What times of the year are likely to send greeting cards to your friends and family? No doubt Christmas and birthdays come joint top of the list – for the vast majority of people these are definitely the most popular, and perhaps the only, occasions for popping a card in the post. Get well soon, sympathy and good old fashioned Valentines cars are all still popular too, but these days we definitely don’t send as many greeting cards as we used to.

Busy lifestyles, unreliable postal services and the advent of the internet (a congratulatory e-mail often replaces a card these days) have all contributed to the decline of greeting cards, but despite this people still love to receive them. If you have something to celebrate, there’s nothing nicer than receiving a message from a close friend or relative that lets you know that they are thinking about you – and being thoughtful enough to remember a card is a great way of showing your loved ones that you care about them.

Make it Personal

And thanks to the availability of e-cards, you can now show the recipient that you’ve really put thought and effort into your message. Far from being a less personal form of greeting, the best e-cards are the perfect way to personalise your card: if you find a good online supplier you’ll be able to select the image, message and even the music that will await your recipient when they ‘open’ their card.

For example, some online greeting cards are so interactive that they come with puzzles, games and songs built in. Check out a website like cardcube.com to find examples of this sort of thing then have a great time selecting the design that you know the recipient will love when they open it.

And speaking of opening, another great advantage of online personalised greeting cards is that they can arrive in two stages: first, the recipient receives a text to let them know their card is waiting for them. This allows them to have a good guess at who the sender might be, and open the card at their leisure on the right day. Then, when they log into the inbox the card is waiting for them and they can discover who has been thinking about them. It’s guaranteed to leave a smile on their face all day.

Quick and Convenient

Of course, it goes without saying that sending personalised greeting cards by e-mail is a less expensive and more convenient way of getting your message across than sending a posted card – but this certainly doesn’t mean that you’re any less thoughtful. It is simply a way of ensuring that you send a personal, unique, quirky message and it reaches your recipient on the right day!

So don’t just wait for those big occasions where people will be expecting a card to drop onto their doorstep – pregnancies, driving tests, new jobs, new homes, dream holidays, engagements and graduations are all a great reason to send your congratulations with an e-card.