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The Importance of Sustainability in Printing

Like any industry, the printing sector has an environmental impact on the world. Simply put, by providing products and services, we consume resources and energy. With sustainability becoming an increasingly important goal in the face of resource depletion and climate change, key players in the printing industry, including us at Printing for Less, must look at the big picture. Taking a step back in order to reduce ecological footprints today will only benefit printing businesses and the world at large in the future.

The State of the Printing Industry

First, it’s important to understand how the printing industry actually impacts the environment. It comes down to three main factors: materials, energy, and waste.

Printing Materials

When it comes to materials, the printing industry has something of a leg up in pursuing a more sustainable future because it relies heavily on a renewable and recyclable resource: paper. Paper products have a recyclability rate of nearly 65%. For comparison, less than 10% of plastics are recycled.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t aim to improve our practices. Other materials involved in the printing process such as inks, toners, and coatings, as well as packaging materials, all influence the industry’s environmental impact. Adopting sustainable materials across the printing workflow will put us on the right track.

Energy Consumption in Printing

Energy consumption is a multifaceted topic when it comes to sustainability in printing. The printing industry consumes energy resources to power its facilities and printing processes as well as to transport products to customers. By switching to renewable energy sources, integrating smart and more efficient workflows, and establishing more localized supply chains, energy consumption can not only transition away from non-renewable fossil fuels, but it can also be reduced for a smaller carbon footprint.

Printing Waste

Waste is a significant contributor to the printing industry’s environmental impact. Finding ways to better manage waste is therefore an important part of sustainability missions. There are many ways waste management can be addressed, from transitioning to fully recyclable materials to proper printer hardware disposal.

Ultimately, the goal is to establish circular economies for printing materials and equipment so less waste ends up in landfills. Another key goal for the printing industry in reducing waste is installing robust, automated design and production workflows. A reliable process leads to fewer production errors, better print results, and less waste.

How Printing for Less Addresses Our Footprint

At Printing for Less, we are addressing the ways we impact the environment on all fronts. Not only do we diligently recycle all of our paper scraps and packaging cardboard, but we also recycle other products and materials, such as aluminum printing plates and wooden pallets used in transportation.

Moreover, we are always striving to achieve greater energy efficiency in our operations. For example, we use clean, renewable energy generated by wind turbines to power our printing facilities. This energy is provided by our local utility provider, Park Electric Cooperative, with whom we work closely to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

In our day-to-day, we also follow a lean manufacturing ideology to optimize our efficiency and minimize waste. To do this, we strategically combine print jobs to both save on paper and make the most of a printer’s energy use and output.

Another way we are improving our environmental impact on the planet is by partnering with eco-minded suppliers and vendors. All of our paper products are sourced from mills that have implemented sustainable processes and share our ecological values.

What We Want to Do Better

While we take great pride in our efforts to improve sustainability in printing, we also recognize there are areas where we can go further. Reducing our use of plastic materials is a goal we are currently working towards. “We would like to move away from plastics as much as possible and fully embrace the idea that everything we send out the door in print manufacturing is 100% recyclable,” explains Beau Thomas, Director of Print Production at Printing for Less.

At Printing for Less, we are continually researching and testing the use of more eco-friendly printing materials such as chemicals and inks. In fact, we are seeing promising developments across the printing industry to develop and adopt sustainable inks made from natural ingredients, like soy and algae, to gradually decrease reliance on inks based on petroleum oil.

Transportation emissions are another issue we aim to tackle by working progressively with domestic suppliers. “The transport of paper goods from countries overseas uses a lot of fuel at a significant cost,” Beau adds. “The pandemic and other global problems have strained this even more recently. We are working with our vendors to secure domestic products that perform well, save costs, and lower our use of resources.”

Why Sustainability is So Important to Printing for Less

Achieving greater sustainability is an important goal at Printing for Less for the same reason it should be for every organization and individual on the planet: Earth is our home and we need to take care of it.

At Printing for Less, we are lucky to call Livingston, Montana our home and the majesty of Yellowstone National Park our neighbor. The mountains, rivers, and other amazing natural resources on our doorstep have instilled in us a deep appreciation and respect for the Earth, which inform our business practices and strategies.

It goes without saying that our continued existence as a company is directly tied to the continued health and prosperity of the environment. Brooke Seidel, a Printing for Less Customer Advocate, sums it up: “We want to be in business for a long time and we cannot leave a large footprint on our environment. Being conscious of that will help us to be a great business in the long term.” Respecting and nurturing the resources we depend on in our day-to-day is vital to our continued success and that of our clients.

A Sustainable Future for Printing

At Printing for Less, we are hoping to set an example and lead the printing industry towards a more sustainable future. Our eco-forward strategies—targeting materials, energy consumption, and waste management—show us and our industry that going green is not only a responsible choice but a business-savvy one as well.

“The global community, not just the printing industry, has to be on board with environmental responsibility to make a paradigm shift,” says Printing for Less Beau Thomas. “We have to start somewhere, and if we can do it while being profitable, others will see that and follow suit.”

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Direct Mail Advertising: 4 Ideas to Make Mail Worth Reading

In today’s digital world, your customers are inundated with online ads and email marketing campaigns. Almost 75% of consumers report feeling overwhelmed by email overload, and nearly 40% use an ad-blocking tool.

Digital marketing has its place. However, online ad fatigue makes it easy for it to get lost in the chaos. If you’re a brand interested in standing out, it’s time to get retro and reimagine an old-school marketing approach, direct mail advertising.

What is Direct Mail Advertising?

Direct mail advertising is a marketing strategy used to engage with your target audience offline. This form of advertising is physically delivered straight to your prospect’s mailbox, cutting out the clutter we see in the digital space. Direct mail advertising includes postcards, corporate swag, catalogs, or any other physical item a company wants to send prospects.

Why Direct Mail Advertising is an Effective Strategy

People Love Receiving Mail

Checking emails fills most folks with anxiety. However, visiting their mailbox has the opposite effect. In a 2020 study conducted by the United States Postal service, 65 percent of people said receiving mail lifted their spirits. Furthermore, your prospects actually want to hear from you via snail mail, with 59 percent saying they enjoy receiving mail from brands about new products.

Direct Mail Has a High Response Rate

Because you’re interacting with consumers in a memorable way, you’ll likely have a higher response rate than other digital channels. Ambre Zachmann an eCommerce Marketing Specialist at Printing for Less, says this is because of direct mail’s tangibility. “Your mail will nearly always be seen, but that’s not the case with your digital efforts. The nice thing about a mailer is that people tend to hold onto them and can easily refer back to them. We have had a number of customers who held onto one of our mailers and reached out months later. That is harder to do with digital.”

Direct Mail Has a High ROI

You may be surprised to learn that direct mail has a more reliable return on investment than other online mediums. The average ROI for a direct mail campaign is 29 percent, while the average ROI for display ads is only 16 percent. Melanie Handl, Printing for Less’s Custom Solutions Team Lead, notes that companies can expect their direct mail ROI to increase as they send more mailings to the same group of people. The more prospects interact with your brand, the more recognizable you’ll become.

Strategies to Make Your Direct Mail Advertising Interesting

Simply sending your prospects a note in the mail isn’t enough to ensure a successful direct mail advertising campaign. Like any other advertising medium, you need to be strategic with your approach. This starts by creating quality content. Below we’ve outlined our top tips for creating mail that moves prospects down the sales funnel.

1. Customization

Your prospects are bombarded with generic messages daily. If you want to differentiate yourself from your competitors, you need to take a different approach. Customers want to feel like they matter to your company. In fact, 80 percent say they’re more likely to buy from brands that provide a personalized experience. So, creating customized content is key if you want to set your direct mail advertising campaign up for success.

One easy way to personalize your content is by including your prospect’s name. This may seem a minor addition, but it has the power to make a huge impact. Studies show that simply adding someone’s name to your direct mail advertising can increase response rates by 135%.

2. Use a Powerful Image

The text you include in your advertisement is crucial. But the images you include are even more important. People can process images 60,000 times faster than text. This means you can portray a lot more information about your company with an image than with just words.

Since visuals are so important, Wes Kirk, our in-house mailing expert, recommends choosing images that represent what your company can do. “A photo of your contractor’s truck does not tell prospects how good your work is. Show before and after photos. Let them see what sets your firm apart from your competitors.”

3. Have a Clear CTA

Sometimes, marketers are so focused on compelling copy and engaging images that they fail to include a call to action (CTA). Without a clear CTA, your prospect won’t do anything after receiving your advertisement.

CTAs are short and sweet, so you need to get your message across quickly. Use command verbs like “order” or “download” to give your readers clear and specific next steps. To grab your reader’s attention, Ambre recommends making your CTA two times larger than the rest of your text.

4. Make it Part of an Omnichannel Marketing Approach

You’re probably not going to get a ton of traction if you only send your prospects one piece of mail. There’s an old marketing rule that says consumers need to interact with a brand seven times before making a purchase. But new research shows this number may be closer to 13.

Relying on direct mail alone isn’t going to get you the best results. Instead, make it part of your broader marketing strategy. Taking an omnichannel marketing approach uses a variety of mediums to interact with your customers. This helps create a seamless customer experience and gives them more opportunities to interact with your brand.

Cut Through The Noise

Online marketing is important, but if you really want to capture your customers’ attention, you need to take things a step further. Engaging prospects offline provides your company the opportunity to interact with them in a unique way. Need help creating high-quality mailers? Give us a call at 800-930-7978!

Printed Newsletters: Why They Are Better Than Digital

Does your company send customers printed newsletters? While sending a newsletter via snail mail sounds a little retro, it’s a great opportunity to connect with prospects. 80% of people report that they always read printed newsletters from organizations they recognize. Many companies have moved away from printed newsletters because they think their hard work will go directly into the trash. But 80%? Now, that’s a number we think is worthy of targeting.

Let’s take a deeper look at how your company can use this marketing tool to engage your loyal customers.

What Are Printed Newsletters?

Printed newsletters are marketing tools that organizations use to share valuable and entertaining information with their contacts. Newsletters have been around for thousands of years, with the earliest dating back to 131 BC, making them one of the oldest forms of advertising. Today, we have two different types of newsletters, printed and digital.

How Printed Differs From Digital Newsletters

Printed newsletters are tangible documents delivered to your customers’ mailbox, while digital newsletters are pieces of online content sent to their email. Most successful digital newsletters are about 200 words, but printed newsletters can be much longer. Some companies even treat their printed newsletter like a company magazine, helping them build credibility as thought leaders in their space.

Reasons Why Printed Newsletters May Be More Effective

Nostalgia Marketing

Our Ecommerce Sales Manager, Katie Young, thinks one of the most appealing aspects of printed newsletters is nostalgia saying, “Printed newsletters aren’t as common as they were in the past. They remind me of the nostalgia of reading a newspaper or playing the OG Nintendo.” Those warm fuzzy feelings that come with nostalgia do more than pull at heartstrings.

Research shows that consumers are more willing to spend money on products that evoke feelings of nostalgia than ones that don’t. That’s an experience you can’t recreate using the digital format.

Thought Leadership

Since physical newsletters provide more space for content than digital newsletters, company leaders can dedicate time to position themselves as experts in their industry. High-quality content that provides industry insights shows potential customers that you’re trustworthy. According to LinkedIn research, 55% of businesses use thought leadership to vet other organizations before hiring them or working with them.

Cut Through the Digital Overload

Most people have around 200 emails hanging out in their inboxes. That’s a lot of messages competing for their attention, and many get deleted. Our National Account Executive, Nathan Garnder, notes that people must interact with physical newsletters, saying, “Many emails are flagged as spam or deleted without being opened. Direct mail puts a physical piece of marketing in front of them that they must interact with. Even if it’s just five seconds of walking it to the trash, that’s five seconds of brand interaction you wouldn’t have with a deleted email.”

Completes Your Omnichannel Marketing Strategy

Some companies swear social media is the key to marketing success, while others say you should focus solely on email. The truth is that brands need to engage with prospects through a variety of mediums if they want to succeed. However, many forget direct mail is a vital part of that strategy.

A survey of 600 marketers using an omnichannel approach found that their campaign performance increased 63% when they began incorporating direct mail. By making physical newsletters part of your marketing plan, companies can ensure that they’re engaging with customers through a variety of channels.

How to Create a Great Newsletter

So you understand why you should send your contacts a physical newsletter. But how do you create one that’s actually engaging? Below we’ve outlined our top tips for creating a newsletter that excites your readers.

Create Quality Content

This newsletter represents your brand and influences whether or not future clients will want to work with you. So, you want to ensure it’s high quality. To do this, our In-House Mailing Expert, Wes Kirk, recommends you work with the best of the best. “Hire the best designers and copywriters. No one wants to read a mediocre newsletter you created yourself in Microsoft Word.”

If you don’t have a graphic designer on hand, Printing for Less can help. From logos to flyers, our team of designers takes pride in delivering exceptional graphic design services.

Test Different Styles

From single sheet newsletters to multi-page booklets, the design options for physical newsletters are bountiful. However, you won’t know what style resonates most with your audience unless you test multiple looks. When testing designs, only test one element at a time. That way, you know what is impacting engagement. Include a CTA at the end of your newsletter, and track which style gets more engagement. The data you collect should guide future design decisions, helping you increase your newsletter’s ROI.

Keep The Design Simple

With so many designs to choose from, it’s easy to go overboard with creative assets or designs. However, our Custom Solutions Team Lead, Melanie Handl, recommends companies keep things simple, saying, “Your design should be simple, easy to read, and have a hierarchy of importance.” While it may be tempting to add lots of graphics, stick to a few quality ones. This ensures they don’t distract from the rest of the content.

Work With A Mailing Service

What if you’re ready to create a newsletter but don’t have a mailing list? That’s where we come from. At Printing for Less we can help you create a mailing list for your direct mail campaign or enhance the one you have. If you’re interested in learning more shoot us an email at info@printingforless.com. We’d love to connect.

Sticker Marketing: Why and How to Inspire

When someone says “marketing”, what springs to mind? Expensive campaigns? Flashy online tactics? Complicated funnels? Marketing is an inherent part of business but in our digital world, we’re oversaturated with pop-ups, emails, and aggressive messaging that often isn’t as effective as brands would like.

At its core, marketing is about having a memorable conversation with someone. It’s like walking away from an interaction and thinking “that person was pretty cool, we should meet up again.” And the best way to leave that impression is to go back to basics—to strip away showmanship and make a real connection with audiences.

Enter the humble sticker.

More than 90% of word-of-mouth branding takes place offline, meaning that marketing outside of a computer or phone screen can hugely benefit brands. So, if you’re looking for a powerful way to get your name known, sticker marketing is your ticket. Here’s why sticker marketing still impacts consumers and a few examples to pique your sticker senses.

Why Would a Brand Use Sticker Marketing?

For decades, stickers have helped build companies, establish brands, spread news, represent communities, and even get politicians elected. And for good reason.

People love stickers. We put them on our clothes, our tech, our vehicles, notebooks, and water bottles. We use them to tell others something about ourselves—what we enjoy and what our values are. Stickers are a fun and quick way to reflect our individual styles and the brands we like.

For businesses, stickers are inexpensive to make and distribute (especially compared to online marketing techniques), and can quickly gain momentum among the public. They can also be customized according to the campaign; for example, stickers can have a limited edition design to make them more sought-after or can have unique QR codes for in-store discounts.

Stickers have a timeless cool about them too: they’re eye-catching, versatile, and aren’t deceptive. Unlike some marketing tricks that aren’t completely transparent about their intentions, a sticker is a simple, condensed representation of your brand that people can freely choose to put on themselves or their stuff. Plus, whereas leaflets tend to be thrown away, stickers are a longer-lasting form of marketing.

Why Would Individuals Use Sticker Marketing?

The mighty sticker isn’t just reserved for companies’ marketing strategies; individuals can also use stickers as a way to reward, as an extension of their personality, or as an exciting addition to their belongings. It can also be an incredible calling card for freelancers, especially those involved in the design business. What better way to attract more clients than to slap down a sticker with a super sweet design to showcase your abilities?

Teachers can hand out stickers to celebrate students’ achievements, small business owners can create stickers with their contact information, and musicians can distribute stickers showcasing their album artwork.

Stickers are also affordable for individuals who may be working with a smaller budget than businesses. Not to mention, individuals who may have a more localized target in their immediate location, can place stickers in cafes, libraries, and other hotspots to more seamlessly integrate into people’s daily lives.

What a Sticker Marketing Campaign Might Look Like

The world of sticker marketing is vast. Younger audiences generally place their stickers on their water bottles, laptops, or car windows. If you’re aiming for this age group, make sure you have an eye-catching logo, slogan, and design that will make people want to proudly display the sticker.

Another route is to use stickers as a seal for any boxes or envelopes that your company sends. Doing so shows that you’re the “maker” of the product, and can be a nice aesthetic addition to your packaging. For smaller businesses that can’t splash out on engraving or direct printing onto shipping/packaging materials, stickers are great to make products stand out. Likewise, companies can include stickers as an add-on for purchases. For example, if someone buys a book, they get a free sticker with a bookworm on it for decoration.

Alternatively, you can include important information on stickers, like your address, email, phone number, promotion dates, and opening times. And when it comes to material, you can opt for an easily-peelable sticker, or vinyl or chrome stickers that can withstand harsh weather conditions.

Don’t think that an offline sticker marketing strategy can’t be connected to your online presence either. In our new, hybrid world most marketing strategies can straddle the line between in-person impressions and online sales. Stickers that have QR codes on them can link to a desired landing page or form fill page. And so long as that sticker remains stuck somewhere, it serves as both a physical and virtual gateway to your brand’s story.

Design Advice For Your Sticker Marketing Initiative

Stickers are a literal blank canvas for your creative instincts to flow (and stick). Custom shapes and die cut cards are striking designs that work best for brands looking to make a statement. Matte-feel stickers or decals are pleasing to touch and appeal to people’s senses beyond just the visual.

If your brand calls for something more classic, don’t be tempted to go overboard with the design. Stickers are small and too many effects or too much content will make it hard to produce and to read. Instead, concentrate on the basics and what you want to accomplish with the sticker. Some of the most impactful stickers are a clean metallic/foil material and utilize levels of opacity for a straightforward, chic look.

However you design your sticker, keep in mind that people aren’t going to use a sticker that doesn’t have some kind of impact on themselves. You, therefore, need to conduct market research before you design and ensure that you really understand the people you’re hoping to make the sticker splash with.

Sticker marketing has stuck around for so long precisely because of its ability to give brands a fixed spot in people’s lives and minds. With stickers, not only does your brand maximize its exposure, you can give audiences a small token of fun—which will do wonders for customer loyalty.

So, are you ready to start your sticker journey? Check out our custom sticker services to enhance your company’s marketing and business goals.

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Why Business Cards Are Still Important in the Digital Age

After lockdowns and social distancing, the past years have reminded us of the importance of in-person interactions. Typing messages and chatting on conference calls is a great way to stay in touch, but it can’t replace the emotion and impact of being face-to-face, and it certainly doesn’t leave an impression in the same way.

Take the humble business card. Did you know that 27 million are printed every single day? Despite being in the digital age, the business card remains a time-trusted tool for people to introduce themselves and their work—and most importantly, to be remembered.

Business cards are so effective because they serve as a way for recipients to take a bit of a conversation away with them. It’s like a memento that encompasses not only the content but the context—the setting, the body language, and of course, an idea of what the business is.

Below, our experts explain why business cards are still important, and why they’re set to keep their significance even as technology takes over.

The Value of Traditional Business Cards

In an online world, offline marketing adds a level of validation. It acts as proof that companies really are what they claim to be—and for that reason, offline marketing will always play a role in business. It’s why the business card has been around since the 15th century.

In fact, 72% of people judge a company or person based on their business card, partly because people expect that plenty of time and effort goes into a business card. But there’s also a sense of safety that business cards offer—they hold people’s direct contact information, which makes recipients feel like they’re getting an exclusive, personable service.

Sure, a “Contact Us” page on a website can show the same information, but it typically has a more sterile format and doesn’t have the same intimacy. It doesn’t make the person feel special or attended to. Not to mention, we may be in the digital age but that doesn’t mean that the internet is always accessible. There are inevitable moments when we can’t get online, and when the chance to connect with someone can be lost. Handing over a business card, however, requires no device or signal.

The Impact of Digital Services on Business Cards

The remote revolution has certainly forced brands to step up their creative game. With so many businesses competing for audiences’ attention, it’s getting harder to cut through the noise. But as some companies opt for expensive solutions to help them stand out, the mighty business card can be far more successful.

Ambre Zachmann, our Ecommerce Marketing Specialist, says “the push to online has made print material more enticing and valuable since it’s less common.” She goes on to note that curating an experience around a business card will get people’s attention much quicker than the usual digital ploys. “You could place your card in a larger mailer with instant coffee attached and a message saying ‘let’s catch up over coffee.’” Cool, right?

The crucial element of business cards in the digital age is that they have to be well designed and bring your brand to life. If you’re introducing yourself to someone face-to-face, seize that moment and use your business card to animate your company’s story and DNA. According to Melanie Handl, our Custom Solutions Team Lead, “if you have a dog-walking business, try a fire hydrant die-cut or a foil-stamped leash. If you’re an artist or photographer, a spot UV or embossed paintbrush is powerful.” The possibilities to communicate your personality and brand are endless.

How Has Hybrid Work Further Impacted Business Cards?

The business world has gone through a lot of big shifts lately. With hybrid work now the norm, in-person meetings and sales pitches aren’t taking place in the same way. But that doesn’t mean that more traditional tactics like business cards have lost their shine. The opposite in fact. Business cards are evolving with the times.

Hybrid work demands hybrid branding. Ambre explains that “we have to tie our digital efforts with physical experiences to help prospects and leads trust your brand and repeat your messaging.” For example, if you’ve just held a webinar, send leads your business card in the mail afterward to create a fun, unprompted moment of unboxing.

Business cards can also be included in a “thank you” package for people who have had initial touchpoints with your brand. Additionally, a great idea is to add QR codes to your business cards that link to interactive content, suggests National Account Executive Nathan Gardner. “Doing so will link your card to your digital strategy and show recipients that you’re modern with a classic twist.”

What Business Cards Do That Digital Intros Don’t?

With businesses increasingly operating 100% online, there’s been a lot of focus on digital introductions—sending emails, referring people, and selling yourself using a range of tools. But the reality is, we’re getting saturated with all these inputs and that means we’re becoming desensitized to introductions that could really benefit us. It’s a case of “oh, another cold message from someone I don’t know. Move to trash.”

The physicality of business cards gives people a visceral takeaway that is harder to ignore and forget. As Melanie says, “have you ever run your hand across some rough wood? What about a nicely polished piece of marble or granite? Maybe you have a favorite set of sheets or a favorite t-shirt that just feels good when you put it on.” These experiences sit with us because they generate a feeling. A business card is no different, “it’s a virtual handshake” Melanie adds.

Business cards are also a way to distinguish yourself from the digital space. Ecommerce Sales Manager Katie Younge believes that business cards are a more unique form of identity. “Everyone’s LinkedIn has the same layout but business cards can be customized, and are more cost-effective than creating a website and buying digital marketing tools.”

Think of how many people you look up online. How many of those names and positions do you remember? The likelihood is not many. Not only are business cards cheaper and more personalized, but they also spark a deeper connection between parties, and that value is worth far more than any volume of digital introductions.

Big things come in small packages. And even bigger opportunities come from business cards. Tap into your paper potential today and check out our impressive selection of business card printing features.

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10 Ways to Use Thank You Cards to Get More Business

People remember beginnings and endings—the brain guesses that the beginning of an interaction (hello and welcome) and the end (good day and farewell) are worth recalling. We’ve all heard about the importance of making a good first impression. But we often forget to create a clear and memorable ending to a customer interaction. And as it turns out, the end of a transaction can linger in your customers’ minds in the following days and months.

Ensure a positive, memorable end to a customer interaction. Show that you care, that the transaction mattered to you, and that you’d like the customer to come back and refer you to their friends.

Why Send Thank You Notes?

First and foremost, because we’re all humans, and kindness is free. Everyone appreciates being thanked, and your heartfelt gratitude encourages positive relationships and reliable service delivery from that person in the future. After all, wouldn’t you prefer to do business with someone who took the time to thank you?

Be genuine and sincere. There’s hardly a better way to express gratitude and sincerity than a handwritten thank you card. Pro tip: Keep thank you cards for employees to send out as well—make it part of your company culture to write and send them regularly.

When Should a Business Send Thank You Cards?

There are many opportunities to use thank you cards in business, and we’ve listed just a few. Whether it’s an employee appreciation card or a “thanks for the service,” consider embracing as many opportunities as possible.

Here are ten ways to use thank you cards to get more business:

Thank you for choosing me to work with you. After you’ve been selected to be the service provider, you can send a note to remind them you’re there—if they need anything or have any questions, you’re just a call, text, or visit away.
Thank you for your business. For ad-hoc projects or product purchases, send a note. It doesn’t have to be long; you can simply recognize that the customer stopped in and made a purchase or worked with you on a single project. Adding some personalized details about the purchase helps your customer feel extra special.
Thank you for the ongoing work. Let’s say you just signed a contract to provide services for a year. Send them a note to thank them for the great opportunity and remind them you’re looking forward to your partnership.
Thank you for the referral. When someone liked your products or services enough to recommend you to others, that’s definitely worthy of gratitude. What better way to build your business than through word of mouth?
Thank you for the meeting. This could also be lunch, catching up, or some other get-together. Networking is always good—even if it doesn’t lead to new business today, it could lead to new business in the future.
Thank you for your testimonial. If you have a customer or client who loves you enough to tell the world, you absolutely want to thank them for their endorsement of your products and services.
Thank you for the interview. If you are the person being interviewed, be sure to thank the interviewer for their time. You want to stay at the top of their mind, and an appreciation card will help do just that. If you’ve interviewed someone, consider thanking them for their time as well. Even if you don’t give them your business (or hire them), you’ll leave a good impression.
Thank you for your consideration. If you don’t get the business or land the customer, you should still thank them for taking the time to analyze your proposal. You can say something like “We regret being unable to prove to you the benefits we have to offer at this time. We’d like to keep in touch with the hope that we can partner in some way at a future time.
Thank you for your great work. An employee appreciation card says thank you to a team member who has done a great job. Whether or not it’s Employee Appreciation Day, cards can go a long way toward improving morale—who doesn’t like to feel appreciated?
Thank you for partnering with us. The people who provide services at your business (coffee delivery, for example) deserve recognition for their efforts, as well. Let them know you appreciate what they do for you.

Tips for the Greatest Impact

Hand-write at least some of the card. If you’re going to take the time to create cards, do it well. Hand-write as much of the inside as possible, but at least the recipient’s name and your signature. If the whole thing is pre-printed, it won’t look sincere. Remember that the whole point is to build relationships, and that needs a personal touch.

Save time with business thank you card scripts. Odds are, you’ll find yourself writing similarly worded thank you cards time and time again. Make note of the most common scripts you use and refer to them when it’s time to write out appreciation cards for employees and others.

You can do this by typing out your sentiments and saving them in a file or by photographing what you wrote in previous thank you cards. For employees, make these suggested scripts available to the whole team. It’ll save everyone time wondering what to write.

Use different envelopes than your regular business stationery. When you think about thank you notes, you might not immediately consider what kind of envelope to use. By choosing the right envelope, you can influence the recipient’s perception of the card before they even open it.

You don’t want to use the same kind of envelope you send invoices or statements in, because the recipient will immediately assume it’s a bill. That’s not the impact you want! Choosing a standout envelope gives the recipient a bit of anticipation before they even open it.

Consider including a little gift. Think about the last time you got a bulky envelope. You were probably excited for a moment, wondering what was inside. Your thank you cards for employees, clients, and customers will feel the same way. A bulky envelope with a small treat—a gift card or coupon, a bit of candy, a pen—will make it obvious that it contains something fun to open.

Just be sure whatever you enclose adds to your brand’s message and aligns with the quality of your products and services. Sure, it may cost a few dollars to send, but it’s a small amount of time and effort to deliver a big “wow” factor.

Send business thank you cards promptly and consistently. There are two final factors to consider: promptness and consistency. Send a thank you card as soon as you can after an event. That way, you’ll be perceived as being sincere; waiting too long will make the thanks look like an afterthought.

Establish a system that ensures you send cards consistently. If you aren’t consistent, your customers and partners may perceive you no longer value them, or that you’ve lowered your standards.

Don’t be salesy. Don’t taint your thank you note with overt promotion—this isn’t time for a sales pitch. A note of appreciation is best used as a passive sales tool; they’re good for customer relationship building, not for advertising. You can, however, mention an upcoming event you hope they’ll attend.

Giving sincere thanks is a simple way to show kindness and appreciation in your business. Crunch the numbers to find out how to make this marketing tactic viable for your business. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to make the people you work with a little happier with a nice note. And, since sending thank you cards can help with your customer retention rates and referral rates, you don’t have a lot to lose.

Need help with your note cards? Give us a call at 800-930-7978. Speak to a live print expert to get started on note card printing today!