2. Printed or digital?
Take the environmental option into consideration. If you choose environmentally friendly paper and envelopes or instead opt for a digital version and send it by e-mail, you are showing that you’re committed to doing your bit for the environment. Whether digital or print: if you do it well, you’ll be doing good.
3. Do it right or don’t do it at all!
You would never hand out business cards or publish product brochures or your annual report without them being based on a concept and having good copy and an attractive design, would you? And season’s greetings are another part of your corporate communications. You have so much to gain. Attention, appeal, strengthening your brand. So invest in good copy and an attractive design. Get help from professionals. Yes, it will cost you money. But greetings that fall flat end up costing you too – and give you nothing or very little in return.
4. As personal as possible.
Now, you couldn’t possibly write every single card yourself with a dedicated personal message. But you should always sign them by hand. People you have close business relationships with certainly deserve a personal, hand-written form of address above the printed text, such as “Dear Mrs Ramsay”, and also perhaps a hand-written sentence at the end, such as “Thank you for your loyalty – I’m looking forward to working with you again next year. Best wishes, Maria Hug”. This obviously applies to all employees in your company who have close relationships with specific customers and business partners.
5. When? Not too early, not too late.
Don’t you find it really annoying when you get your first Christmas cards at the beginning of December? We would recommend that you don’t send printed cards out before the middle of December. E-mails containing messages for the festive season should be sent three to six working days before Christmas Eve.
6. Appreciation, not blah-blah.
Clichés, empty words and stock phrases are poison for your corporate communications – and the same applies to season’s greetings. They’re a waste of both the paper and the postage. Try thinking about the special things that happened during the year that’s drawing to a close and what connects you with your business partners. Use heartfelt language to arouse emotions. You’ll also find tips on developing an attractive style of writing here. The broader your target audience, the less scope there is for individualised messages. And yet you can make sure you stand out from the crowd by selecting your phrasing carefully and adding a hand-written message (point 4). Instead of the standard “We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year”, you might like to use something more creative with words such as “glittering”, “dazzling” or “sparkling”. Or something very meaningful such as:
“We wish you a sparkling Christmas and a new year full of new ideas and the energy to turn them into business success.”
“Thank you for working with us. We’ll be putting our best wishes for a relaxing holiday season and a dazzling new year under the Christmas tree for you.”
“It has been a great pleasure working with you. We hope you have a peaceful Christmas and would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for your loyalty. Have a happy and healthy new year.”
“We hope you have a joyful festive season and leave the year on a high: we are looking forward to further collaboration in the new year. Thank you for your loyalty.”
7. Your company is special – just like your season’s greetings.
Not standardised, but tailor-made – and much too lovely to end up in the bin or get the “Delete” treatment just seconds after being received. For the print version... How about using premium paper or an unusual card format instead of the same old folded A5 format with the traditional fir branches? Make sure you keep your corporate identity discreet (never promotional) in both the copy and design (point 3). Want our advice? Go for the recognition factor by developing an appealing series concept which has a similar sound year in, year out, with the same format but different colours and special text elements. Graphic design and writing professionals can provide you with ideas and implement them for you in a way that will suit your budget. Both for your print and digital version.
8. A tip for small companies.
Send cards with stamps from the special Swiss Post Office Christmas tree or snow crystal stamp series for 2023 – a sign that you pay attention to detail across the board. Naturally, post offices in other countries have similar offers that you should consider when sending festive greetings.
Or do it completely differently – with a focus on the future!
In the eight previous points, you’ve read just how important it is to stand out from the crowd in the flurry of cards and e-mails people receive in the run-up to Christmas for a win when it comes to your corporate communications. Here’s an idea of how to communicate with customers and business partners in your very own way. Skip the Christmas greetings and get in touch in the first few weeks of the new year – with smart thoughts about the future citing others like this:
“‘I’ve never done that before, so I’m sure I can do it!’
These words from Pippi Longstocking show a love of discovery, courage for the future and the willingness to try things out. We’re looking forward to working with you to find out just what’s possible in 2024.”
“‘Human history is, in essence, a history of ideas.’ H.G. Wells
We are looking forward to once again putting ideas into action with you this year and finding outstanding solutions.”
We hope your run-up to Christmas is full of sparkle and bright ideas. And if you just can’t find the right words, you know where to find us.
