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Follow on Google News | How to send the perfect greeting cardAdvice on how to create a much more effective personal message than you can ever get with an off-the-shelf greeting card.
By: Ointmentfly This is the opinion of Mike Erickson, proprietor of Ointmentfly, an online gallery, which specializes in high end DIY greeting cards. "Instead of somebody else’s shorthand for the occasion, the perfect card should be written in your own words, not just displaying them, but making them memorable," Erickson claims. "The perfect card doesn’t just reflect your sentiments; it makes them vivid and valuable. It doesn’t just divert; it enlightens." According to Erickson, the only way you’re going to get the perfect card is to create it yourself. And he insists it’s a lot simpler than you might think. "All it takes is an attention-grabbing cover, a memorable message on the inside spread, and your signature. Everything else is fluff and a distraction." Here’s what Erickson's calls his foolproof way to produce the perfect card. COVER Find a visual metaphor for what you feel and what you’re trying to say, a powerful, suggestive, unforgettable symbol that sets the stage for what you are about to say. Sentiments are abstract and powerful, and your graphic should evoke your sentiments instead of trying to depict them literally. Select a fine art print, because only original artists can achieve the level of impact and taste you’re looking for, and make each image mean something unique to each viewer. Some artists, like In2See design their work primarily for greeting cards. Look for new artists because old masters translate as stale. And look for work that’s valuable enough to frame afterward. MESSAGE Write your own copy, because the only words that can come from your heart are yours. Keep it brief. Brevity is the soul, not just of wit, but of anything important you’ll ever want people to grasp, embrace and remember. Be prepared to take time, and put some effort into it. Mark Twain wrote to a friend that he was writing a long letter because he didn’t have time to write a short one. Like any good copy writer, start by writing a concise statement of what you want to say, then fill a page or two with all the different ways you might say it better, never forgetting the person you’re writing it for. Edit and rewrite until you get it just right. Here’s the final, and most important step: walk away from what you’ve just written for at least an hour, then come back and read it with a fresh perspective. WHERE TO START Hundreds of web-based companies let people create and send their own custom-designed cards. The one Erickson recommends for its selection, quality and level of taste is Fine Art America, which hosts his online gallery, Ointmentfly. Check it out here: http://fineartamerica.com/ According to Erickson, FAA uses key words to help authors narrow their choices by occasion or sentiment. Once they've selected selected their graphic, and size and format it to their taste. Using Erickson's guidelines, authors can compose or cut and paste your message on the inside spread, and select the number of copies they'd like. According to Erickson, FAA will produce gallery-quality fine art cardsin one day, to your specs, and mail them to you, along with a white envelope for each card. End
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