Business Made Easy, Keep in Touch

Some people make the mistake of thinking in business you only need to talk to your clients when there is something wrong or when they need something from you. That is the biggest mistake you can make. There are always reasons to keep your brand in the forefront of your client’s minds.

Send a greeting card for all the right occasions. If it is Thanksgiving send out a card, if it is Christmas send out a holiday card…never take these moments for granted. You get to show your clients that you appreciate their business and they will end up putting your cards on a desk or on a cubicle wall where your company name can live for a while.

There are other methods of communication that are a must in business. Sending emails to stay in touch is a good way to keep your brand out there. Also, make sure to send a personalized gift to your clients once in a while. Remember, you want to have your clients remember your name but also getting your brand out in front of more people can now happen if people can see your logo. If you follow these simple steps expect great things to come!

Memorial Day: How Small Businesses Can Honor Our Military

The unofficial start to summer and a day full of BBQ’s and get-togethers, many forget the true meaning of Memorial Day. It’s a day meant to commemorate the lives of U.S. soldiers who have died in military service. Traditionally, Veteran’s Day is the time to honor war veterans, but Memorial Day offers another occasion to show respect for those involved in military service. If you own or work for a small business there are quite a few ways you can honor our fallen service members on Memorial Day. Here are a few ideas to help you get started:

  • Offer special discounts or free items to military members or veterans. Promote a special offer like a 20 percent discount on all purchases.
  • Send out a Memorial Day card with a special offer included. Customers can bring the postcard to your store to receive a special discount or a free promotional gift on or around Memorial Day.
  • Sponsor a float in your local Memorial Day parade. Many towns and cities host annual Memorial Day parades to honor service members, and they seek local businesses as sponsors for their floats to support the cost of the ceremony. Check in with your local community leaders to find out what’s going on in your area, and how your small business can get involved.
  • There are many resources for our military, and they’re always in need of funding. Pick an organization, and collect donations at your place of business.

Product Highlight – Custom Photo Mounts

When the Holiday season comes around, it is essential to pick the perfect card, border, or background. But, you might find yourself unable to choose one after scrolling through thousands of design options. If you fall under this category, don’t worry! You could simply create your own design using the new Custom Photo Mount cards from the Gallery Collection.

Do you have a specific picture you would like to turn into an elegant Holiday card? Save yourself the stress of running to the store and printing out the pictures, and then finding the right card and scribbling a somewhat personal message inside every single one. That’s just too much work.

With the Gallery Collection’s Custom Photo Mounts, you can have your photos printed for you, mounted onto the card, AND imprinted with a personal message, name, and etc. All you have to do is pick a card stock, white, black, red, etc., and a border color, silver or gold, and then directly upload your picture. The Custom Photo Mounts give you the option of choosing a gloss or matte finish for the photo, and then you can get the inside of the card personalized. Pick one of the standard greetings, and then add a custom imprint such as, “From all of us at the Gallery Collection,” or “The Gallery Collection Family.”

No more worrying about finding the perfect card because now you can create your perfect card!

Helping Coworkers Cope with Sympathy Cards

Sympathy cards are a wonderful way of showing a person how much you are thinking of them during their difficult period of sadness and grief. When a co-worker’s beloved friend or family member passes away, it’s only right to send them a Sympathy Card to make them feel comforted during their difficult time. I find sympathy cards to be extremely important because while they may be a small gesture at the moment, they end up being a huge comfort to the person after the initial stage of grief. While there is no time frame for grief, an elegant sympathy card, explaining how much you’re thinking of the person and their family members can go a long way. If you visit GalleryCollection.com, there are a bunch of elegant and comforting card designs with wonderful greetings such as “Our thoughts and prayers are with your during this difficult time,” and “Sincere Condolences to you and your family at this time of sorrow.” These comforting words, including your own personal words inside of the card, will be sure to show your co-worker that you care, and will allow your co-worker to cope with his or her loss, knowing that he or she has a friend in you!

Birthday Wishes for Everyone

As a human resources manager I am always looking to make sure the morale of the company is at an all-time high. Any little thing can matter in that regard. We try to plan socials after work to make sure our employees interact with each other, there’s the good old company picnic, and the one that never fails; the Holiday party. However, you must do the little things along the way as well.

One of those little things is the employee birthday card. Sounds like such a given in today’s world that you would get a card for an employee’s birthday but believe me most companies miss this small step towards morale boost. People like to know that you are thinking about them. This is true in life and definitely true in business. So make sure to get online and order those cards for the year because a five minute order process will go leaps and bounds to bringing the morale up in your company this year. Also make sure to vary up the cards so everyone does not get the same one. That will show you went the extra mile for your employees and they will appreciate you for it.

11th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Winner Announced!

Congratulations to our contest winner, Julia Voss! 

To see previous contest winners, please visit our Winners & Finalists page.

Office Fun for Earth Day

 

Earth Day has arrived, and there’s plenty of ways to celebrate the day while working in the office. For example, go on a company walk or a hike. Whether it’s a quick break to stroll the surrounding scenery, a planned excursion to a wooded destination, or an optional day-off meeting — going on a walk or hike with coworkers is a great idea. Not only is it a relaxing and healthy way to spend some time, it will also allow employees to form stronger connections to each other and to nature. 

Another Earth Day option is to bring in seedlings, seeds, or full blown plants, soil, pots, and paint. Take a break from work to have a joined activity of decorating pots and planting some flowers, fruits or vegetables, or other plants! Try to pick something everyone will enjoy and is pet-friendly, just in case. Not enough time to host this workshop-esque atmosphere? Allow employees to take their plants home and either plant them outside or in a pot. Supplies can be found at your local Dollar Store, so don’t worry about a hefty price tag! Don’t forget to hang up decorations for Earth Day and place posters or flyers in high-traffic locations with fun facts. Try using facts relevant to your office or the people you employ. Include Earth-saving tips to encourage better global citizenship.

Have fun celebrating Earth Day 2018!

How to Navigate a Business Lunch Without Blowing your Healthy Eating Habits

You’ve been making healthy food choices and feeling great. But the big meeting on Thursday is now going to be over lunch and you need to figure out how to stay on track. Here are some tips on keeping that Business Lunch a healthy one.

If dining out, skip the appetizers and pass on the breadbasket. Choose a simple, protein-based main dish, preferably baked, grilled or steamed (avoid breaded and fried) and ask if you can replace the starchy sides with double vegetables. A few well-chosen requests like ‘dressing on the side’ or ‘light on the sauce’ can painlessly make a big difference calorie-wise. Just try not to overdo the special instructions – if you need to provide lengthy directions to make it healthy it’s probably better to just choose something else. 

Some restaurants offer smaller portions at lunchtime, or make the decision to eat only half of the meal and bring the rest home to a family member.

For a catered lunch your best defense will be smart choices and portion control. Opt for reasonable helpings of chicken or fish dishes instead beef or pasta, avoid starchy sides and load up on the veggies (as long as they’re not drowning in sauce). If there’s salad it should take up a generous portion of your plate.  Fill your plate once (no going back for seconds) and stay away from the dessert trays. 

In all cases, eat slowly – enjoy your food. Take breaks to talk. Not only is it more professional to not be seen wolfing down your lunch (or discussing business around a mouth full of food), but you’ll likely find that you eat less overall. We’re full long before our brain realizes – slow down and allow time for everything to synch up. Start with the healthiest items on your plate and stop when you’ve eaten about 80% of your meal – you might be surprised to soon discover you’re not even hungry for the rest. 

It’s easiest to eat healthfully when co-workers are aware and can be supportive, but you may prefer not to draw attention to your personal health goals. ‘Saving room’ casually gets you out of starters and simply saying that you’re full is a nonchalant way to turn down seconds, multiple courses and dessert.

Believe it or not, showing a little restraint with your meal can actually have a positive impact on how your colleagues see you. Smart, sensible choices eaten in moderation allow you to come across as calm, cool and in control, helping more than just your waistline.

Design Your Own Business Cards

Who knows your business better than you? The answer to that is nobody. So why do you go to a website and pick out a design that is premade for the rest of everyone else? Take a little time and make that card the best representation of your company by Designing Your Own Business Card.

All it takes is a little knowledge of Photoshop, Illustrator or Indesign. Grab that graphics person you have around the office and download a template so you can make something magical. Perfectly place your logo and your company colors all over the card. Make sure the font you show is the company approved font.

You control the story because you are writing the narrative. Create something special that all of your company can use. Business cards are an extension of your business and you need to make sure that you personally make them and not just phone it in selecting some predesigned template that other companies can use as well. Stand out from the crowd with a design that is fully immersed in your brand. You will not be just like everyone else in their wallet; you are better than that.

Ways to Customize Your Presentation Folders

A great way to increase your clientele is to send out advertisements promoting your business or services. Stray away from the typical mailings and handouts and go with something bigger and better; presentation folders. Follow these tips on customizing your company presentation folders.

The first thing you want your customers to see when they receive your presentation folder is your company colors. Pick the right color folder, as well as the right imprint color, to match your company colors. The Gallery Collection offers nine different colored folders and sixteen different foil imprint colors.

Next, you definitely want to have your company logo front and centered. You can either have the logo printed large with the company name following beneath it, or have the logo printed a bit smaller to fit the company name next to it. Either way, the name of the company needs to be big, bold and noticeable.

The Gallery Collection offers five different print areas for their presentation folders. If your company has a slogan or catch phrase, you can have that printed at the bottom front of the folder, the bottom back, or on either inside pocket.

Use another imprint area to add your contact information. Your customers are going to need a form of contact once they receive your impressive folders. Include a phone number, an email address, a website and even a contact name.

One last thing to add to your company folder is a business card. Whether it be your own personal business card or a generic company card, insert the card in the folder pocket with the business card slits. This way, if your customers don’t want to carry the folder with them, they can take your business card with them wherever they go.