Business Greeting Cards Can Enhance Your Reputation

A simple and inexpensive way to get noticed and remembered is to send business greeting cards to clients, patrons, customers, and patients. And don’t forget how useful they can be for co-workers and employees.

My company gives all of its employee’s really nice custom greeting cards for their birthday every year. This year they made them even more special by adding a note at the bottom of the card saying, “Bring to HR & receive two movie tickets.”

Alright, a trip to the Caribbean might have been more exciting, but a free evening at the movies was a thoughtful and unexpected gesture – especially with today’s economy – and it made each of us feel appreciated and valued. It’s nice to know that our employer continues to be interested in our having enjoyable lives outside of work.

This morning, I was telling my next door neighbor about my birthday card and movie tickets, and she very enthusiastically had to tell me about a special greeting card she had recently received. It was a thinking of you card from her surgeon, which arrived a few days after she returned home from the hospital. It said he appreciated her choosing him and reminded her that he and his staff are dedicated to her speedy recovery and are available to her any time.

The card was a welcome surprise, lifting her spirits and making her smile. She’s now his biggest fan and all her friends at the weekly Senior Citizens Club have all heard how remarkable he is. It’s enhanced his reputation and made his name more well-known. I’m sure he’ll be at the top of the list of any one of them needing surgery in the future.

Especially in today’s world of emails and tweets, sending business greeting cards can have a great impact and leave a lasting impression.

Business Birthday Cards Add A Personal Touch

What use do we have for business birthday cards? In this day and age of immediacy things are done so instantly. We order food and it’s ready in less than three minutes and that includes the time we take to pay for the meal. We write others and no longer does it take a few days to get the folded letter but we have it instantly in front of us with the help of email, sometimes bold and full of color. We text each other to the tune of 30 words or more per minute, and that’s not even words written in full text! What chance do business greeting cards have up against these things that are done at the speed of light?

I say they have a great chance! They have a chance to show that you took time out to care; you took time out to appreciate by purchasing a greeting card and all that is involved with that process. It goes a long way in terms of showing how much you think of someone.

Well of course they are not sent or received instantly, but that is exactly what sets them apart. The time it takes, and the cost to make what you are trying to say…that’s the added personal touch that makes business birthday cards so special.

Congratulations Cards for Flying High

Almost all of us have a written list or have at least thought of some things that we would include on our bucket list. I have been very blessed to have done a few things already that I have been able to cross of my bucket list but my latest thrill has come from jumping out of an airplane from 14,000 feet. Do I deserve Congratulations cards for such a feat? My kids think I do! Let me tell you why.

Skydiving is totally safe is the message I got from the company that was allowing me to jump, yet I had to sign many a form saying that I would not hold them liable should anything happen. Always having been a bit of risk-taker, I was undeterred and ready to jump. I was not really nervous but as we were ascending higher and higher, 7,000 feet, 9,000 feet, 12,000 feet….I did have a brief moment when I thought to myself, what the heck were you thinking? But alas, that passed quickly as my tandem instructor hurled himself, with me attached, out of the back of the airplane. I can’t tell you how incredibly liberating it is to free fall for an entire minute before having your parachute deploy. I highly recommend adding it to your bucket list.

The next day, I found Congratulations cards that my kids had made for me which said Congratulations Mommy for jumping out of an airplane. I found it very amusing to be congratulated for something I’ve wanted to do since I was a teenager. But nonetheless, I saved those precious hand-made greeting cards along with the video and pictures I purchased of my extremely eventful day. I will never forget the experience but it’s great to be able to relive it every once and awhile. My next bucket-list adventure is a hot-air balloon ride. Not quite as risky maybe but at least the hot air won’t only be coming from me this time.

Now I Know What Corporate Birthday Cards Are Truly For

The first time I received an invoice from our sales and marketing department referring to corporate birthday cards I didn’t understand why we would spend money on something that seemed so frivolous. You see, I work in the accounting department involved with accounts payable and I didn’t know what the company would use a corporate birthday card for. My friend Mary works in sales and I asked her. She explained how very valuable they are because it reminds each customer that we remember them and they are individuals with a special day and that they really matter to our business. She went on to say how sometimes a customer will call without placing any order just to thank the sales representative who thought of them.

When you are selling a product and there is a lot of one on one contact with your customers you really get to know them. These business birthday cards are just the right touch for that purpose. I’m sure we get a few extra calls and even more importantly sales. Recently, I received a birthday card from my insurance company representative and it made me smile, proving that it really does matter.

Gain the Competitive Edge with Business Greeting Cards

My husband’s financial management company lets him know that his business and loyalty are appreciated by sending him handsome business greeting cards every year for the holidays. His personal advisor usually adds a note and hand signs it above the company’s logo. They always wish him all things good for the coming New Year and when he receives it, the gesture reminds him that he is thought of and valued.

Law firms and insurance companies, accountants, banks and credit unions along with medical practices, hospitals and others in the health care field can all reach out to their clients and patients in a simple, inexpensive but thoughtful way. Besides using them for the holidays, greeting cards for business can be sent for birthdays and anniversaries. They can be used to offer sympathy or get well wishes, as well as to convey congratulations or a special thank you.

Sending greeting cards is a great way for small businesses to show appreciation to existing customers or appeal to potential ones. Landscapers, auto mechanics, spas and beauty salons, real estate professionals, tradesmen and suppliers can all use custom greeting cards to stay in touch with those who are important to the success of their business.

Restaurants, retailers and service industries can all keep their name in front of the public as well as make special promotional offers to their regular patrons. Schools, colleges and universities can use them to stay in contact with their students, alumni and supporters. Greeting cards for business can strengthen ties and bolster good will.

I’m sure you can think of several ways you could use them to maintain or grow your client base, or to promote your new or existing business. Today’s economy requires special measures and extra effort to gain the competitive edge. Business greeting cards are a proven tool of success for companies of all sizes.

Personalized Birthday Cards Flew us to California

Who would have thought that personalized birthday cards could have been so rewarding. It was my daughter Terre’s Sweet 16 birthday and she didn’t want to have a Sweet 16 party, the same as all of her friends were having. She wanted instead to go to Southern California – Huntington Beach to be exact – with three of her best friends (my sister and I also went). So I ordered some custom imprinted birthday cards which incorporated a special invitation for Terre and her three best friends to Huntington Beach for one week for a Sweet 16 birthday vacation. I placed a round trip airline ticket in each and gave out the special birthday cards to my daughter and her friends. They were thrilled, to say the least.

When the special vacation week finally arrived, we had a limo come and pick us up to go to the airport. We landed at LAX and for our first night, we stayed at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. We got to the hotel, checked in and went to the poolside café to have lunch. We were so excited to be there and so hopeful we would see a famous person or two. We weren’t there ten minutes when Jennifer Aniston walked in and sat at a table 25 feet from us. The girls could barely hide their excitement at seeing her. I really couldn’t either!

While we were all too shy to say anything to her, she was very sweet nonetheless. She couldn’t help but notice the gaggle of teenage girls trying not to stare at her. When we were finished and on our way to do some sight-seeing, Jennifer waved to the girls as they got up from the table and left. Well, they were on cloud nine the rest of the day.

We left for Huntington Beach the next day and had a great time. We didn’t see any other famous people but to be honest, seeing Jennifer Aniston was all we could handle for one trip! But those special birthday cards, and the whole vacation, is a memory the girls will cherish forever.

 

Reunited by Personalized Holiday Cards

When I was just sixteen I dated the love of my life, Ed, for four years. We did everything together. We spent school days together walking to class. We spent summers at the pool. We celebrated our birthdays and holidays with each other and our families. No matter what we did, we were laughing. We really had an amazing time together.

Three years into the relationship he went away to college. I missed him like crazy. We talked on the phone. We visited when we could afford it. We sent personalized holiday cards, birthday cards, cards for everything. As time went by the cards became less personal, and they became less frequent. So did the phone calls. Season’s greetings were almost never exchanged anymore. After about 11 months it seemed as if the relationship that once was my world was now just a memory. I always wondered where Ed was, how he was doing, and was he the one who got away?

Nine years passed. I still thought about Ed once in a while, maybe a little more during the holiday season. I was working as a receptionist in a doctor’s office. It was the middle of December and I had “decked the halls” of the office with holiday décor, lights, and bells. Before I left one night I was hanging all the Season’s Greetings cards sent to the office and the doctor. As I hung the last card I noticed something oddly familiar. Inside the company president thanked the doctor for his business. At the bottom of the card, clear as day, I’d recognize that handwriting anywhere, “Best Wishes, Ed.” I couldn’t believe it, I hadn’t seen or heard from him in nine years and there was that familiar signature printed on the card. Could it be? Could it be my high school sweetheart, Ed?

I wasted no time calling the number on the card. It turns out it was my Ed and he had been thinking about me too! We were both single and lived fifteen miles from each other. That was 2 years ago that we finally found each other after nine years. We now live together and are getting married next month. We even have the holiday card that brought us back together framed in our family room!

Thank You Cards for Today’s Business World

In today’s fast paced corporate world – where the source of just about all our communication is done through emails and the internet – taking the time to write out and send a business associate thank you cards as a means of communicating your appreciation or just to network can make a powerful statement as to how you conduct your own business. Thank you cards for business are a great way to help keep your company in contact with others that may be or eventual become clients, suppliers, business contacts or even to thank someone for a referral. The benefits of using thank you cards for business shows that you appreciate them for something they did for you or your company.

Using corporate thank you cards is seen as a positive and effective move that will keep your company in the thoughts of your recipients for potential future projects. These extra steps you take to ensure your company and your products will be remembered at that corporate meeting or company presentation. The corporate thank you cards you send can very well play a major role in getting you future business with other companies. You know how word of mouth is a powerful tool in the business world? Well using thank you cards for business to let someone know you appreciate having them as a customer or just as thanks for a job well done can speak volumes!

Business Birthday Cards Are A Big Deal

Birthdays are no big deal around my office. It’s as if we were all hatched from a batch of eggs, like birds and turtles, with no personal birth dates. What’s so difficult about people signing friendly little “from the gang at work” birthday cards? Or how about business birthday cards from the big boss himself?

Does it bother me? Believe me, I’m not looking to advertise my age every year. I’m not looking for a party because my waistline doesn’t need another slice of cake. I’m too old for a bunch of balloons tied to my chair, and I don’t certainly don’t need flowers or more candy. It’s just that I’d like to feel a little special at work for just that one day a year.

Back in college I had a part-time job. The printing machines in the next room were so noisy, everyone in the office had to shout to be heard. “HI, GINNY!” “GOOD MORNING, PETE!” “NICE WEATHER OUT THERE.” There wasn’t much socializing in that place or you’d have a sore throat by the end of the day. Things were better at my first “real” job. No big celebrations for a birthday, no presents, just a few friends sharing cake at the lunch table. This was an old established firm and we weren’t allowed to have any personal items, especially birthday cards, cluttering up our desks.

On my next birthday I’ll really shake things up here. I’ll mail myself half a dozen birthday cards and tack them up on my bulletin board. Maybe I’ll get pizza for everyone. What do you think? Maybe the boss will take the hint and start sending all of us some business birthday cards. Being happy at work is certainly a great motivator to do a great job!

The Loss of Whitney Houston – Talent and Heart

Every year I have need for more and more personal sympathy cards. Maybe it’s because I know a lot of people or maybe because I’ve lived in a number of places. Maybe it’s just my age, but it seems that every year I learn of more deaths of people I knew. Sometimes that person is a stranger, but my sadness is real because they feel like family. Such was the case this weekend, with the sad and sudden passing of Whitney Houston.

Whitney Houston was an amazingly talented woman who, unfortunately, had her struggles though the years. While all the talk in the past few days has been about her tumultuous marriage to Bobby Brown and her issues with drugs and alcohol, I prefer to remember Whitney as a mega-talented singer and a woman who donated much of her time and money to charity.

Whitney Houston had an incomparable voice. One just had to hear the few opening notes of her classic rendition of “I Will Always Love You” to know that she had a talent second to none. What some people may not know was that she was devoted to charity giving. She ran her own organization, the Whitney Houston Foundation for Children, which helped children with such issues as homelessness, cancer and AIDS. She was also involved with other equally important causes, such as the United Negro College Fund, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, and the Children’s Diabetes Foundation.

I will be writing a sympathy card for Whitney Houston, and I hope it can find its way to her daughter Bobbi Kristina, who must be devastated at the loss of her mother. So even though I never actually knew her, I choose to remember Whitney for her grace, glory and spirit. I hope you will too.