Glossary
vCard
The standard file format for a contact, with the extension .vcf. Opening one offers to add the person to the phone’s address book. LeadShake serves a vCard 3.0, the version both iOS and Android import without complaint.
A vCard is a plain text file describing one person, defined by RFC 2426 for
version 3.0 and RFC 6350 for version 4.0. It travels as text/vcard with a .vcf extension, and
every address book on every platform knows how to read it.
The body is a list of properties. FN for the displayed name, N for its structured form, ORG,
TITLE, TEL, EMAIL, URL and NOTE cover what a business card carries.
Why version 3.0 and not 4.0
Version 4.0 is a decade old and technically better specified. Import support on mobile is still uneven: some address books ignore properties they do not recognise, others reject the file. Version 3.0 imports everywhere without a warning dialog, and nothing on a business card needs what 4.0 added.
A vCard is the opposite gesture to a form
Downloading a vCard means you are handing your details to someone. It is the digital version of giving out a card, and it leaves you with nothing: no record, no name, no way to follow up. The person now has your number and you have no idea who they are.
Lead capture runs the other way, and the two coexist on the same page. Serving the file records no scan and creates no contact, because a download is not a meeting.
Photographs deserve a warning. The PHOTO property accepts a base64 image, which inflates a two
kilobyte file into several hundred, and some address books refuse the result outright.
Questions
Version 3.0 for anything meant to be imported on a phone. It is older but it is accepted everywhere, whereas 4.0 support across mobile address books is still inconsistent, and nothing on a business card requires it.
Related terms
- NFC
- Near Field Communication, a radio standard that lets two devices exchange a small amount of data when they are a few centimetres apart. On a business card it holds one thing: a web address. The card carries no battery and stores no personal data.
- Lead capture
- Collecting the contact details of someone you met, with their agreement, so you can follow up. It is the reverse of a business card: instead of giving your details away, you record theirs.