Email Newsletter Sign upHoliday eCards - Creating, Sharing and Tracking
By Sarah Miller 12/3/15
Update 4/9/2020: CorpNote 3.0: more tools, more power, more possibilities...
Even if you are familiar with sending holiday eCards, our step-by-step guide will help make the process less labor intensive and hopefully even better received by your eCard recipients.
Step 1. Creating your Holiday eCard
When selecting a holiday card design, you can choose one of CorpNote's pre-made holiday eCard designs or upload an image of your own.
Either way, you have the ability to customize the text that appears below your eCard image, and customize what is displayed in the signature at the bottom.
The eCard signature is one of the most overlooked and important features of the CorpNote system. Your email signature displays at the bottom of every holiday eCard, and can contain your name, title, company logo, and business contact information including address, website and social media links.
We recommend that when you initially set up your CorpNote account, you add all of this information. On each individual eCard, you can then easily select what you want to display (or not display). So for business, you might want to include all of the fields, but for a holiday eCard to your nephew, you might want to omit the signature entirely.
eCard Templates are a huge time saver and can be set not just for holiday eCards but thank you cards for holiday gifts received. eCard templates are perfect for when you need a send-ready eCard, complete with image, message and email signature. By using eCard templates, you can literally send an eCard in less than a minute.
To save an eCard template, create an eCard and send it to yourself. Once you have determined that it looks the way you want it to, you can then save it as an eCard template. Not only do templates make sending your eCards faster but it is good for two additional reasons:
- It ensures that you have proofread and like the eCard. (Once it goes out, you can't take it back)
- It can give you a base from which to work from when you are creating new eCards. For example: when use the template, you have the ability to modify the text, email signature options and even the eCard design.
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Step 2. Sending and Sharing your eCard
When is the best time to send your holiday eCards? Statistically, Tuesday is the most popular day for sending emails because it has the highest open and click through rates. But, when it's holiday time, all bets are off. You may want to avoid sending during peak times like Black Friday and Cyber Monday because your email has a chance of getting lost in someone's overwhelmed inbox.
But there are other equally important factors to consider if you are thinking of open rates. First, it is imperative to verify that your email list is up to date and you have removed any bounce backs or unsubscribe requests from your last mailing. Second, create a strong subject line to ensure that your eCard recipients will be prompted to open your email. Good subject lines and a high quality permission-based email list will always give you the highest eCard view rate.
Sharing eCards on your website and social media. You can use CorpNote's 'Direct Link' feature for posting your holiday eCard on your website. Send the eCard to yourself, and then go to Email > Sent eCards. Each eCard you send has a button for 'Direct Link,' which provides the website link for that specific eCard. You can use this same technique for sharing your eCards in social media or you can click the 'Share eCard' button (that is below the direct link button) and choose to share your holiday eCard in Facebook, LinkedIn or Google+.
Send an eCard in less then 60 seconds. There are lots of face-to-face networking opportunities during the holidays, so be prepared to send a quick follow up eCard at any time and from anywhere with CorpNote's QuickSend. If you send an eCard to someone you've just met, you can even automatically import their name and email address into your CorpNote address book when you get back to the office.
Step 3. eCard View Tracking
With traditional printed holiday cards, you don't always know when your card has been received, and a printed card doesn't encourage the recipient to respond. This is an area where holiday eCards really shine.
When some receives your CorpNote eCard, they can quickly and easily respond by clicking 'reply' to your email.
To track eCard pickup, go to Email > Sent eCards from the navigation. From this screen, you will see detailed real-time pickup statistics and you can also send a follow up eCard to people who viewed and did not view the eCard.
Thanks for reading our step-by-step guide. If you have any questions about sending CorpNote holiday eCards, please call us M-F 9am to 5pm at 609-406-1665.
Read the next blog in this series: How to Create Holiday eCards with your Photos / Images
