Crafting The Perfect Business Holiday Card

Well-crafted holiday cards have the potential to provide a dual benefit to corporations, businesses, and organizations that send them to clients, employees, customers, patients, etc.  The obvious dividend is in the authentic goodwill that these cards can engender as you truly thank your recipients for their support and trust in your organization over the past year.  The second benefit is a direct offshoot of the first. 

The appreciation that your recipients feel as a result of receiving a holiday card might, in turn, inspire them to continue to be associated with your organization and may even strengthen that bond resulting in more business, referrals, and solid loyalty.  While a great advantage for any organization, this loyalty can only be achieved as described.  It must be a direct offshoot of an authentic goodwill.  If the holiday card is sent only with the intention of drumming up more business from your customers, it might not be as well received. Besides creating your holiday card within this mental framework of authenticity, you need to find the right balance on what to include in your clients’ card no matter how well-intentioned.

Welcoming New Employees

You have found the perfect candidate for the opening in your company.  You offered them the job and they accepted it.  Now how do we get that person to stay for the long haul?

The first thing I suggest is giving the new hire a call a couple of days before their start date.  I am sure they have many questions and this will help them feel at ease.  Let them know things like where to park, where they can grab a bite to eat, etc.  You do not get a second chance to make a first impression.

Then have a welcome strategy.  A great idea is to have a bunch of office supplies bundled on their desk with a welcome card.  Next, assign this new employee a mentor or buddy.  This person should meet the newbie in the lobby and start off with a tour of the building and introductions to the staff.  He can show him around, teach him how things work in the office and be there for support and guidance in the future.

Show your new hire that they are welcome and appreciated from before they walk through the front door and continue to make a point of including him in all the activities around the workplace.  How your company handles onboarding will leave a lasting impression.

Retirement Party Ideas For Coworkers

When planning someone’s retirement party, think about what they like when it comes to the theme, speeches, and who to invite. Not all retirement parties need to be galas. Think about local hangouts, parks or even a party in the office depending on what suits the person.

A retirement party can be anything you want it to be:

  • A luncheon during the workday
  • A big gala on a Saturday night
  • A sporting event on a Sunday afternoon
  • After work dinner with the team

There are no particular etiquette rules to guide a retirement party. The party can really be anything that suits the interests and personality of the retiree.

A retirement party is the opportunity to celebrate the retiree’s past accomplishments as well as their future endeavors. The party should therefore reflect these endeavors.

Some retirement party ideas for what to do at the party are as follows: Speeches, Commemorate the Retiree, Create a theme, do invite Family and Friends of the retiree, and create a playlist with fun songs.

The final thing to decide on would be the food. If you know the retiree’s palette then you can order food that they would like followed by CAKE.

5 Helpful Tips for Writing Meaningful Sympathy Cards

Sending sympathy cards is never one of those things we like to do. We want to acknowledge a person’s passing, but we don’t always know what to write. Often times we don’t know if we are making the recipient feel better or worse. It can be challenging to say the right thing, so I provided below 5 helpful tips for writing meaningful sympathy cards...

  1. Less is sometimes more. Try to keep the message brief especially if the greeting already expresses most of what you want to say. You might end with:
    • I am so sorry for your loss
    • We are keeping you in our thoughts and prayers
    • Sending prayers and hugs
    • Our sincere condolences
  2. Show appreciation. If you were familiar with the loved one, make it personal.
    • What a wonderful lady your Mom was. I am so fortunate to have had her in my life.
    • Celebrating the life of a great man and sharing in your mourning.
    • Remembering your Dad and all the funny stories he would tell.
  3. If you are in a position to do so, you may add a note offering help. Try to be specific and follow up on your offer.
    • Thinking of you at this difficult time. I’m here if you need a shoulder to lean on.
    • I know this is a difficult time. I am thinking of you and am here to help with walking the dog, babysitting and running errands. Please let me know.
    • I know things are hectic for you. I will call you to see what would be good night to drop off a meal.
  4. Close with a warm, graceful and respectful closing.
    • With sympathy
    • With warm thoughts and prayers
    • With prayer and sympathy
    • My heart goes out to you and your family
  5. What to avoid. Be sensitive and mindful.
    • I know how you feel
    • She is in a better place
    • He was so young
    • It was meant to be

If you are not sure what to say, it is best to keep it simple. Just sending a sympathy card will let the recipient know you care.

3 Reasons To Add Signatures To Your Greeting Cards

Signatures add that extra something to all of your greeting cards, but it can be difficult – not to mention overwhelming – to do. Not so with the aid of The Gallery Collection! They offer the ability to submit your signatures and print them exactly how you want them to appear inside your cards! Here are three reasons why you should add signatures to your greeting cards today!

1. By adding signatures, your cards will always look polished, professional, and exactly the way you want them – no matter the occasion! Additionally, ordering greeting cards with signatures with The Gallery Collection is easy and not time consuming at all. The process is simple. You could upload your signatures online, or if it isn’t handy, a template of your card will be sent for you to sign so you know exactly how the  placement of the signatures will appear in your card!

2. Personalizing your greeting cards with a signature will surely impress anyone -from potential new customers to co-workers to family members! The Gallery Collection even has other items, like invitations and calendars, that will really stand out with your John Hancock in any color foil.

3. Signatures add a personal touch to your greeting cards, without the hassle of wrangling the employees together for a signing party – which risks damaging the cards. If it’s many employees, it saves on time. If it’s only a few signatures your card needs, but those people are busy higher-ups, you won’t need to bother them with another request.

What’s the Purpose of Card Assortments?

People ask me all the time why I buy card assortments all the time for my office and even for my personal use. The answer is simple. I never have to worry about cards…ever! I always have one on hand.

Let’s take my personal favorite the birthday card assortments. It offers 25 birthday cards with a very big variety of cards. Imagine for every birthday, you always have a beautiful birthday card on hand waiting to be chosen by you. All you need to do after making your selection is write your personal message, seal it in the envelope, drop it in the mailbox, and done!

With such a wide selection of card assortments, you can purchase cards for all your needs and any occasion. You’ll likely see great value in purchasing one of the all-occasion card assortments which hold various cards for all different occasion. I’m sure you’ll have quite a lot of fun selecting from those boxes. Next time, be sure to purchase one of those assortment boxes to see how much simpler they will make your life. You’ll be happy you did!

Say Cheese! Send Photo Christmas Cards This Holiday Season

We’ve all done it. We open our mailbox and receive the customary Holiday cards from friends and family. They get opened and placed on a table amongst several other cards. Placed and forgotten until the Holiday season is over and it’s time to clean up. They are all then shuffled into a garbage bag, or stored in a box, only to never be seen again. We don’t mean to be so insensitive, but unless these cards stand out, they are destined to fall into the “abyss” of forgotten mail. It’s time to make your holiday cards stand out. What better way to do this than with Business Photo Cards this Holiday season. You are able to capture a moment, and share it with the people closest to you. Pictures can be special sentiments, which is why people are more prone to throw out a card versus a picture. Once the Holiday season is over, the picture portion can be cut out and framed. It is received as a card and gift in one!

Switching gears, businesses can also benefit from Photo Greeting Cards.  We’ve all heard the famous saying that states “a picture is worth a thousand words.” This is with reason. Marketing firms have discovered that content with images receive 94% more views than content without relevant images. Don’t just tell your customers, show them. Bring them into your business with a picture that exemplifies your message.  Say “cheese” and send them your customized photo cards.

Card Assortment Boxes Make Things Easy

Have you ever been at a work Christmas party in the past and people you did not think would give you a Christmas card…end up giving you a Christmas card?  How dare those terrible people do something nice that you did not expect!  I have been in that situation before being a veteran of many, many Christmases over the years.  Let me tell you this; I do not have that issue anymore.  I purchased a Holiday Assortment Box  and now I no longer have to fear the niceties of people.

Do not just stop there.  You can get yourself a Birthday Assortment Box as well.  Perfect for the office.  You do not want to give the same card out to people as birthdays come along.  It looks impersonal to do that.  Get a box that has multiple choices so you can vary it up throughout the year.  People will smile and you will smile in the back of your mind knowing that you cared enough to get that person to smile.  There is this thing called karma and you want to be on the right side of it as much as you can.  All in all these are two simple ways to make people happy and to get rid of the extra frustration that could creep up if you do not have cards handy.

I forgot…but should I Still Send That Birthday Card?

These days time passes us by with the blink of an eye.  Being too busy with work, school, family, just life in general – it happens to the best of us.  In fact we get so caught up in day to day that we even forget special occasions, like a loved ones Birthday.  There’s usually an inner debate in your mind, wondering…should I still send a belated Birthday card?  The answer is absolutely send one out!

These days there are so many options for those who need to send out late Birthday wishes.  You can totally make a joke about it, if the recipient has a great sense of humor. You could also be completely sincere incase the person gets offended easily. Actually, I find the belated birthday cards usually are the funniest!  If you choose to take a serious, more apologetic approach for your temporary forgetfulness, you can always write a personal message that has some humor. The best of both worlds!

Regardless if you forgot a friend’s, coworker’s or a family member’s special day, you will definitely win some points back by sending out a belated Birthday card.  Just like the saying goes, “Better late than never!”

Anniversary Card Your Way to Great Employee Relations

Cards are a great morale booster for your employees. Imagine how productive people are when they are happy. Now imagine how successful sending Anniversary cards on the start date of employment to your company will be to boosting morale. A great investment in your company is to have a cheerful and productive employee base.

In this age, how refreshing would it be to present an atmosphere of interest in the comings and goings of your employees. They are not just a number in your organization but rather an important asset to hold onto in the ever changing world of business.

When you give anniversary cards at work that are signed by the President, manager, and supervisor, a feeling of belonging to a great organization will be the immediate result. One of the greatest morale boosters a company can have is caring for their employees. It tells a person that they are recognized in a personal way and valued as a member of the company. Follow up the anniversary card with a personal visit and a congratulations and you have just hit a home run. How fabulous to work for a company where you can feel appreciated.

Happy Anniversary to you and many more years of great employee relations!