It was first considered that the early Chinese were the first to send greeting cards. There was evidence the Egyptians also included them into their scrolls.
By the 1400s the Germans started to send cards but the big movement happened in the 1850's when stamps first allowed cards to be sent quickly and efficiently.
Since then the growth of cards has been staggering to now top over 7.5 billion in the US alone. Sending of birthday cards has been a major segment of this growth. Why?
A birthday is considered by most people as their most important day of the year. It's the day to celebrate their being born. We also celebrate religious birthdays as well. The birth of Christ, Budda's birthday and so on.
It's good practice to send birthday cards to family, colleagues and business associates. Provided it's done in a heart felt way, recognising a person's birthday shows you care about them and want to celebrate their special day. It's therefore essential you get into the habit of collecting birth dates from people and storing them into a database so you can easily be reminded of an impending birthday. Everytime you meet a new business associate make sure you get their birthday as well. If you are wanting to develop a long term business relationship with this contact, sending a birthday card will place your name in front of them one more time.
There are many types of birthday cards you can send including online birthday cards, free email birthday cards, printable birthday cards, Hallmark cards or American birthday cards. Whatever you choose, make sure it reflects who you are. Email type birthday cards are quick and can be very animated and flashy but they may also send a message that you are in a rush and didn't spend a lot of time choosing a personal card.
Printable cards from specialised card sites allow you to choose from lots of templates but you need to check the quality before you post to your best friend or new client. A poor quality card can sour your relationship quickly. Hallmark Cards and American Greeting Cards are the world's largest and provide a good selection. But there again perhaps you are wanting to make an impact with a personalised card?
Depending on who you are sending your birthday card to you need to personalise your message. Naturally you'll need to mention the occasion ie "Happy Birthday" and perhaps add a memorable moment you shared with the recipient. Knowing what you and the recipient have in common will make writing a card easier. You can refer to interests or even business dealings if you think it's appropriate. But remember to make it heart felt. If the card smells of a business promotion, you'll soon have your recipient running for cover.
One of the best ways to send cards is to have a birthday list; whether you do this in a special book or online. Today there's plenty of services that can highlight forthcoming birthdays so you won't forget to send a card.
There are even online programmes that will allow you to set up a birthday list, create a campaign and have personalised cards automatically sent to friends and customers. You'll never forget a birthday again!
Whatever you do, make sure you send somebody a birthday card soon. It's their most important day and they'll be tickled pink you remembered them.
Greg Reed is the owner of The Card Emporium, a place where you can discover how to send a physical, personalised card in your own handwriting including photographs for under a dollar. Grab a free sample and see for yourself [http://www.thecardsuperstore.com]
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