The Power of a Hand-written Note

by Skip Cohen

One of the easiest ways to separate yourself from the competition is also one of the most forgotten, a handwritten note. Seriously, most of us can barely write a check without making a mistake, simply because we're so used to typing and texting everything we write.

After SCU's Summer Session, Sheila and I both have received a lot of nice thank you notes. Each one has stood out in a different way and brought us even closer to people we've known for some time. There are new friends and old ones, but receiving a handwritten note is such a nice touch to building a stronger network.

The images below are from a custom note card created by our good friend Kaylene Fister. Pay attention to the components that make it so effective.

1) Kaylene was an attendee at Summer Session in Chicago just a few weeks ago. So, the shot she used was from one of the excursions a group of photographers took into Chicago. She chose an image that has relevance, because it's taken at a time when we were all together.

2) The back of the card, shown below the image, has all her personal information. As a friend, I already have that information, but if I was a vendor or potential client she was hoping to develop into a more active prospect, all her website, social media links and email address are all there.

3) You can't tell from the images here, but she used a heavy stock paper, giving a stationery feature. Plus, it's an odd size, making it stand out even more.

4) Last on the list, was what she wrote. It was hand-written and meant so much to both Sheila and me. We were already big Kaylene fans, but the fact that she took the time to write something personal just adds to the strength of the relationship.

So, the next time somebody does something nice for you or maybe it's just a vendor who takes a little extra time to help you at a convention, remember the power of a hand-written note. There's little that can top this age old method of communicating!