Your entire business, one link: what replaces the static digital business card
A digital card that only shares your number is a paper card with a battery. The next step is a link that takes the booking, the order and the enquiry.
By Wesley Sing, Founder of Newbi5 min read
The first digital business cards did one thing: they put your name, number and email on a page you could share with a QR code. That solved the paper problem. Nobody has to type your number in, and when you change it, the page changes too.
It did not solve the business problem. The person who scanned your card still has to message you to ask what you charge, whether you have Tuesday free, or whether you stock the thing they saw on Instagram. You still answer each one by hand, between jobs, one customer at a time.
A static card introduces you. It does not work for you. That is the gap Newbi was built for.
One link, four jobs
Newbi puts your entire business behind one link. The same page a stranger opens from a QR code or a WhatsApp message holds:
- A digital card with your photo, contact details and socials, in one of 17 themes across four moods.
- A mini-store, so customers can see the range and prices and send an order instead of asking "do you have…?" one at a time. In South Africa, it can also take card payments, with a 5% Newbi fee plus Paystack's processing fee.
- A booking button, so a client picks a free slot instead of trading three messages to fix one appointment.
- A lead capture form, so anyone who is not ready to chat can leave their name and number, and it lands in your dashboard.
No separate website is needed for any of it. Nobody has to install an app to open it. The person you share it with sees a page in their browser, in one of eight languages, with full right-to-left layout for Arabic.
Why "one link" matters more than "digital"
Think about where your business already lives: your WhatsApp Business profile, your Instagram bio, your Google Business Profile, your email signature, the QR code on your bakkie or your counter. Each of those spots can hold one link.
If that link opens a card that only shows your number, every one of those channels ends in a conversation you have to carry. If it opens a card that takes bookings and orders, every channel can finish the job on its own, including at 10pm when you are not answering.
That is the difference between a card and a portal. A card is read. A portal is used.
WhatsApp first, because that is where the enquiry starts
For many small businesses in South Africa, the Middle East and the rest of Africa, the first contact is a WhatsApp, not an email. Newbi is built around that. Every card has a WhatsApp button, and orders from the mini-store can arrive on WhatsApp with no commission.
Leads you can actually keep
A paper card gives your details away and gets nothing back. Newbi's lead form sends every new contact to your dashboard, where you can export them or open a WhatsApp chat in one tap. On the Professional plan, leads can be sent to your CRM by webhook, which works with tools such as Zapier and Make, so the enquiry that came in while you were on a job is already in your pipeline by the time you look.
Sharing that works for everyone
However someone meets you, they can save you in one tap:
- A QR code, for the counter, the mirror, the vehicle or the back of an NFC card.
- A direct link, for WhatsApp, Instagram, email and Google.
- An Apple Wallet or Google Wallet pass, so your card sits next to your bank cards and is two seconds away in person. Wallet passes come with Pro and above.
- An NFC card you tap on a phone, which works on every plan.
- A custom domain, on Professional, so the link carries your own name.
Set up in minutes, not months
Business cards get lost, websites take months to build, and most tools make you choose between looking professional and staying flexible. Newbi's answer is Naya, Appetite Technology's proprietary AI, built into Newbi. Describe your business, or hand Naya a photo of your old paper card, and it fills in your details, writes your bio and product descriptions, and picks a style to match. You check it, adjust it in the live preview, and publish.
Sign-up takes only an email. No password and no payment details are needed to start, and the 14-day free trial starts straight away. Plans start at R79 a month in South Africa, and Pro, with the store, bookings and wallet pass, is R189 a month. The Newbi app for iPhone and Android lets you manage your card, leads and bookings on the go.
Who it is for
Newbi is for businesses that sell on reputation and referral: trades, property, personal services, health and wellness, design, food and catering, small manufacturers and small shops. If your customers find you through someone who already knows you, the thing you hand them should be able to close the loop, not just open it.