The holiday season is a time to celebrate new and existing relationships. Lucky for you, sending holiday cards is an excellent tool for doing so! Taking time to send warm wishes strengthens your relationships with clients and business associates by letting them know you value their business and your relationship. Now, not all holiday cards are created equal! Despite their deceptively simple appearance, there are steps and missteps separating a great holiday card impression from a not-so-great holiday card miss. To make sure your card gets noticed, our experienced print professionals at
AlphaGraphics Knox Street | Park Cities | North Dallas have compiled a list of common holiday card do’s and don’ts.
Do: Get Your Holiday Cards Out Early
In life and business, timing is everything! Make sure to get your holiday cards out early! Timing your card to arrive too close to the holidays can backfire as many companies close early and people go out of town to see family. In addition, the mailing industry gets overwhelmed the closer it gets to the holidays, which could cause your card to be delayed or, even worse, arrive after the holidays, leaving it to feel like an afterthought and lessening its impact. Our advice is to start your planning early and target mailing your card no later than early to mid-December.
Don’t: Forget to Personalize
Want to ensure your card gets a second look? Look no further than the attention and appreciation a personalized printed holiday card demands! A generic card is ho-ho-hum and will likely be in the recycling faster than you can say ‘Rudolph.’ Adding a personal touch, such as a handwritten name or personalized holiday message, is an easy way to ensure your card feels authentic and genuine.
Working with a mailing list of thousands versus hundreds? Handwritten messages might not be possible. In these cases, working with your local printing partner to incorporate data fields into your design that allows you to personalize each card with your client’s name and company is the next best thing. It’s as easy as entering your data into a spreadsheet.
Do: Use Proper Grammar
Holiday cards with grammar mistakes can turn a merry message into a bah humbug message. To avoid this, we’ve listed some of the most common grammatical errors.
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Use an apostrophe in “Season’s Greetings.”
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Do not use an apostrophe after a family’s last name. For example, The Olsons is correct, not The Olson’s
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It’s Happy New Year, not Happy New Year’s or Happy New Years.
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The word merry should not be capitalized unless in the greeting “Merry Christmas.”
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Treat a closing like a sentence and only capitalize the first-word ex: Warmest wishes.
Spell check and reading your card aloud will help you catch mistakes.
Don’t: Follow the Crowd
Holiday cards offer the perfect opportunity to stand out and be remembered. With so many people receiving holiday cards, it’s challenging to differentiate yours from the rest. Make a statement by focusing on your audience, and get creative with your visuals. A clever design or unique print embellishments such as embossings, textures, die-cuts, and foil details are just a few ways to stand out. Another idea? Do the unexpected by including a gift such as a customized ornament or phone wallet! Check out our Ultimate Guide on Corporate Gifting for a full range of gift options.
Your Dallas, TX Resource for Holiday Cards
Forget the generic, impersonal, and store-bought cards and reconnect with custom greeting cards from AlphaGraphics! At AlphaGraphics Knox Street | Park Cities | North Dallas, we are your one-stop-shop resource for all your holiday event and corporate needs, from cards to holiday signage to employee appreciation gifts! Let us help you get your holiday needs boxed and wrapped! Give our Dallas, TX, print center today a holiday ‘jingle’ today to set up a free strategic consultation to learn how we can support your entire business, now and through the rest of the year.