We always wonder what happens to business cards after they’re distributed to countless new contacts at a trade show or other meet-up. The SwivelCard can actually help its original owner keep tabs on how it is being used, but it also boasts an impressive number of other abilities – like changing its content after being handed over to a new contact.

The SwivelCard is made entirely of paper and includes a USB stick – printed using a clever (and patented) method using metallic ink to create the metallic contact strips. Little perforations let you fold back part of the card so the USB contacts are exposed and ready to plug into your computer.

When you hand the SwivelCard to someone, you aren’t just sending your contact information out into the world. Each card links to a website you’ve chosen – typically it would be your business website or personal portfolio.

However, the SwivelCard also gives you the option to change the website associated with each individual card – even after you’ve handed the card to someone.

The SwivelCard also lets you track the usage of each card. The built-in analytics allow for real-time observation of how and when your info is being accessed. For people who are a little wary of sticking weird USB devices into their computers, the SwivelCard also comes with a QR code. A model enabled with NFC is also available.

For all of the high-tech charm that comes with the USB business card, it also includes traditional printed information on the surface. The SwivelCard’s Kickstarter campaign raised several times its funding goal, so maybe after the next trade show you attend you’ll walk away with a stack of dynamic USB business cards.

The post USB Business Cards Let You Track How They’re Being Used first appeared on Gajitz.

Connecting with people has never been easier than it is today – but it’s also never been more complicated. We all have layers upon layers of contact info: email, phone number, website, various profiles on tons of other websites, and maybe even the old-fashioned snail mail address. The number of ways to get in touch have far outgrown the traditional business card format. A company called Skanz wants to take the stress out of connecting with people by giving you a futuristic way to share your online presence.

Skanz gives you a personalized QR code that’s printed on either a wearable wristband or an iPhone case. When you meet someone you’d like to connect with, they use their own phone to read the QR code which then takes them to your personal Skanzsite profile. On that profile is all of the stuff you’d print on an infinitely large business card: a photo, multiple phone numbers, an email address (or two or three), instant messenger IDs, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn profiles, business and personal websites, blog link…and whatever else you want to share.

The QR code is designed to work with any mobile QR reader. Rather than everyone at a conference or social event exchanging business cards and later forgetting the faces that go with each, users can digitally collect data that takes up no physical space. The idea of wearing a Skanz band everywhere might seem a little silly, but at conferences or networking events there’s no simpler way to make contact and make sure you’re remembered.

The post Future of Business Cards: Hi-Tech Wearable Contact Info first appeared on Gajitz.