Z-CARD is the
registered trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a product or service from a particular source and distinguishes it from ot ...
for a foldable invented by George McDonald when he was a travel writer and consultant for
British Airways
British Airways plc (BA) is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main Airline hub, hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and pass ...
.
History
McDonald found that traditional fold-out maps were too bulky to carry with him on travel research trips and wanted a more convenient solution. From this the Z-CARD was developed and launched in 1992,
[The Telegraph](_blank)
Z-Card seeks to shape up for austerity times 2011-4-19, retrieved 2012-12-10 with the company as it looks today being founded in 2003.
While Z-CARD pioneered the z-fold market from 1992, a number of other companies have since entered the market by producing their own take on the z-fold format. The original inspiration for the product came from the fold-out map format.
Applications
The Z-CARD and similar products have been used for a range of applications, including internal
corporate communications
Corporate communication(s) is a set of activities involved in managing and orchestrating all internal and external communications aimed at creating a favourable point of view among stakeholders on which a company depends. Riel, Cees B.M. van; Fo ...
, product and services information and
promotional merchandise
Promotional merchandise are products branded with a logo or slogan and distributed at little or no cost to promote a brand, corporate identity, or event. Such products, which are often informally called promo products, swag (mass nouns), or fr ...
across all major industries.
Use of technology
In recent years, cards have featured technology such as
Radio-frequency identification
Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically Automatic identification system, identify and Tracking system, track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder called a tag, ...
,
QR codes and
Augmented reality
Augmented reality (AR), also known as mixed reality (MR), is a technology that overlays real-time 3D computer graphics, 3D-rendered computer graphics onto a portion of the real world through a display, such as a handheld device or head-mounted ...
.
Awards
In 2011, Z-CARD won the
Chartered Institute of Marketing
The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) was founded in 1911. It has over 30,000 members, including more than 3,000 registered Chartered Marketers. CIM offers 130 study centres in 36 countries, and exam centres in 132 countries.
In 1952 Prince ...
Excellence Award in the SME category. Previous winners of CIM awards include
Saatchi & Saatchi
Saatchi and Saatchi is a British multinational communications and advertising agency network with 114 offices in 76 countries and over 6,500 staff. It was founded in 1970 and is currently headquartered in London. The parent company of the agency ...
,
McCann Erickson
McCann, formerly McCann Erickson, is an American global advertising agency network, with offices in over 120 countries. McCann is part of McCann Worldgroup, along with several other agencies, including direct digital marketing agency MRM//McC ...
and
JCDecaux
JCDecaux Group (JCDecaux SA, ) is a multinational corporation focused on outdoor advertising. As of 2016, it is the largest company in its sector worldwide with adverts on 140.000 bus stops and 145 airports. The company is headquartered in Ne ...
.
In 2010, Z-CARD won South London Business of the Year and the Best Business for Marketing categories at the South London Business Awards.
South London Business
RBS South London Business Awards 2009 retrieved 2012-12-10
See also
* Brochure
A brochure is an promotional document primarily used to introduce a company, organization, products, or services and inform prospective customers or members of the public of the benefits. Although, initially, a paper document that can be folded ...
* Business card
Business cards are card stock, cards bearing business information about a company or individual. They are shared during formal introductions as a convenience and a memory aid. A business card typically includes the giver's name, types of co ...
* Comp card
A comp card (also called composite card, Z card, zed card or Sed card) is a marketing tool for actors and especially Model (person), models. They serve as the latest and best of a model's Career portfolio, portfolio and are used as a business c ...
* Folded leaflet
Folded leaflets are usually used for advertising or marketing purposes, or for information supplementary to labels. There are many types of folds; only the most popular types are listed here. Although it is difficult to put a date on when some of ...
* Marketing collateral
In marketing and sales, marketing collateral is a collection of media used to support the sales of a product or service. Historically, the term "collateral" specifically referred to brochures or sell sheets developed as sales support tools. Thes ...
* Merchant Mariner's Document
{{Globalize, article, UK and USA, date=August 2023
__NOTOC__
Under the Seafarers' Identity Documents Convention, 1958, countries with a merchant navy (also called a merchant marine) require identifying credentials for their mariners. The Merchant ...
* Pamphlet
A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a Hardcover, hard cover or Bookbinding, binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' ...
References
{{reflist
Types of marketing