greeting cards

12 Tips on How to Write Greeting Cards

03/04/2017 By Raspberries Greeting Cards

At Least You Don't Have Detachable Parts Happy Birthday — Inside Copy: At Least You Don’t Have Detachable Parts
Happy Birthday

I have been writing greeting cards for 27 years. As silly as it sounds, it is my life’s work. I have compiled a list of twelve suggestions that you may find useful to help you write greeting cards. The list is helpful if you are hoping to have your card ideas published by a greeting card company or if you plan to produce your own greeting card line:

Don’t be cliche’. Each card that you write must be tangibly different in some regard or your potential customer will read it and put it back on the display.
Make them relatable. A card has a much higher chance of being successful if it strikes a chord with the potential buyer or if the buyer believes that it will be a subject that is enjoyed by the recipient of the card.
Think of who might be giving it to whom. Think about demographics here. Will the card idea be potentially popular across many demographic groups?
Be funny. Humor sells the best. Sassy cards sell the best of all. It is a good idea to make sure that the greeting card is clever. A risque concept falls flat when the concept and copy are not sufficiently creative.
Have a “me to you” message. In other words, make sure that each card contains a well worded greeting.
Be brief. You should almost always opt for less copy if the message does not suffer by doing so.
Use language that is casual. It is best to use vocabulary that feels like someone would say in a conversation. The copy must feel natural.
The greeting card copy must flow comfortably. Resist the temptation to use words that are awkward to pronounce or words that do not sound good together.
Coordinate the front and the inside of the card. Provide an element of surprise on the inside if possible.
Keep it positive. It’s okay to tease, but a positive message does best in the marketplace.
The message is what matters. Is this a greeting that the potential buyer will feel comfortable giving to someone else?
Is your greeting concept limiting in any way? Would a slight change in concept or copy make your card appeal to a broader range of customers?

I hope this list is helpful.

Jim Byrne

Raspberries Greeting Cards

Our Newest Greeting Card!

08/23/2015 By Raspberries Greeting Cards

Age related greeting cards always do well in the market place. Cards involving dogs are very popular as well. Pets make great characters in cards, because you can portray them as unisex. The unisex characteristic helps make the greeting card more likely to be purchased for either sex. This particular design, makes the reader work a little to figure out what has occurred in the graphic. Most customers appreciate the challenge. We will see how it does!

Inside Copy: It has its pitfalls

Happy Birthday

Greeting Cards For Business

08/11/2015 By Raspberries Greeting Cards

In business, it is still all about relationships. Greeting cards are a great way to maintain those relationships that are key in your business life. We spend a significant portion of our waking hours at work. Greeting cards are also a great way to foster a happy work environment within the workplace.

The following greeting card was used by several businesses during the last recession to spread a little levity during a challenging time.

Inside Copy: This too Shall Pass

Does It Pay to Get Up Early?

07/14/2015 By Raspberries Greeting Cards

worm in business attire - funny line drawing from Raspberries cartoon book

Does it really pay to get up early? When all perspectives are considered, it seems like a wash to us. Go ahead and sleep in tomorrow… 😉

We never quite figured out how to make this one into a greeting card. Feel free to offer suggestions.

How To Write A Funny Birthday Card

07/07/2015 By Raspberries Greeting Cards

When writing a funny birthday card you need to contend with a paradox. The card must be unique enough to get the consumer’s attention and yet relate to as many consumers as possible. This can be a very tall order. We usually start by writing and illustrating a humorous cartoon like the one shown. By beginning this way we have generally solved the uniqueness problem, but are now faced with trying to make it into a birthday card that resonates with a wide audience.

The inside copy must have a broad appeal so that the card sells adequately. At the same time, the copy should not be cliche. The customer is likely to search for a birthday card that relates to the intended recipient in it’s content and level of humor. The level of humor and sentiment of the card will generally reflect the relationship the card buyer has with the recipient.

We published this greeting card some time ago. We colored the cartoon and added the inside copy, “You’re #1 Happy Birthday”. Unfortunately, this card did not make it into our greeting card line. I suspect that the inside copy was just a little too harsh and did not garner a broad enough appeal.

Don’t be cliche’. Each card that you write must be tangibly different in some regard or your potential customer will read it and put it back on the display.

Make them relatable. A card has a much higher chance of being successful if it strikes a chord with the potential buyer or if the buyer believes that it will be a subject that is enjoyed by the recipient of the card.

Think of who might be giving it to whom. Think about demographics here. Will the card idea be potentially popular across many demographic groups?

Be funny. Humor sells the best. Sassy cards sell the best of all. It is a good idea to make sure that the greeting card is clever. A risque concept falls flat when the concept and copy are not sufficiently creative.

Have a “me to you” message. In other words, make sure that each card contains a well worded greeting.

Be brief. You should almost always opt for less copy if the message does not suffer by doing so.

Use language that is casual. It is best to use vocabulary that feels like someone would say in a conversation. The copy must feel natural.

The greeting card copy must flow comfortably. Resist the temptation to use words that are awkward to pronounce or words that do not sound good together.

Coordinate the front and the inside of the card. Provide an element of surprise on the inside if possible.

Keep it positive. It’s okay to tease, but a positive message does best in the marketplace.

The message is what matters. Is this a greeting that the potential buyer will feel comfortable giving to someone else?

Is your greeting concept limiting in any way? Would a slight change in concept or copy make your card appeal to a broader range of customers?