom in the hands of an unlimited amount of potential customers.

When used in direct mail marketing the Virtual Business Card mails for the price of a first-class stamp. Shipping and production costs (as low as $0.99 per printed cd-rom) are far lower than traditional print media, allowing the cd business card to deliver what no catalog can at an unbeatable price.

So why the Virtual Business Card?

Research has shown that people will remember 20% of what they see, 40% of what they see and hear, and 75% of what they see, hear, and do. The Virtual Business Card provides businesses with a superior branding tool that has staying power and creates one-to-one communication with the user.

• It's Tangible - CD-roms work for a couple reasons. First of all, they combine the best of a number of worlds. They can have the video aspect of a promotional tape. They have the interactivity of the Internet, and they are tangible. This means a CD can be set out on an information table at a tradeshow. It can easily be mailed to the person on the phone. It can be given to anyone with a computer, whether they have Internet access or not. It can then act as a visible reminder to review the information.
  
  
• It's Visual - CDs can contain graphic information such as pictures. This allows an image to do the speaking for you. Along the same lines, CDs can also contain video. On a CD, a client can click on a button naming a specific topic and see a 30 second video about that particular topic. This preserves the interactivity and allows the maximum content to be displayed and communicated within the duration of the attention span.
  
  
• It's non-linear - CDs are also interactive and non-linear. That means that someone can jump around to whatever information they like without having to sit through the content she or he doesn't particularly care about. This is beneficial to the potential client who wants to know in detail what services you offer, but doesn't want to sit through the history of your organization. With linear media, such as videotape, they are forced to sit through one section to get to the next.
  
  
• It can interact with the Internet - With this technology in place the possibilities are almost limitless. The Internet opens dynamic possibilities for streaming video & information exchange.

The companies of the future will successfully marry their online and offline marketing programs. They will have web sites that harmonize with their physical offices or retail stores. They will also utilize dynamic marketing tools, such as the Virtual Business Card, which operates within both markets and complements each one with great ability.

Let Di Interactive begin the creation of your custom VBC, beginning with your specific needs and requirements. Or, if your content needs, budget, or timeline is limited, consider one of our remarkable Rapid Design Templates (RDT). The RDT is designed to give you a professional look, a fast project turnaround, and a price tag that any business can afford.