Design Crafters

“Tomorrow I will talk more about what a videography and photography business could say in their photo Christmas cards.”
I was going to talk about this yesterday and then the Lil’ Babies Feet idea came to mind - apologies to all readers. So, back to the subject we were talking about day before yesterday. Business cross promotion is key to the success of any profitable business.

I had mentioned the videography company that could do a cross promotion with dance studios, sending photo Christmas cards to all the dancers and their families. It would be a win win for everyone: the dance studio shows how much they care for their students; the video company helps build their business relationship with the dance studio and with all the dancers who buy the products they provide.

Here are things the video company could say in the photo Christmas card:

We appreciate your support…

Thanks for allowing us to help you preserve your memories…

Preserving your memories for a liftetime…

(Your company name) and (the dance studio name) wish you the best this holiday season…

(Your company name) wishes you a happy holiday season. Thanks for your business…

The list can go on and on. Do you as readers have suggestions? How do you feel you could effectively promote your business while at the same time providing a quality photo Christmas card? How do you feel it would help?

To me, a marketing strategy like this does one main thing - reminds your clients that you care. it’s small things like this that really separate you from any potential competitors. Until next time! Let me know your thoughts.

I recently ran across a company that does professional videography and photography for dance recitals that could really take advantage of sending photo Christmas cards. Yet another example of business “cross promotion”.

This memory preservation company goes to dance recitals and competitions doing professional work. They should work together with select dance studios to send a personalized card that includes “brought to you in part by (their business name)…” to all the dancers and their families.

Not only would this remind dancers about the videography company, but it would also help attract new potential clients for the filming of dancers and taking pictures at their events. Sending this thoughtful card would really help nourish the business relationship with all involved.

What a perfect Public Relations strategy - a way to show clients you really care. A photo Christmas card is usually on the refrigerator of a families home from early December all the way through the first part of the year. This is great ad space at only a small cost to the business.

Tomorrow I will talk more about what a videography and photography business could say in their photo Christmas card.

Photo Christmas Cards are often portraits- sometimes of a couple, sometimes of a family, and sometimes of an individual.

When we you think of a portrait, a formal shot taken in a photo studio comes to mind. Portrait photography offers many more alternatives, including many types of group, individuals, and couples shots.

Let’s just say you are a single person, and want to have a photo taken of yourself and say, your cat. Sounds perfect for a Photo Christmas card, doesn’t it?

Before you have your shot taken- especially by one of your friends- there are some issues to consider. Here’s some tips:

1. Use indirect window light to reveal your features.
2. Keep the background simple, to avoid distracting elements.
3. Face yourself slightly below the level you are holding your camera.
4. Use an appropriate facial expression.

The old “say cheese” ritual immediately before you take your shot is still applicable. Some photographers take this a bit further by carrying on an interesting conversation with the subject as they shoot.

If the background in your photo is important, set the aperture value to its highest setting. If you wish want to blur the background and focus entirely on your subject, set the aperture value to your camera’s lowest aperture (or F-stop) setting.

Oh, but what about the blink monster?

Blinking comes natural for most of us, but few people want to have their blinking eyes appear in a photograph. Since the act of blinking usually takes about 1/30th of a second, so setting the shutter speed slower, such as 1/15th of a second, will makes it far more likely that your subject’s blink will not show up in the photo.

Here’s how to make that happen:
1. Set the mode dial to S.
2. Press the jog dial down.
3 Turn the jog dial to 1/15 of a second.

Now, let’s go over some tips for your friend who is going to take your photo you will use for your Photo Christmas Card.

When taking close-up shots of people, there are a wide variety of settings to choose from. In a formal shot, you can use a posing stool to position yourself. In a less formal setting, you can situate yourself in surroundings that express something about his or her personality

Generally, posing stools are adjustable at heights ranging from 21 to 27 inches. Most cost less than $100, and come with levers that raise or lower the chair.

Plainly, a posing stool would not be practical for shooting a baby picture. Consider a posing table; prices start at around $100. Posing tables are also excellent as staging areas for photo sessions involving small objects.

Tomorrow, we’ll cover some other Photo Christmas Card techniques and tips.

Last week we discussed the fact that more and more people
are wanting to express their feeling and belief that this is the
"Christmas Season," not just a Holiday Season by the cards and verses
they are selecting this year. We here at Design Crafters have noticed another
shift in sentiments this year as well.

There are still a lot of business owners who are concerned about being
"politically correct" with their cards and "play it safe"
by selecting "generic Christmas cards to make sure that they don’t
"offend anyone" by sending  Christmas cards with a
"Christmas" message.

It’s interesting that gay rights activists and pro-life and pro-choice
activists, women’s and civil rights activists, etc., etc., etc. don’t seem to
mind standing up for their beliefs and are very vocal in speaking their message
loud and clear - not caring at all what others think or have the slightest
concern about offending someone - but when it comes to using the word Christmas,
we are afraid to speak out about it’s true meaning and why we celebrate it -
because we "might offend someone."

Something is wrong with this picture in my opinion. That is why I personally
have been encouraged this year to see that a lot of individuals, not only for
their own personal Christmas cards, but for their businesses, have created
their own Christmas verse with a spiritual, encouraging message to send out to
their colleagues and clients - throwing caution to the wind and sharing their
convictions and beliefs through their Christmas message.

After all, what is Christmas all about - why is it celebrated? With all the
commercialism that surrounds it, have we forgotten the true meaning of
Christmas? Sure, not everyone celebrates Christmas, but does that mean that we
who do should put a lid on it and not celebrate it because someone else might
not agree with us? Since when do we all agree about anything?! 

Well, I didn’t mean to get on my soapbox, but thanks for listening! I hope that you have already ordered your Christmas cards, because time is running out to get them in time for you to add any personal notes, address them and get them to their destination before folks take off for the holidays.

With all the talk this season about 
"Holiday" this and "Holiday " that, we at Design Crafters
have seen a bit of a rebellion against that campaign in that more and more of
our customers are looking for Christmas cards that say Merry Christmas - not
Holiday Greetings, etc. If they can’t find a Christmas card they like that has
Merry Christmas on the front, then they at least will select or create a verse
that says "Merry Christmas."

I even had one gentleman tell me that I had lost a sale because none of our
tropical Christmas cards said "Merry Christmas" on the front. I think
many today are balking at the whole idea of replacing "Christmas"
with the term "Holiday" at every opportunity.
It seems that fewer people care about being poetically correct any more. Of
course a lot of businesses are overly concerned about offending other cultures,
so they are still looking for the "generic Christmas cards." Some
businesses don’t care.  Overall, the main objection seems to be coming
from those selecting Christmas cards for personal use.

To see our selection of "Merry Christmas" cards, you can visit our
"Merry Christmas" category for a nice selection.

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are enjoying
a restful, relaxing time with your family. I am certainly not the philosophical
type, but Thanksgiving is a day I do like to take some time to reflect on my
life and measure how I’m doing. As always at this time, because of the nature
of my business, I am strung our and exhausted knowing that the next three weeks
are going to be the hardest ever with all the last minute Christmas card
orders. I am thankful though of course for the business. It’s one of those
“Mixed Blessing” types of things.

I want to thank all of you who have already ordered your
Christmas cards this year for being “on the ball” and getting your orders in early. I
hope that you have been pleased with the quality and service that we have provided.

I’m getting to that age that a lot of my friends’ parents
are leaving this world and we all know that is inevitable for all of us as some
point in time. As we get older, it’s eventually going to happen to all of us and
right now we don’t probably think that much about it. But what if we don’t make
it that long? It seems that the more people I know, the more I learn of those
who are struggling with various physical problems – the terminal type like
various forms of cancer and such. These are not old people, they are
contemporaries of mine. It makes me really think about how one day we can be
carefree and think we are fine, and the next day find out that our days are
numbered. How about those who are fine and then their life gets snuffed out in
a moment because of a drunken driver or some other freak accident?

My daughter loves country western music and she introduced
me to a song a couple of years ago entitled, “Live Like You’re Dying.” It’s
about a guy who found out that he only had a short time to live so he decided
to do all the things he’d always wanted to do. He says we all should live our
life like we would if we knew we were dying. There’s a lot of wisdom in that
song. My husband and I have decided that as we are advancing in years and are
finally “empty nesters” that we should take advantage of every opportunity that
comes along, and even create our own opportunities to do some fun things that
we would enjoy, instead of waiting until we retire, because who knows when
something could happen to either one of us and we wouldn’t be able to do all
these things. Consequently, we have had some of our richest life experiences
the last couple of years.

Even more important than having a great time and living life
to it’s fullest, I think is making sure that our relationships, especially with
those we love are the best they can be. Whether it’s we or they who may leave
this world earlier than expected, are we going to feel like we have been the
best friend, mother, father, sister, brother, husband, wife, etc. that we could
be? Are we treating those we care about as if it could be the last time we see
them? Will there be no regrets if it is? Ho about your relationship with your
Creator? As my pastor would say, “Not a sermon, just a thought.”

I have resolved to make sure that there is no unresolved
conflict in my life with those I care about and would challenge you to do the
same as you have probably more time than usual with your family over the next
month.

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. I do hope you
have a blessed holiday season with your family. I thank you again so much for
your patronage, especially those of you who have faithfully ordered from us
year after year.

Have a great Turkey Day!

While we are on the subject of classy Christmas cards that
stand out, may I recommend that you take a look at our "Season’s
Greetings" and "Holiday Greetings" Christmas card categories? Some
have a Christmassy theme in that they may have a Christmas tree, or a wreath or
holly, but a lot are generic if that is a consideration that is important to
you. I only mention that because we get so many calls from customers asking for
generic Christmas cards for business.

Another category you might consider is the Contemporary Christmas card
category. These contemporary Christmas cards are very flashy with a lot of foil
and embossing, making them quite a conversation piece. Besides some more
traditional designs there are many stylistic impressions of bells, Christmas
trees, poinsettias, holly and snowflakes. The selection is vast as well as the
variety making decisions tough. Good luck as you browse these gorgeous
Christmas cards.

Are you looking for some classy Christmas cards, some unique holiday
cards that will leave a lasting impression? Check out our "exquisite
greetings" Christmas card category for some very unique Christmas
cards. Many of these unique designs will cause lengthy conversations - the good type. You will enjoy the many glowing compliments you will receive from sending out such beautiful, unique Christmas cards.

Unfortunately the images of these Christmas cards do not do them
justice online. You really have to see these in person to truly
appreciate them. Yes, they generally are more expensive than our other
categories, but once you see these exquisite Christmas cards up close
and personal, you will understand why. Many are layered, many have
ribbons and bows. They just make a statement of elegance that is
something you would want to be associated with. Be sure to check out
these classy, upscale Christmas cards now.

Does your business serve the international community? Are
you sending Christmas cards to businesses in other countries or perhaps
different cultures? If so, you cannot go wrong with our International Christmas
cards. These international holiday cards are global in their appeal in that
many have the globe as part of the design. Many feature international flags
from many different nations.

Most of our international holiday cards have a festive appearance and yet are
generic in nature. It would be very difficult to offend anyone from any culture
by sending any of our international Christmas cards if that is a concern.

Another category that can serve the purpose of sending Christmas cards to
different cultures is the "Peace" Christmas cards category. Again,
this peace category has an international appeal. Most of these cards speak of
Peace and feature the Peace Dove. Many are also very global. You don’t have to
be international to enjoy these Christmas cards, but they are perfect if you
are.

If you have been tasked to select Christmas cards for your
business and you will be sending to clients who may be of different faiths or
no faith at all and feel the need to keep your holiday cards generic, there are
a number of categories that would have many cards suitable for you to send.

If you are located in a snowy winter climate, I always recommend cards from our
"Snow scenes" Christmas card category, "Snowman," or
"Snowflakes." Another very generic Christmas card category is
"Stars." If you are from a tropical area, we have a tropical
Christmas cards category, some of which would be suitable for a generic look.

Some of the" Season’s Greetings" and "Holiday Greetings"
would also work in that they are very elegant but some are generic enough in
their design that they would be appropriate for any culture who at least
celebrates the "Holidays" in some fashion.