Monday, December 9, 2013
Sending out holiday cards at the end of the year has been a private tradition since the first card was sent out in 1843. It began with a lovely, hand illustrated card; sure that card was soon printed thousands of times and sold for a shilling each, but the sentiment was there. Since then, the greeting card industry has flourished and greeting cards can now be found for every conceivable holiday. But, while it’s nice to receive a card, any card, there’s always a little something extra to be said for the non-commercialized, custom made card.
Custom Holiday Cards
Sending holiday cards out among family and friends has always been a popular tradition, but more and more, large corporations and small businesses are jumping on the bandwagon. And, why not? Kindness Sells. We’ve all been touched by the holiday or birthday card sent from our dentist, am I right? You’re not about to change dentists after that. Well, the same goes for the massive corporation that sells ergonomic office chairs. If they can get in the holiday spirit of giving and send out a little festive greeting to their customers, those customers just might stay loyal and order more chairs.
Now, replace the generic commercial card with a unique custom card that truly represents that company and, wham!, that will definitely make an impact. I mean, there’s nothing cuter and more heartwarming than a handmade card from the fingers of your marker or paint covered five-year-old, but as far as hand-designed corporate cards go, there are ways to give your customers the warm fuzzies.
Why it Works
According to research done by Hallmark, 75 percent of the 1.5 billion people who send cards do so because they know it makes the recipient feel good. It doesn’t take someone with an MBA to understand that when customers feel good, they’ll be more likely to spend more and stay loyal to a specific brand or company. Companies caught on to this trend early and have since stepped up their game to connect on a more human level with their customers. Even in the age of e-cards, text greetings and every other electronic way of communicating, old fashioned paper cards still rank as the go-to holiday greeting.
But, not all paper cards are created equal. You can easily spend a buck a card for a large quantity at Vista Prints, but what are the chances that someone’s going to be so moved by that card that they keep it forever? Or even bother to show it to their friends or colleagues? Spend $5 on a personalized, custom card though and that person now has a treasured keepsake. Little personal touches like shiny or matte paper, foil stamping, an image that represents your unique personality or that of your business – these are the things that stand out.
Businesses Just Wanna Have Friends
Company business cards got their foot in the door thanks to the not-so-humble salesman. Where everyone else used holiday cards to reach out to family and friends, clever salespeople have always known that the more you keep yourself in front of a customer, the more likely they’ll spend their money with you instead of the other guy. And each year, they were proven right. Sending cards, free calenders and other holiday nick-knacks that tell a story about their business has been a sales staple for nearly as long as there has been a sales department.
Companies as a whole began to catch on to this trend and, beginning rather unofficially around the late 1970s, company themed holiday cards became increasingly popular. Year upon year, businesses saw a spike in sales, higher customer retention or a mix based, in part, on having sent out a simple holiday greeting card at the end of the year.
Now corporate business cards have become a big business in their own right. Companies can now choose from traditional cards meant to convey a more somber view of the holidays all the way to modern, hip and even irreverent cards meant to celebrate the holidays without taking themselves—or the season—too seriously. But the most impactful holiday card is the one designed by the business owner himself. This has made many companies feel a bit more human to customers which, in turn, gives these businesses the same result that has always topped their own Christmas Wish List—more sales and happier customers.
Tags: Christmas, Christmas cards, corporate holiday cards, funny holiday cards, greeting cards, holiday cards, office greeting cards, winter holiday cards
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Friday, December 21, 2012
Summer has been associated with weddings for years and, in fact, prices and availability for wedding venues, flowers, tuxedos and just about everything else tend to spike, especially during high wedding season in June. As a result, plenty of wedding parties are beginning to look for inspiration in other seasons and winter is quickly becoming the new summer when it comes to a beautiful seasonal backdrop for wedding ceremonies and parties.
Winter and Holiday Themed Weddings
Winter weddings can be a heck of a lot of fun because they often take on a Christmas or festive theme in order to play up to all the aspects of the season. Holiday themed flower arrangements pop with color thanks to the deep red of poinsettias against the vibrant greens and bright whites of other Christmas flowers like holly and mistletoe. The colors for winter and Christmas themed weddings can be anything from the ultra-traditional red and green to more modern takes on the season which incorporate white or silver with a crisp light blue and brown or a deep burgundy against a forest green with gold accents.
Christmas Themed Wedding Invitations
Wedding invitations sent out for Christmas-time weddings need to stand out so that they don’t get jumbled up with the usual round of Christmas and Holiday cards that become commonplace after mid-November. You can make your invitations stand out just by using soft cotton or bamboo envelopes that are addressed by a calligrapher. Another way not to get lost in the shuffle is to consider a royalty size invite (6 X 9).
- Sending out Save the Date cards at least 9 months in advance, will put the event on the calendar by April and then send out the invitations by the beginning of November to ensure ample notice and to allow time for an RSVP;
- Using a unique and memorable, single non-folded card with and elegant script font with simple information of who, what, when and where. It’s usually-Save The Date-Lisa & Steve-Are Getting Married-December 21st 2013-Washington, DC. There are no rules to follow for a Save The Date, just have fun with it; they don’t even have to match your invites. We suggest that they’re interesting and pretty enough to be displayed for the months leading up to the event. Here’s one we did that features a calligraphy style DC Metro map.
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year… And Your Life
Planning a winter wedding can make your special day truly stand out – not only for your guests but also for you and your future husband or wife. So embrace the holiday aspects of the season to make your wedding unforgettable – all the way from your initial Save the Date and Invitation cards through to holiday inspired decorations and the cake. There are plenty of themes to play on through the winter and best of all in cities like Washington, DC the winter months are off season so hotel rates and packages can add up to quite a savings with plenty of things to do including a brand new ice rink in the heart of Georgetown that’s bigger than the one in Rockefeller Center in NYC.
Tags: Chrismas wedding, holiday themed invitations, holiday themed weddings, holiday wedding, wedding cakes, wedding invitations, winter holiday cards
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Thursday, November 22, 2012
Holiday greeting cards are often most closely associated with Christmas. While this may have been true in decades of the past, the fact is that now holiday cards come for just about any winter holiday or festival you can think of. With a range of options including both religious and pop-culture influence, there’s a holiday card for absolutely everyone.
The Perfect Holiday Card
There’s no denying a certain religious bent to many different holiday cards. From Hanukkah to Christmas with plenty of room for Kwanzaa, Diwali and other winter holidays. Although Christian and Jewish holidays may be well known, other religions hold end of the year celebrations. In order to reflect each of these holidays we offer a wide selection of card and letterpress designs which play on both the religious and cultural themes associated with them. These days of observance stretch beyond traditional organized religion and also play into cultural and even astronomical occurrences. Winter brings with it the Winter Solstice, which has been celebrated by ancient cultures and is still celebrated by people today.
But in order to remain truly modern and relevant, cards have also grown to encompass pop-culture holidays, including the infamous Festivus. Originally introduced on Seinfeld in 1997, the anti-holiday was adopted almost instantly by Seinfeld fans and has since grown into a worldwide movement. Card makers routinely offer special Festivus cards in spite of the holiday’s tongue in cheek rules regarding the trappings of typical holidays.
Show You Care with the Right Holiday Card
Holidays aside, cards have simply opened themselves up as a way to embrace the feeling of the entire holiday season. The holidays have come to mean more than any one specific day. As the calender begins to come to its end, we all get that urge to stop and move a little slower, to be a little nicer and to, in short, get into the holiday spirit, whatever that means to us personally. The holidays have expanded and evolved to be more inclusive and holiday greeting cards have followed suit. Even for those who simply want to celebrate the season as a whole, holiday cards have it covered. Cards that celebrate the season as whole make it even easier for people to stay in touch and the levity they bring to the season adds a bit of humor, which is welcomed anywhere.
Society has embraced Christmas as more than just a religious holiday. No other holiday enjoys the secular crossover Christmas does and, as a result, the entire holiday season takes on a warm and unifying glow. The end of the year brings out a surge of nostalgia in all of us and it’s natural to want to reach out and make contact with our family and friends. Luckily, holiday cards have evolved and adapted to meet the need while lightening the mood. So, get in the spirit and share your love of Yuletide Christmas Festival Sweater Day on December 22nd and Wren Day on the 26th, in addition to the more traditional holidays. (Insert your grandmother’s voice here…) Would it kill you to send a card?
Tags: Christmas, Christmas cards, greeting cards, Hanukkah cards, holiday cards, winter holiday cards
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