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.

My Favorite Religious Christmas Cards

For my family, we’ve always loved the meaning of Christmas. It is a true celebration of the giving spirit and caring for others. I truly believe that if we continued to hold the spirit of Christmas present in all of our minds, our world would be a much better place. When the time comes to select my Christmas cards to my closest friends and family, I always choose one with a message which resonates with my own family. It’s why I share my wishes for Christmas with Religious Cards.

The Nativity Ornament is such a gorgeous card.  It is almost as if it is in 3D. The red ornament is displayed hanging from a decorated, lighted Christmas tree with a Nativity scene in the center showing the midnight sky above.  The colors are vivid and framed in gold giving the recipient the option to remove the mounted photo to display in a frame.

This Christmas card shows the Peace Symbol of the dove holding an olive branch.  The dove is flying through a stained glass window at Holy Sacrament Church in Paris.  Not only is this card sticking to the religious theme but it is spreading the word of peace.  With the state of the world and our country, there is no better time to spread the wishes of peace.

The Three Wise Men…Definitely making it clear that I am announcing the blessings of the season only with a more modern flair.  They are bringing gifts to the new King through the desert with the bright star leading them.  This is a guiding card with the wishes of a Merry Christmas written on the front.

I am proud to spread well wishes for a Merry Christmas to all with these special one of a kind Religious cards from The Gallery Collection

Why You Should Take Advantage of Recipient Addressing

I love sending out Christmas cards.  You are sending wishes for a happy holiday and a peaceful New Year.  What could be more fun?

You have written your personal message and signed the cards with sincerity.  Next, you stuffed and sealed all your envelopes and Oh no!  It is that time…..time to hand write each of your 200 or more envelopes.  The fun just drained out of the Christmas card merriment.

Take advantage of recipient addressing and this woe will not even enter the equation.  You can have the Gallery Collection print your recipient addresses for you.  All you need to do is submit your addresses in an Excel file and let them do the work.  Life just got much easier.

Not only is there the benefit of making your life easier, but you can have your envelopes imprinted in the same color and font as your return address.  I am all for uniformity.   It looks neat and polished.

Every year with my card order, I need to order 50 extra envelopes.  I tend to make spelling errors or because I am in a rush to get this job done, the envelopes look sloppy.  I end up having to start over on a new envelope. 

Take advantage of recipient addressing in order to ease the stress of the holiday season. 

15th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 9 Finalists Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 9 Finalists!

Reasons to Purchase Presentation Folders

Presentation Folders are a great way to keep all your documents in order while also giving you the ability to personalize and promote your company and brand. Whether they are used for a corporate event, trade show, sales presentation, real estate, or accounting a Presentation Folder exudes professionalism especially when personalized with your company name and logo. 

For example, you could provide a customized folder for each person’s place at the conference table. Talk about making a classy and memorable first impression, as well as a lasting one. Imagine a client coming in to discuss their tax return, and you hand them a folder with your company name and brand front and center. Everyone will know that you are organized and prepared, and they will appreciate your attention to detail.  It is just like being dressed for success.  Appearance does matter – and it gets you noticed!

There are countless reasons to purchase The Gallery Collection’s Presentation Folders, but here are just a few uses that might be perfect for your organization:

  • Marketing Tool for disseminating information
  • Promotional Mailings
  • Recruitment
  • Accounting / Tax Professionals – Record keeping and tax returns
  • Onboarding new employees
  • Seminars
  • Sales presentation
  • Real Estate Professionals – Buyer and Seller handouts
  • Trade shows
  • Media Kits
  • Colleges and Universities – to promote school spirit at various events or meetings

The Gallery Collection’s Presentation Folders are available in a number of paper stock colors. The folders are also fully customizable, or you could choose from our stock options. Your company name and logo in a number of different foil colors, which makes a striking appearance on any of the colors and finishes.

With Presentation Folders from The Gallery Collection, your audience will be impressed and so will you!

Choosing The Right Greeting For Your Holiday Cards

We’ve all been there. Fast forward, and it’s early November. The pressure is on because the Holiday season is right around the corner, and you need to pick a Holiday card to send out to your loyal customers! So, you choose a Gallery Collection Christmas Card, but you have yet to choose a greeting. Yikes!

You’re left scrambling because you want to pick the perfect one! After all, the greeting of your holiday card is extremely important. The greeting helps define your company’s wishes for the most important season of the year as well as all your well wishes for the New Year to come!

Luckily, it isn’t time just yet to panic. Let’s breakdown some options to get you ready for when the time truly comes. First, did you want to go with a short and sweet greeting? The “Season’s Greetings and Best Wishes for a Happy New Year” greeting would fit the bill! If you’ve like to say a little more, the Gallery Collection has an entire selection of longer, descriptive greetings that would work in that case too. Ones such as “Wishing You and Your family a wonderful holiday season and a healthy and peaceful New Year.” Are your recipients religious? There are also religious greetings such as “Joy to the World, let Earth receive her king!”

In the end, if you simply can’t find one that fits your needs, you also always have the option to write your own. The important thing is to find the greeting that you feel expresses your company’s morals and holiday wishes

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.

15th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 8 Finalists Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 8 Finalists!

Expanding Family – Greeting Cards Needed!

I feel as if I’m living in a lifetime movie. Believe it or not, I recently had the pleasure of instantly adding 20 new family members! Yes, you read that right. 20! Not exactly an everyday occurrence. As we all know, more family members means more birthdays, anniversaries, and events to be prepared for. So needless to say, I need lots of greeting cards and quickly.

A little background into how this happened. Long story short, my sister and I were raised by my father. We never knew our mother. Last year, we decided to do a DNA test only to find out we had unknown second and third cousins on the other side of the country. As we dug deeper, we found our mother was still alive and had remarried. Before you know it, we found our we had 3 siblings we never knew! All of them with families and kids.

As we begin a new chapter in our ever expanding family, the plan is to keep up with all the events of their lives and catch up on everything missed. I think the best thing to do at this point is to prepare by purchasing several greeting card assortment boxes because there’s going to be a lot of events coming up in the near future and there’s no better way to prepare for all of them.