Skip to main content
V
Vainss
Participant
March 29, 2019
Answered

Vcard/VCF in pdf

  • March 29, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 9541 views

Hi!

I will explain what my idea is in case anyone has any alternative to how to do it. I am doing a digital business card that will be sent by phone to clients. It is created so that if you click on the logo, it opens the business web site; if you click on the phone it opens the caller; if you click on the email it sends an email (duh), etc. I was "suggested" that maybe there could be a way for the client to click something and open a vcard with all the data too. Is it possible?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Eric Dumas

    Hi,

    Can you describe in what format you will send that digital business card?

    Because a vCard is a file, I would suggest to upload it to the website and insert a link to that in your design. The visitor clicks on the link and it downloads a vCard from the website.

    3 replies

    Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
    Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
    Legend
    March 29, 2019

    First, many email systems won't let users click on something and execute a file; and that's what would happen when they click anything and the vcard opens. So right off the bat, a sizable portion of your intended audience will be prevented from doing this.

    Additionally, large institutions (corporations, government, etc.) would flag that email as a security threat and possibly block anything from your domain name ever again. This is not a good outcome for a business card!

    You should give the user the choice of whether to open the vcard or not. If they click (without any warning of what will happen) and the vcard is opened, you have violated security protocols.

    Some other ideas to consider:

    1. Send the vcard the traditional way: attach it to an email.
    2. When the user clicks, take them to a webpage where they have the option to download the vcard and possibly learn other information about your company.

    And to answer your original question, yes, you can script the PDF to open the vcard when something is clicked. Do that in Acrobat after the PDF has been exported, not InDesign.

    It sure would be nice to write the Acrobat script in InDesign and have it automatically built into the PDF when we export from InDesign, but that is just a dream for now!

    |    Bevi Chagnon   |  Designer, Trainer, & Technologist for Accessible Documents ||    PubCom |    Classes & Books for Accessible InDesign, PDFs & MS Office |
    N
    Nour-eldeen
    Participating Frequently
    July 4, 2019

    Hi Bevi,
    Thanks in advance, can I ask about this part of your answer of the original question

    And to answer your original question, yes, you can script the PDF to open the vcard when something is clicked. Do that in Acrobat after the PDF has been exported,

    I do have a PDF file with a phone number in it and my client wants the phone number to be clickable and to pop-up a (vcard)

    to "save contact"
    I have found a way to open the phone number -by clicking on it-  on the caller dialing screen but it wasn't enough, I need it to open save as contact (number with name ....etc)
    Thanks a lot
    Bevi Chagnon | PubCom​

    Eric Dumas
    Community Expert
    Eric DumasCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 8, 2019

    Hi,

    The easiest is to save the vCard file online, on a web site that anyone can read.

    Then embed the hyperlink to this in your document.

      BobLevine
      Community Expert
      BobLevineCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      March 29, 2019

      Interactive PDF beyond Acrobat and Reader on a desktop is a crapshoot.

      Why does this have to be a PDF? What does “sent by phone” mean?

      V
      VainssAuthor
      Participant
      April 1, 2019

      By "sent by phone" I mean that instead of giving a paper business card, our salesmen could send a pdf (I was creating it in a pdf, but I could use any other format that fits the purpose) say by WhatsApp or any other medium. It is something I was asked to do, so I guess it could be useful for them in some cases.

      Eric Dumas
      Community Expert
      Eric DumasCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      March 29, 2019

      Hi,

      Can you describe in what format you will send that digital business card?

      Because a vCard is a file, I would suggest to upload it to the website and insert a link to that in your design. The visitor clicks on the link and it downloads a vCard from the website.

        V
        VainssAuthor
        Participant
        April 1, 2019

        I ended up doing what you have suggested. I was concerned by what Beni Chagnon said about it being flagged, but since it is supposed to be sent to one contact to another, it shouldn't happen. Thank you!

        Eric Dumas
        Community Expert
        Eric DumasCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        April 1, 2019

        Consider using QR Codes as it could include all the info you want in a simple 'icon'

        Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
        Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices