When it time came to print a new batch of business cards. I tried to find the latest design we’ve used a few years back and update them.
Than, suddenly, I though: what if I had an app that allows sharing a business card. I searched App Store and found a few not trivial apps that probably only engineers can use.
I had strong vision of how the app should look like and what should it do.
- It should allow having as many cards as I need. Well, I hold a few positions in a few companies Astrails work with.
- It should not keep my personal information somewhere on remote servers, who knows how well the data is protected there.
- And most important: it should be super easy to the receiving party to save the card, no extra apps should be required for that.
Imagine that you’re starting a meeting with 3 participants.
Asking their phone numbers/emails and sharing your contact from a phone is not an option. It will take a lot of time and introduce an unnecessary hustle. The sharing should be as simple as passing a printed card.
So, the answer for the last question is QR code with embedded vCard, default camera app since iOS 12 and Android 9 recognizes QR codes. And you should only show your phone to participants.
That’s how Virtual Business Card was built. There is a video there, so feel free to check it out.
Right now it only works on iOS, Android version is coming soon.
