Chances are, you have a handwritten card or note that a family member or friend mailed that you have saved. When you see it, doesn’t it serve as a quiet reminder of that person? Perhaps they are no longer with us, and that note is your link to them. Perhaps it marks a special occasion, milestone, or event, or maybe it was sent out of the blue. Remember how it felt to see it in your mailbox… opening it and reading their words in their own handwriting?
Today, in a day of digital messages, texts, emails, and such, it is very rare to get an actual handwritten card, letter, or note – which is the very reason you should do it! It’s rare and will make an impact on whoever gets it.
Coach Mack Brown has been one of the top college football coaches in the country. He’s also considered one of the best recruiters and gets along famously with everyone around him. One of his trademarks is the fact that he takes time to send handwritten cards and notes. Talk about impact! It may only be a few sentences, but the fact that a guy that busy took the time to do it has a huge impact. He is retired from coaching, but I bet there are cards and notes from him on desks and framed all over the country.
A handwritten card from you will separate you from your competition in business, too. The late Joe Girard was considered the world’s greatest salesman. I recall in his book and in a speech I saw online, he talked about the art of sending cards to potential clients. He also sent birthday cards. His idea was that when the potential client did want a car, his name would be at the top of the list. You can’t argue with his success. At one time, he set a Guinness World Record for being the “world’s greatest salesman”.
I send out hundreds of cards, letters, and notes per year. If someone sends me a gift, they will get a handwritten “Thank you” note. Typically, I answer cards, letters, and notes others send me that same day. Old habits die hard, they say. In business, I will often handwrite a quick note when I meet someone at a business function. I’ll follow up and send them my card inside a custom notecard. I had the art for the note cards done by a cowboy artist, and I’ll have them printed locally. There are great card shops in Boerne that have some cool cards, too.
Billy’s Western Wear carries “Leanin’ Tree” greeting cards- humorous cards with a western theme. You can also find them at Texas Gourmet Pantry. The Corner Cartel is also a place that sometimes has cool vintage cards, photos from the early 1990s of Main Street Boerne with horses tied in front of the stores. Bechants and Bechants Men’s also have great cards. It doesn’t matter where you get your cards- it’s the thought that counts.
Social media is important in business, as are emails and texts. To me, a lot of that is impersonal. To separate yourself from the herd, I would advise taking the time to send a handwritten card. I have a cigar box on my desk where I keep cards that folks send me. As I mentioned earlier, Coach Mack Brown, like me, is old school and sends lots of notecards and cards. Our sons both have cards from Mack framed in their rooms. Opening a card makes you feel good and means that the sender took the time to send it. If you are in business, it is a way you can impact others and leave a good impression.
Your family, friends, and loved ones will enjoy getting a handwritten card from you. I have saved every card, note, and letter my family has ever sent me. After my grandmother passed, I was glad to have cards from her. It comforts me to see her words on paper in her handwriting. I save cards from my parents, family, and close friends.
In closing, when you attend a business event and meet a new person, get their card. That night, write a quick card and enclose your business card. The same goes for potential clients. Everyone is on social media, and emails can be deleted with the click of a button. Chances are a card will have far more impact. I have written a handwritten card and hidden it in my wife’s suitcase when she travels for our entire marriage. Now that our son is at Texas A&M for his freshman year of college, I try to send him a card every week or every other week. And to make sure he opens and reads them, I randomly enclose a gift card too. They all get read that way!
