All of us learned to use these, long before we learned to type! If you want to make your thank you notes really stand out: hand-written notes trump emails or typed letters.
I was reading one of my favorite books, The Book of Awesome. Written by Neil Pasricha, it's a series of simple awesome events, products and stuff we too often don't experience anymore. Many of the things are simply events we've all forgotten about, like one of my favorites, "Getting something with actual handwriting on it in the mail."
If you've followed anything I've posted for even the last few months you know where I'm going with this. We live in an Internet world. We're surrounded by links, emails, voice mails and we live a life of default prompts. We rarely personalize anything. I'm not talking about that web page you designed, I'm talking about communication and making things you send out more personal!
Neil wrote:
"Checking the mail can be a bit depressing. Sometimes there isn't anything in there. Nope, nothing at all. Just one big empty mailbox telling the world that everyone forgot about you today. Then again, the alternative is typically a fistful of bills and flyers...just kind of boring, kind of bland, kind of blah.
But that's what makes it so great when something with actual handwriting on it turns up...those little endangered parcels have something very special about them..."
Now, let's apply that to a simple thank you note the next time somebody does something nice for you. It's such an easy thing to do. A hand-written note to that over-worked rep you met in a booth at a convention who took the time to help you understand a new feature or a new product will go a long way!
But there's a second important aspect to thanking people and sending hand-written notes...you need to send them on your own stationery! You need to use your own images and take the time during the next couple of months of relatively slow time to design your own note cards.
Here's a great example from good buddy Michael Corsentino. Michael's also a member of the SCU faculty and will be teaching with us on March 8-9 in Las Vegas. A while back I helped Michael with a project and a few days later I received a hand-written note on his own stationery.
If you've followed anything I've posted for even the last few months you know where I'm going with this. We live in an Internet world. We're surrounded by links, emails, voice mails and we live a life of default prompts. We rarely personalize anything. I'm not talking about that web page you designed, I'm talking about communication and making things you send out more personal!
Neil wrote:
"Checking the mail can be a bit depressing. Sometimes there isn't anything in there. Nope, nothing at all. Just one big empty mailbox telling the world that everyone forgot about you today. Then again, the alternative is typically a fistful of bills and flyers...just kind of boring, kind of bland, kind of blah.
But that's what makes it so great when something with actual handwriting on it turns up...those little endangered parcels have something very special about them..."
Now, let's apply that to a simple thank you note the next time somebody does something nice for you. It's such an easy thing to do. A hand-written note to that over-worked rep you met in a booth at a convention who took the time to help you understand a new feature or a new product will go a long way!
But there's a second important aspect to thanking people and sending hand-written notes...you need to send them on your own stationery! You need to use your own images and take the time during the next couple of months of relatively slow time to design your own note cards.
Here's a great example from good buddy Michael Corsentino. Michael's also a member of the SCU faculty and will be teaching with us on March 8-9 in Las Vegas. A while back I helped Michael with a project and a few days later I received a hand-written note on his own stationery.
For me personally, I loved the fact that it was a hand-written note and completely unnecessary for him to send. However, the back of the card was just as important as the front!
Think about the impact this would have had if I was the president of a lab, for example, and somebody who Michael had just met at a recent convention or workshop. First would be the impact of the image, followed by the kindness of a hand-written note and closing with Michael's contact information and a reminder that he's a professional photographer.
Designing your own stationery is one of the easiest ways to help build brand awareness. No professional photographer should ever be using store bought stationery or holiday cards. Use your own images and then take the time to help save those "endangered" parcels that Neil Pasricha talked about.
It's February and down time for most photographers - time to go create something AWESOME!
Photo Credit: © Boroda | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos
Think about the impact this would have had if I was the president of a lab, for example, and somebody who Michael had just met at a recent convention or workshop. First would be the impact of the image, followed by the kindness of a hand-written note and closing with Michael's contact information and a reminder that he's a professional photographer.
Designing your own stationery is one of the easiest ways to help build brand awareness. No professional photographer should ever be using store bought stationery or holiday cards. Use your own images and then take the time to help save those "endangered" parcels that Neil Pasricha talked about.
It's February and down time for most photographers - time to go create something AWESOME!
Photo Credit: © Boroda | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos
I
RSS Feed
