Lessons on Business Card Etiquette from the Joongang Daily of Korea

Business cards are an important part of the business culture in East Asia and standard practice is remarkably uniform throughout the region. The Joongang Daily, one of the top newspapers in Korea, published the following article on February 25, 2009 about how to give and receive business cards, with special emphasis on the showing of respect for the other person. (Can you imagine a US newspaper having so much to say on this subject!?) Of course, these lessons (and much more!) are also covered in our 7-Day Asian Business Etiquette eCourse, which is free with your business card order!

When in the Presence of an Elder, Offer Your Business Card First

• Don’t just put a business card into your wallet immediately after receiving it. Instead, keep it on the table until the end of your meeting. This is regarded as an expression of respect to the other person.
• A business card wallet should be used only for carrying around your own business cards. This means that you should properly organize and put away the cards you have received from others each day.
• When doing business with foreigners, you should take measures to prepare separate business cards in the respective languages of your counterparts. When it isn’t possible to go this far, it would still be polite to at least present cards in a language that your counterparts can easily understand (for example, English) and to hand the business card to them with this language facing upward.
• Be sure to keep plenty of business cards around, such as in your briefcase, in your car or in your schedule book. Not having a business card on-hand during an important meeting is like going into battle without a “weapon”. But if you make sure to have left spare “weapons” all around in various places, you’ll always be ready for a meeting.

• Place a business card which you have just received in the front of your wallet. Putting other cards (perhaps even your own!) in the back tells your counterpart, “I’ll be able to find your name later if I need it.”
• When receiving a business card, be sure to at least comment briefly about the logo or design of the card. This shows that you have looked carefully at the other person’s business card.
• If the other person is your elder or someone of high rank, it is polite to offer your business card first. Hand your business card to the other person and then receive the business card of the other person in return. It would be discourteous to give your card with one hand at the same time that you receive the other person’s card with your other hand.

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