The Etiquette of Sending a Business Holiday Greeting Card

Sending a holiday greeting card to your clients is a good way to foster current business relationships and build upon new ones. Following are some tips to consider:

• Keep your message generic. Opt for “Happy Holidays” card rather than “Merry Christmas” unless you are absolutely positive that the recipient celebrates a particular holiday or is of a specific religious affiliation.
• Keep it tasteful, sincere and professional. A humorous holiday card may be misunderstood or quite possibly insult the recipient.
• Spend a little extra for a high quality holiday greeting. This gesture lets your clients know they are worth the extra expense. Helpful tip: Buy cards after the holidays for the following year.
• Write a personal message. It’s too impersonal to send a card without including a handwritten sentiment.
• Do not enclose a business card. There is an ongoing debate on this topic but I am in the camp that says to hand write your name, personal message and the name of your company. Including a card is not inappropriate but my preference for the holiday season is “handwritten”.
• Do not use computer generated mailing labels. Hand write the address, using the correct honorific. Mail the greeting card to the client’s office rather than to a home address.
• Send out your holiday greeting cards the day after Thanksgiving. This will allow you to get a jump on the holiday rush and concentrate on other holiday rituals. Earlier is always better than later.

I buy my yearly business and personal holiday cards at Invitations, Etc. Pam Haney is the owner and she has everything my holiday heart desires – not to mention great gift ideas for the rest of the year.  Take a look at: www.inviteetc.com

Wishing you a happy holiday,

Tagged as: Diane Gottsman, Greeting Card Etiquette, holiday etiquette, Holiday Protocol