Category: Thank You Cards

Thank You Cards and Feel Good Moments

Have you ever found yourself at a loss for just how to say “thank you” to someone? Whether in a business or personal situation, you should never want to let the opportunity pass to let someone know how much you appreciate their generosity or actions.

Business thank you cards may be a little tricky since we want to keep it professional but still add a personal touch. Perhaps a note written inside an already imprinted card is all that’s needed. Thank you cards sent in a personal situation can be totally different. Sometimes silly or funny, they nonetheless let the recipient know how much their act of kindness meant to us. Often times sending or receiving thank you cards brings back a flood of memories, sometimes bittersweet, that allow us to replay the occasion in our minds.

Sending or receiving thank you cards is one of those “feel good” moments that in this fast paced world can be few and far between. We need to be sure the opportunity doesn’t pass us by.

Design #621AE
Design #621AE
Design #095AY
Design #095AY
Design #503AR
Design #503AR

Are You Sincere If You Send Personalized Thank You Cards?

The short answer is, “Yes!” But let me tell you a little story to back up that opinion.

There was a time when I would have thought it gauche to send typeset personalized thank you cards, instead of carefully handwritten notes on watermarked custom stationery. Not only was I taught manners at home and at school (this was in the famous “olden days” when such niceties were still part of a school day), but I had also read “Miss Manners” and “Dear Abby” newspaper columns aplenty. One of my first adult reference book purchases was Amy Vanderbilt’s Complete Book of Etiquette. I have even read it!

There is an old saying (the older you get, the more of these you acquire) that, “the exception proves the rule.” When I was a young mother living in a small town, I had a dear older friend who chaired lots of volunteer work for local worthy causes. This was a lady of impeccable upbringing and easy-going perfect etiquette, who continually amazed me with her knowledge, abilities, and personal energy. She easily corralled lots of other volunteers and shamelessly charmed business owners into donations of goods, services, and cash more extensive than they’d ever intended.

The thing is, you always knew when giving in to her first request, she was sure to hit on you again and again. And, somehow, you gave in every time. You even did so with a glad heart. How come, you ask?

Well, she was charming, and she did lead by example, and she did always have a devilish twinkle in her eyes. She also made sure each person and company got its name in the event program or newspaper notice or organization newsletter. She even hosted lovely thank you parties, in her own home and at her own expense, for her volunteers. But her most effective recruiting tool was her marvelous thank you notes. Their wonder was in their very personal, graceful, and sincere phrasing. A person might measure their personal value to the community by counting how many of these they had received and saved.

Sadly, the aging process took the steadiness from her hands and her writing became undecipherable. Fortunately, she was among the first to observe this phenomenon, and true to her nature, she devised a solution. She composed a lovely note of explanation and thanks, had custom greeting cards printed with this note in a graceful scripted font, with her full name imprinted below the note’s text. She used these for her thank you cards for the rest of her life. Their most touching aspect was her handwritten first name beside her imprinted name, which I think was sort of her way of proving why she needed these typewritten personalized thank you cards.

Thank You Cards for Niceties

Personal thank you cards are generally sent to acknowledge gifts received for a birthday, an anniversary, a graduation or some other special event. Or a card of thanks can perhaps be written to a person who did a special favor such as helping someone move or being supportive during a time of great need. Thank you cards are not normally sent for what should be every day niceties, but last week I encountered a situation that drove me crazy. Its result was so positive I decided to acknowledge a good deed done by a person who was really just doing what she was supposed to do. Let me explain…

I needed to buy these particular shelf units for my basement to house my vast collection of compact discs, so after work I headed for that famous Swedish discount furniture store that, if I wasn’t careful, would have me heading in the wrong direction as soon as I left the parking lot and entered the store. Now, I work in customer service, so I am perhaps a bit more sensitive than most when it comes to customer service issues such as getting help to easily finding my way around a store or getting any questions I have answered satisfactorily. Having been to this store before, my antennae were up.

The place’s setup forces a customer to walk around and around and around in search of the particular item they are looking for (making sure, of course, that one passes each and every area on the way to wherever it is they’re going). For me, not finding the shelves after looking in what I thought were the two departments they had to be displayed in, I looked around for an associate to whom I could ask for directions. Of course, there was no one to be found…anywhere!

So, making a fateful decision, I decided to head back to the checkout area where I knew there were employees. Sure enough, I noticed two groups of three having a grand old time watching long lines of people trying to pay for their items. Breaking up the one coffee klatch, the person I spoke to – pointing back from whence I came – told me to go back to the lighting department on the same floor I was on, make a left, and the shelves would be on my right. I dutifully followed her directions explicitly.

CD shelves? Nope.

So, after another lengthy search, I found another rocket scientist with a badge who also showed his pointing skills and told me to find the elevator (a harrowing thought), go to the second floor, walk through the home furnishings department, chuck a right, and the shelves would be in a bin. I followed his instructions to a tee.

Nope, again!

So then I decided to just roam around until I bumped into someone who looked like maybe they worked in the store. After what seemed like the equivalent of traversing five par fives, I came upon a young lady who offered to actually ESCORT me to where I needed to go. We hiked back to a completely different department where, voila, there they were…those nasty things I came to the store to buy!

Now, I won’t go into detail about what I had to go through to give them my money. But, needless to say, when I arrived home, I immediately got out a thank you card, and with the swift stroke of a pen, I wrote a greeting of thanks to Alice (yes, she was wearing her name tag).

I mailed the card out yesterday.

True Blue Corporate Thank You Cards Inspire Trust

Corporate thank you cards fill a big vacuum in our modern society and they can fill it with a good impression of your service. It used to be that every time you completed a transaction, at a retail store or with an in-house service-person or even over the phone, the cashier or service person would say, “Thank you,” and probably smile at you. If you were dealing with a really well-run business, those thanks were offered with genuine sincerity.

Nowadays, it seems to me the “service person” is too busy chatting on a headphone set or with fellow employees or “hanging-out with friends” to even look at you, let alone speak to you. Even if they are all alone, it’s often as though you’ve ceased to exist once they’ve taken your payment.

I’ve started saying “Thank you” to them as I put away my change or credit card or receipt. You’d think they’d take the hint, but sadly, the best reaction you can usually expect is if they say, “You’re welcome,” or “That’s okay,” while turning away, as if they had done you a favor.

If you are planning to order business thank you cards right now, or if you already use them as Standard Operating Procedure, you are among the best and the brightest, determined to succeed and grow and persevere. The particular card you choose to send conveys more than your thanks; it tells the receiver a lot about how good you really are.

Design #325AY, Royal Thank You Card, shows you as a true “stand up” kind of business associate, a reliable and clear-thinking person with a great deal of integrity. The embossed blocks of dark blue and lighter blue create a firm backing for the gold foil scripted “Thank You,” set within a fine gold frame. The sturdy ecru matte-finish card stock shows a clean, wide margin around this design, giving substance to your thanks.

Design #325AY - Royal Thank You Card
Design #325AY - Royal Thank You Card

Design #043AT, Corporate Thank You Card, displays modern flexibility on a sound and practical foundation. Presented on subtly textured ecru paper, a perfectly balanced equal-sided nine-part diamond is embossed as the center background, with a level and central embossed line all the way to the side edges. The rainbow foils of the elegantly scripted “Thank You” glow forth in shades of blue, teal, and silver. The “recycled paper” symbol on the back of this card adds a footnote on your sense of responsibility to others.

Design #043AT - Corporate Thank You Card
Design #043AT - Corporate Thank You Card

Either one of these “true blue” corporate thank you cards will represent you with the kind of honor that invites repeated trust in you and in your organizational abilities.

Business Thank You Cards and the State of Mind

All of us at one time or another in our lives has had the real joy of celebrating a special day, whether it was a birthday, anniversary, or a graduation, and have received lots of great gifts. And following these celebrations, we have all sent out thank you cards to those special people, thanking them for their generosity and thoughtfulness.

However, another excellent reason for sending thank you cards would be to let an employee know how much their work and loyalty is appreciated by their bosses and supervisors. These business thank you cards, given out without any fanfare but with a firm handshake and done unexpectedly, would be a tremendous morale booster, especially now when the economy is flagging and people’s minds may be distracted by negative economic news.

Lord knows how many people are worried about whether they may or may not keep their jobs or if they can pay their bills on time. But receiving a small note of appreciation from an authority figure can do wonders for an employee’s state of mind and productivity.

Use Corporate Thank You Cards to Express your Appreciation

In these challenging times, purchasing and sending corporate thank you cards may be the last thing we have on our minds; when in fact, this is the time we should be sending them. What better way to let your customers and colleagues know that they are appreciated – not just in good times, but even more so in times of economic turmoil.

Expressing thanks and appreciation shows that you value the faith that your customers and colleagues still have in your product or service. I don’t know about you, but when someone takes the time to thank me, it shows me that I am indeed appreciated. This in turn plants a seed. When I know that something I have done is appreciated, it makes me want to repeat the action. By sending thank you cards, we are leaving a lasting, positive impression. By not expressing our appreciation, we are also leaving an impression, and we can all guess what that would be.

Design #095AY, Filigree Thank You Card, is distinctive and elegant. It is a buff colored card with the words “Thank You” done in gold foil. Behind this is subtle, pearl filigree. This is bordered with the same pearl, accented in two corners with a delicate design. This graceful and stylish card is a great way to say express appreciation.

Design #095AY - Filigree Thank You Card
Design #095AY - Filigree Thank You Card

For another option, consider design #691AY, Thank You Elegance Thank You Card. This simply stated, but reflective thank you card clearly conveys the message that you are sending. You may decide to choose a greeting and add a personal imprint or you might decide to add a handwritten note. Either way, the message that you are truly grateful will be clearly expressed.

Design #691AY - Thank You Elegance Thank You Card
Design #691AY - Thank You Elegance
Thank You Card

How Personalized Thank You Cards Helped my Faraway Daughter

Last May my lovely daughter decided she needed a change of scenery and a warmer climate. Little did I know she would also need some inspiration in the form of some personalized thank you cards!

It all started when she decided to move to California, where, to her delight, the scenery was gorgeous and the weather fabulous. She settled right in as if she had been there forever and soon landed a nice job in a property management office. “But you don’t know anything about property management,” said I. “So what? My boss says he can teach me the business,” said she. And he did. In no time she was promoted to office manager.

Her boss, wonderful guy that he is, surprised my daughter with a luncheon to celebrate her promotion. All the employees were invited to the nice little Italian Bistro down the street. They had a wonderful afternoon of wining and dining and celebrating. My daughter was so thankful to her boss, her co-workers and the little Italian Bistro and she wanted to let them know how grateful she was for all that they had done for her.

So she called me up to see if I had any ideas. Of course I had an idea! I always have an idea and it usually includes a personalized thank you card from The Gallery Collection where I just happen to work, and where they just happen to have the most spectacular thank you cards on the planet.

She had to agree, The Gallery Collection’s thank you cards are fabulous. So she picked out a really lovely design and had her name imprinted in beautiful gold foil on them. She sent them to her boss, her co-workers and to that little Italian Bistro. Needless to say, they all loved the cards (and the homemade chocolate-chip cookies she included with each card!)

She may be 3,000 miles away now, but lucky for her, Mom and The Gallery Collection’s thank you cards are just a phone call away!

Etiquette for Sending Thank You Cards

Throughout the years I have found it very rewarding, and still is, to send and receive words of appreciation and/or gratitude in thank you cards. I have often been asked when it is appropriate to send thank you cards and would like to share the following suggestions with you.

A thank you card is an expression of appreciation for a thoughtful act, gift or gesture and should be sent as quickly as possible, generally within a week of receipt of a gift or gesture. In the case of a gift, always make a specific reference to the gift received, such as, “Thank you so much for the blue sweater. How did you know blue was my favorite color?”

A thank you card is appropriate in the following situations:

• After being hosted as a house guest
• After receiving gifts/visits during a hospital stay
• Gifts that were received by mail
• Wedding gifts
• Baby shower gifts
• After receiving sympathy letters, flowers or mass cards
• Notes or gifts of congratulations
• Having been given a party in your honor
• Having accomplished a commendable task
• Having received a job referral
• Volunteered services
• That special teacher
• A helpful co-worker

Select thank you cards that reflect your personality and keep a supply on hand. It is important to personalize your thank you cards with a hand written message.

If you receive a gift you dislike you should still show appreciation for the thought that went into selecting it for you. You might say, “Thank you for the gift. I will always think of you whenever I use/wear it.”

I’m hoping this has been helpful to those of you who care enough to send thank you cards.

Corporate Thank You Cards Provide Reassurance

Raise your hand if you have felt under-appreciated at some point in your life. Raise your hand if you have felt a little neglected at some point during your career. Now raise your hand if you have ever felt like your boss did not give you enough credit. Wow, we’re running out of hands. Let me tell you the story of how corporate thank you cards let me put my hand down.

I have worked really hard at my insurance company for years. I have never been a look-at-me type of person, so I do my work and do not make much noise about it. Working as long as I have for this company, you would expect some recognition other then the occasional raise. I wasn’t looking for much, but some sort of “Hey, great job!” would have been nice. Humans need reassurance – it’s a condition we’ve developed over the years. You tell me how great I am…and then I think, “Wow what a great place to work. Let me not steal office supplies today.”

A new CEO came to the company and before I knew what had hit me, things changed. When a big project had gotten completed, I get a letter in the mail addressed from her. Scared that this may be my pink slip, to my surprise it was actually one of those hand-written corporate thank you cards. You know the ones that you always hear about but never actually receive. It wasn’t much, but the thought really counted in my book. This person took the time to recognize my hard work by actually sending me a personalized thank you card. In today’s world, you can’t get any better then that. Well, I guess I could get a raise as well but I’m not gonna push that envelope…just yet.

Environmentally Friendly Thank You Cards Show How Much you Care

Environmentally friendly thank you cards are the wave of the future and I am proud to work for a company that cares enough to produce them. We use paper that is certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council); it is a bit more expensive but worth the price to protect the earth for future generations. Becoming FSC-certified (SW-COC-002530) is no walk in the park…it is quite labor intensive and time consuming. One must be committed to the cause! The FSC standards are strict, and so a greeting cards company cannot just use FSC certified paper and claim to be certified. Applications must be filed, vendors must be qualified, employees must be trained, and then there is the yearly audit…just to mention a few parts of the process. When you turn over one of our environmentally friendly thank you cards you will see the seals of approval that we work so hard to earn. Not only do we have the best quality, best looking greeting cards…we are also helping to preserve the planet.

It is so nice to be thanked! I don’t do things to receive the gratitude, but boy is it rewarding when you know that your kindness was appreciated. With that being said, I remember to send thank you cards whenever I’ve been blessed with someone’s generosity. Last week I had my car serviced and my mechanic cleaned the inside of my car, so I sent him a thank you card. In retrospect, maybe I should have been embarrassed that he felt compelled to clean the inside of my card, but he got a card anyway. I sent a thank you card to the HR person that interviewed me for this job (nice move on my part). I got the job, and I love it!

Sending thank you cards to customers is also a great way to maintain them as regulars. This past Christmas, I received several cards thanking me for my loyalty…and you know those vendors will continue to get my business next year. I will be sure to think of them first. Sending a real card – a quality card – is much better than getting an email. I get so many emails from vendors vying for my business that they are common place and I tend to ignore them, but when I receive a personalized greeting card in the mail, I tend to remember the vendor. Now top that off by sending eco-friendly thank you cards, and you just thanked yourself as well!

Rachael Ray tells us that the best way to thank someone is with food. I don’t think my friend in Virginia would care for a box of meatballs, so I send him thank you cards instead.

President Obama wants us all to do our part, and I am solidly behind him as well as company I work for. One may think that it takes a large contribution like that of the FSC to make a difference but every little bit counts. And I am proud of our contributions and proud to work for a company that is environmentally responsible despite the cost and hard work it takes to make us that way.