Gallery Collection Charitable Donations – National Multiple Sclerosis Society

The Gallery Collection has a long standing history of making charitable donations to organizations that could benefit from greeting cards or holiday cards. One such organization we were very happy to make a donation to is the National Multiple Sclerosis Society – New Jersey Metro Chapter. Our donation of 500 Thank You cards will allow them to thank donors and supporters without the extra expenditure on their organization. And what a great organization it is!

Signature Thank You Cards

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society is a collective of passionate individuals who want to do something about MS now. They are determined to create a world that is free of MS. They help people that are affected to address the challenges of living with MS. The Society helps people by funding cutting-edge research, driving change through advocacy, facilitating professional education, and providing programs and services that help people with MS and their families move their lives forward.

The Gallery Collection is pleased to play a small part in helping achieve these goals.

Why Not Send Thanksgiving Cards?

Believe it or not, it’s September already! While most people are mourning that summer is over, I am thrilled that fall is right around the corner and the holidays are near. Many people are gearing up to send out Christmas cards this holiday season but I say why not be different and unique and send out Thanksgiving cards! With so many diverse designs to choose from at The Gallery Collection, sending out a Thanksgiving card to your clients & customers is a great way to show your appreciation.

Thanksgiving Cards

With Thanksgiving being my absolute favorite holiday, I love to send out cards to show my employees and clients that I am thinking about them during the holiday season. Receiving holiday greeting cards is such a warm and thoughtful gesture from a business. It really makes the holidays so much more meaningful.

Thanksgiving is a holiday when we give thanks for all the blessings in our lives and a time to reflect on the past year with our family, friends and loved ones. And more than ever during this time, sending out greetings cards such as Thanksgiving  shows your fellow employees and clients that you are grateful and thankful for them during this special time of the year!

Business Birthday Cards – To Bulk or Not to Bulk

Business birthday cards are a great asset to any business today. Who doesn’t like to receive a card on their birthday? You can put it on your desk or on a shelf at home. It tells the world that you are not forgotten. Somebody remembers you were born on a certain day. Whether you are a customer, client, employee or friend, being remembered makes you feel special. The question business’s have is not should you send birthday cards, but what kind should you buy. Bulk birthday cards offer you the best buy, but assortments give you variety.

Assorted Birthday Cards

Buying bulk birthday cards can save a good deal of money. When you want to personalize with the company name or logo, it makes sense to order a larger quantity of cards and get the savings. However, many businesses today are looking at a softer and more personal approach.

Assorted birthday cards will give you the option of choosing a particular card for a particular person. The variety of cards usually will have cards that are a combination of light, floral and neutral scenes. If you are sending to a man or woman you will have more of a selection. The downside of assorted birthday cards is that they usually cannot be personalized with your name or logo. You will have to sign these yourself, but that will be an even more personal touch. Since I send about twenty cards a month to clients, I like to write a little note that lends that extra personal touch.

The question to ask yourself is how many cards you will be using this year. Since you will probably be sending too many of the same people next year you will want to send a different card to them. The wise choice is to order enough for one year. Whichever route you choose for business birthday cards, will only enhance your standing among your customers.

Create-A-Greeting-Card Scholarship Look Back Series – 2008 Finalists

Welcome back to another entry in our Create-A-Greeting-Card Scholarship Contest Look Back Series. As we continue our look into the 2008 contest we wanted to use today’s post to showcase two beautiful finalists entries which were turned into a set of amazing Christmas cards in our line. As has been the case in most years of the scholarship contest, we found a couple of entries which while they weren’t selected as the winner, we felt were just too beautiful to pass up.

The first entry is from Corinne Thompson, who submitted a beautiful painting of a quiet and serene view of a snow-covered hill glistening with freshly fallen snow on a cold winter’s day. The scene was just too beautiful to not be added to our line. When we converted the entry into a card, there was not much that needed to be done. Some of the designs details were enhanced with some embossing to give them a three dimensional feel and really make them pop! We also added some multi colored reflective glitter to give the sensation of falling snow before adding it to our line as the Glistening Snowscape Holiday Card.

[m-vslider id=”13″]

 

The second entry was from Devon Rutherford, who submitted an amazingly detailed painting of a poinsettia with rich red petals and bright yellow stamens. The entry was placed within a beautiful white frame with golden accents to give the card an elegant look and as added to our line as the Seasonal Splendor Holiday Card

[m-vslider id=”12″]

It truly is a testament to the skill and creativity of the entrants when you see just how great the designs are and how just a few enhancements to the submissions can turn them into stunning cards. We hope you enjoyed this look into the 2008 finalists and look forward to next week when we continue our look behind the scenes of the 2008 Scholarship contest.

Choosing Business Christmas Cards – Not for the Faint of Heart

Do you wonder why a certain person in the office is chosen to pick out the business Christmas cards? Is it their sense of style that sets them apart? Or perhaps it’s that they are favored by the boss. Maybe he values their opinion better than everyone else’s. If any of this has crossed your mind think again. If your office is anything like mine, the job goes to the person with the most patience.

Business Christmas Cards

Once upon a time, I was the person with the most patience. Then I was chosen as the Christmas cards selector. My boss said we need a nice card to send to our clients. It can’t be too corporate and it shouldn’t be too cutesy, but I trust you to choose wisely. First mistake I made was to feel pleased he had chosen me. I set about getting catalogs and searching websites with a purpose. A few days later my boss saw me looking at samples and said “You should show them around, get a consensus of what everyone likes”. I had no idea what was to come.

Do you know that in an office of 25 people there will be 30 opinions? It’s true that by the time you have surveyed 25 people, 5 people will have a new opinion. I’m sure you have seen this depicted on Discovery or the Learning Channel, because it is a unique phenomenon reserved for the human race and perfected in the American business office. There have been many studies done on it – it is caused by too much coffee and staring at computer screens too long. All sense of decorum departs with the mention of Christmas cards and a chance to break from the routine. It is encouraged by the fact that the person expressing the opinion does not have to make the decision.

Wisely I narrowed down the selection on the second go around to three choices –  one awful and two really nice cards. The opinions were evenly (and very vocally) divided between two cards, which I promptly presented to the boss with my decision. He chose the third card as our business Christmas cards that year, which nobody liked.

The moral of the story is never believe you are better than your neighbor and always inform the boss that you admire your neighbor’s sense of style. Uh oh, here comes the boss with a birthday card catalog- break time!

Create-A-Greeting-Card Scholarship Look Back Series – 2008 Winning Design

Welcome back to another installment of our Create-A-Greeting-Card Scholarship Contest Look Back Series. The 2008 scholarship was our second run and we were all excited and ready to get going. Clearly there was alot of excitement from our first scholarship contest and boy was it evident in the final number of submissions which totaled over 11,000! There were so many beautiful entries to choose from and in the end, George Humeston was selected as the winner for his beautiful painting depicting a stunning winter night scene with snow covered tree branches.

After the entry was selected as the winner, our artists turned it into the stunning Full Moon Winter Night Christmas Card.

[m-vslider id=”11″]

There wasn’t much that had to be done to the entry itself for it to be turned into the card but we did add some enhancements. The card was stamped with silver refractive foil and enhanced with some embossing (raising some details of the image to give it a three dimensional effect). Falling snow was added in with the use of silver foil dots to really drive home the winter scene feeling. A white frame was also added around the image to give it the framed painting feel. It was a beautiful entry which easily became a beautiful card in our line.

The Subtle Advantage of Corporate Birthday Cards

Everyone knows how great it feels to be remembered on his or her birthday. Cards, gifts and well wishes make a special day even more so, and we tend to remember those who take a moment out of their day to brighten ours. But there’s a not-so-secret bonus found in the practice of sending corporate birthday cards.

Corporate Birthday Cards

When a company sends a valued client or business associate a birthday card, they’re taking advantage of a terrific opportunity to stand out from others as one that goes above and beyond. And in the same vein as sending a thank you note after an interview, it offers the chance to bring you and your business back to mind in a positive, meaningful way. It’s a physical reminder of a connection, and its presence conveys thoughtfulness, consideration and, let’s faces it, a level of class. That card becomes a visual link to your company, one that carries with it all the positive impressions you expect to be associated with your business, not to mention bringing your name to mind time and again like a not-so-subtle whisper in their ear.

Having a selection of assorted birthday cards at the ready means you’ll never miss this professionally personal opportunity to showcase your company in a positive light. It’s a small gesture that ensures yours is the name that comes to mind long after the card has been tucked away and it’s back to business.

Thank You Cards Are Not Passé

I have a pet peeve. I really get annoyed when I go to a store to make a purchase and the clerk acts like I’m not even there! No eye contact. No “how are you today?” Not even a thank you. It really leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I’m also not fond of not receiving thank you cards. Is it too much to ask? Has saying thank you become passé?

Thank You Cards

Don’t get me wrong. There are plenty of people that haven’t forgotten the old ways. I do run into people that say thank you and I do get thank you cards from some. But all too often we take manners for granted and do not realize the importance they hold in our lives.

Being in customer service, I am on the phone and interacting with our customers daily. In order to assure them that I appreciate their order and the opportunity to serve them, I must convey with my voice. I do this by smiling and being helpful. No, it can’t be seen, but they can hear in my voice that I truly care. When I am dealing with an individual on a more personal level, I convey my thanks not only in person, when I can, but I follow it up with a thank you card.

Whenever I purchase my all occasion cards, I make sure that they include thank you cards. When the occasion arises, I have it at the ready. Whether in business or personally, and under appreciated person is an unhappy person. Either way, it’s a recipe for disaster. I don’t want to be the person responsible for that!