Gallery Collection Blog

Business Cards: Dos and Dont’s

Dos

Do always keep enough with you. What’s the point of having them if you don’t hand them out? They are a staple marketing tool of the modern business world.
Do include pertinent information like name, contact info, and a website or link to recent work/resume.
Do deliver your card confidently with a firm handshake, eye-contact, and a smile.
Do think about your line of work and which design would best suit your needs. Consider the type of card as well (horizontal or vertical, glossy and laminated, matte, velvety, etc.). Take care in deciding the details. This will set you apart from your competitors.

Don’ts

Don’t use hard-to-read fonts, colors, or designs.
Don’t bend, fold, crumple, or stain your cards. They are a reflection of you and your attention to detail, so they must be neat and clean. Consider keeping them in the free travel case The Gallery Collection provides with your order! It will be oh so impressive when you retrieve a fresh card.
Don’t crowd your card with too much stuff. Photos, logos, quotes or testimonials, accomplishment highlights, and extra links are all fine additions to your business card . . . but maybe only one or two of them. And absolutely never include outdated or incomplete details. Weigh your options and strive for developing a precise, informative card.
Don’t keep putting off ordering your business cards at The Gallery Collection! The Gallery Collection’s high quality, double-sided, customizable business cards will be sure to impress.

3 Card Assortments Everyone Needs

Card assortments are essential for any business or individual to keep at their disposal. Unless you can remember every event and foresee unexpected events, assortment boxes are a must have.

The first one I feel is a must have is the All Occasion Card Assortment box. This box has an assortment of cards for every occasion. There are birthday, anniversary, thank you, get well and congratulations cards in this box. When something unexpected occurs you will have the necessary card to make someone’s day.

The second card assortment box I feel is necessary to keep on hand is one of the Birthday Card Assortment boxes. I feel like every time I turn around I need an unexpected birthday card. Sure I can run to the local card store and spend $5.00 for a card, but why deal with that stress and expense? When I get these assortment boxes the cost per card is less than half that price and the quality is awesome. Plus, I avoid any last minute running around.

As for the last card assortment box, I always make sure I keep a box of Fine Art Note Cards around. This way if it just a simple note to say, “Hi. I’m thinking about you.” you can use one of these. They are an all-purpose option and can be used for business or personal use. Consider these assortment box choices to keep at your disposal.

Working Moms: Parenting Career and Parenting Successfully

How can working moms go about balancing career and parenting successfully? I won’t say it’s easy because who would really believe that anyway, but I will say that it’s completely doable. Like anything else that is successful in your life, you just need a plan of action. Here’s how to get there:

Decide What’s Important
First and foremost, you have to decide what’s important to you. The key word in that last sentence is YOU. There is no one-size-fits-all plan. Determine what your must-haves are and work from there. If breast-feeding your newborn is non-negotiable, make sure that your career somehow gives you the flexibility to do that. I was able to work part-time during the first 6 months after my daughter was born and was able to nurse her at home most of the time while pumping some during work hours. Maybe your must have is that you want to see your children off to school in the morning or need to be home when they come home from school. Whatever it is decide what you absolute need while still keeping in mind that you will need to sacrifice something along the way.

Ask Your Village For Help
It does take a village to raise children so ask your village for help and be sure to offer your help in return.
Exchanging baby-sitting services, rides or any other parenting duties is a great way to fit it all in. Perhaps you can call on a stay-at-home mom to drop your children off at karate in the afternoon and you’ll do the pick-up in the evening. Be careful to not abuse your friends and contribute when you are able to. If you have older children, get them involved in helping. Depending on their age, they should be able to take care of themselves and some household duties so it doesn’t all fall on you. It helps your children have a sense of responsibility and helps you out in the process. My children started doing their own laundry (from start to finish if you get my drift) at age 10 along with other daily and weekly chores. If you have a life partner, ask for their assistance if possible. Get your co-workers and boss on board to. Explain to them how important your family is and how they might be able to help you achieve the balance you are seeking. Many companies now offer flexible schedules, job sharing, work-from-home options and other perks that can make it easier for you.

It’s Okay to Say No
One of the things that has helped me the most as far as balancing career and parenting successfully is accepting that sometimes the answer is no. If I really can’t fit something in at work or at home, I am honest and say no (nicely.) I no longer do things out of obligation. For example, fundraisers are abundant once children get to be school age. After stressing myself out selling stuff because I felt obligated, I decided I would ask if I could just write a check to make a “donation” which would result in the same amount of money going to the school. It really made my life easier in so many ways. Figure out which things you can easily so no to that would help lighten your load. Sometimes you have to get creative.

The important thing to remember in all of this is that you need to take time for yourself and time with your children. Granted you may not want your career to suffer but your children are only children once and trust me, the time flies by.

11th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 7 Winners Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 7 Winners!

Entry-2421

Entry-2355

Entry-2174

Entry-2171

Entry-2054

Entry-2011

Entry-2008

Entry-1962

Entry-1854

Entry-1846

Why People Still Appreciate Greeting Cards

During this technological day and age, everyone is always messaging you or contacting you through social media. That’s definitely a quick and easy way to reach out to people, but there comes a time when you want to show someone you are thinking of them…for example, on special occasions. Digitally, you tend to lose the beauty of the personal feel of opening up a card and reading it. There’s something to say about opening up a piece of paper, reading the handwritten message on it … and this is why people still appreciate greeting cards.

Not to say that sending an email to show best wishes for an occasion is wrong, it just tends to feel impersonal. Sure you can send a “Happy Birthday” text message, or a “Congratulations” email, but then what? The person deletes it, reads it in a hurry and goes on to the thing they were doing, or doesn’t even get it right away because they’re just too busy to check their email or personal messages until later. With greeting cards, someone can actually take the time to read how much you care. They can display your card on their desk at work or on their end table at home, and will be reminded of you every time they look at it! There’s an element of surprise and joy when you open up the envelope, and see what kind of card someone has chosen to send you.

Greeting cards take your well wishes and thoughts to another level, a tangible level. To me, this goes above and beyond a quick text message. I know someone took the time to think of me, pick out a card they think I’ll enjoy and go out of their way to put their thoughts on paper. Even if the note is simply stated, receiving a greeting card beats reading digital thoughts any day!

Sending Baby Congratulations Cards To Employees

Someone in your office announced that they are having a baby! What is the best way to wish your employee the best? With a quality card from The Gallery Collection, of course! The Gallery Collection has a number of Baby Congratulations cards available including traditional Congratulations cards to celebrate a colleagues upcoming bundle of joy.

There are dozens of greetings to choose from which can be printed in ink or foil colors. Here are some that are perfectly appropriate for the office and would work in any of the card designs above:

Y2 “Congratulations on the new addition to your family”
M4 “Best wishes from all of us”
J8 “We’re excited to hear the news!”
J1 “Wishing you much happiness with your new bundle of joy!”

Survival Guide For Your 1st Day In The Office

You went through the search for a new job, showed up dressed well and aced the interviews. Good news you have landed the job you wanted. The hardest part of a new job is that you are the new kid on the block and you have no clue who everyone is and what is expected of you. So let’s use your 1st day in the office Survival Guide.

Dress the part for the job. If it is a casual office, don’t be too casual your first day. Most businesses have a dress code. If you dress as you did for the interview you can’t go wrong.
Remember the company thought you would be a good fit, so take a deep breath and walk in with confidence, but don’t appear to be too cocky.
Pack a lunch. Until you know the ins and outs of the lunch schedule you want to be prepared. You don’t know if people order lunch, go out or if there is a kitchen where you can store your lunch. Pack something that does not require refrigeration.
Ask questions. It is important for you to know the culture of the office and what is expected of you. Knowing what is expected of you will go a long way to boosting your confidence.
Smile and be friendly with the people you meet, but above all do not get involved in office gossip. If someone wants to gossip, you can just politely say,” I don’t really know her/him”. You don’t want to feel pulled into one group or another. You are better served to remain neutral. You don’t want to be seen as someone who gossips.
Be punctual when taking breaks or lunch. If you have one hour for lunch do not take 1 hour and 5 minutes.

Just as preparing for an interview, preparing for your first day is important. The first impression you present to others is likely the one they will remember. You were hired to do a job, so do it to the best of your ability right from the first day on. Good luck!

Custom Presentation Folders Leave A Lasting Impression

If you want to really stand out from the crowd, try utilizing custom presentation folders for your business or personal use. Customizing presentation folders with The Gallery Collection is easy and risk free. You can be involved as little or as much as you like and no order is produced without customer approval.

Presentation folders are a superb way to display your company logo—and or advertise your slogan—while distributing to clients, employees, or potential business partners. There are many options at The Gallery Collection to create your perfect presentation folders. You can decide where to place your logo, which of the foil colors you would like to print in, and in which color you would like your presentation folders to be produced.

These quality folders stay vibrant for a long time and are relatively durable. Each pocket in the customized presentation folders holds 25 sheets of 8.5” W x 11” H paper. There are also options to have one or two spots inside to display your customized business cards. This would be perfect for handing out resumes or to welcome a new member to your company’s sales or marketing team. Outshine the competition with these high-quality presentation folders.

11th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 6 Winners Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 6 Winners!

Entry-1759

Entry-1735

Entry-1720

Entry-1694

Entry-1614

Entry-1439

Entry-1428

Entry-1406

Entry-1399

Entry-1309

Should I Send New Year’s Cards to Customers?

After Christmas is over, New Year’s Eve and Day is right around the corner. You’re really not sure if it is appropriate to send New Year’s cards to your customers, so soon after sending the Holiday cards. Maybe you haven’t even sent your Holiday cards yet, and are looking to send a dual card. The Gallery Collection has an entire selection of beautiful holiday greeting cards. They also have a selection of New Year’s Cards and Calendar cards, sure to put a smile on your recipients’ face! One of my personal favorite New Year’s greeting cards is the Starburst New Year’s Card. This greeting card is digitally printed in ink, and the text can be personalized on the front of the card. Another fun New Year’s greeting card design is Bright New Year Card, another greeting card that is digitally printed in ink. The text can also be personalized on the front of the card. The Four Seasons Calendar Card has colorful trees representing each season of the year, featured on the cover of this attractive Z-fold design. Whichever card you choose, I believe that it’s a great way to send your well wishes for the new year to come!