iampowered: E-Cards Gaining Popularity

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When it comes to Hallmark holidays, I usually just opt out. I don’t have the time or patience to go to a store, pick out a card, wait in line to pay. And if I make the effort, I usually get busy and forget to write something nice in it, sign it, address it, stamp it and mail it. Those are way too many steps for my busy lifestyle.

So you’d think I would have been an early adopter of e-cards. Sure, I tried them but I found most were very cheesy with canned messages and not many options for customization.

So I figured I’d just punt. If you can’t do something right, don’t do it at all. However, an article in Monday’s NY Times (registration required) by Bob Tedeschi got my attention – and may get me to actually shift my behavior and revisit this whole e-card thing.

The e-card market is growing. American Greetings has 2.5 million subscribers who pay $14 annually to send an unlimited number of cards. Of the 8,000 cards on their site (a heck of a lot more than Long’s carries), about 80% are animated – truly leveraging the latest technology. Plus, when I look at my “address book,” is has more in the way of email addresses than actual street addresses. Sending an e-card is simpler, more convenient, more cost effective, and more likely to garner an immediate response.

The article talks about the resurgence of e-cards and mentions a new “up and comer” called JacquieLawson.com that had 22.7 million visitors in December (huge for a 5-person shop).

Looks like now is a good time to revisit e-cards. Do you suppose there’s one for Ground Hog day?