Personalise... Please!

“Details matter, it's worth waiting to get it right” ― Steve Jobs

Have you ever received a blank card? or one that spelt your name wrong? Every festive season the cards roll in; be it at home or at work. It’s so nice that people go to the effort to send them and so lovely to hear from people and for them to wish you well. I received a beautiful card with printed text from the sender, though it had no ‘dear…’ or ‘love from …’ so the lack of writing made it look blank and well, not personal.

Getting the details right or making the received feel like it was sent for them is what makes it special. Without this, your attempt to do something nice for someone can actually have the opposite effect.

I know, the intention is always good, so if you are going to go to the trouble, make it count.

The same advice applies to sending a card or gift for any other occasion and of course the growing connection requests on social platforms.

Back to the festive season and it’s time to put all the information gathered through informal conversations this year to good use. Mention people’s family, or holidays they said they were taking, life achievements they have had. Rather than sending 100 generic cards, hand write 10 with individual messages.

Many people reading this probably stopped writing cards years ago (I hope to inspire you to think about it differently). These days with online communication being so instant, it’s an easy decision to switch. The communication method you choose to use is up to you. All I ask is you think about the impact you want to have and choose the right one for the person receiving it. And of course, personalise please!

Finally remember that relationships are driven by individuals, so this is something you can’t outsource to marketing or admin. To have maximum effect you need to reach people in your network yourself.

Happy Festive Season:)

Julia