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March 2, 2006
E-cards vs Paper Greeting Cards
By DEANNA DAHLSAD
Many people cite convenience as a reason for sending e-cards. Not only
are they easy to send, with a few quick clicks, a few more keystrokes,
and one final click to send, but they may be a saving grace for those last
minute folks. And of course, it can be much easier to search for and
locate that perfect card at home rather than at the store with impatient
children, or husband, in tow. But are e-cards acceptable?
According to Emily Post's site, yes! When asked if it is
acceptable to send holiday e-greetings, the reply was "Yes -- if your
intended recipients are frequently online and you're fairly certain that
they would welcome this type of greeting."
And this of course, means that you should know your card recipient
well. Miss Manners believes that letters are better than greeting
cards, and so likely believes that greeting cards are better than
e-cards -- so if you have a proper and formal person in your life,
e-cards are likely not the best option.
While it may seem obvious not to send an e-card to Great Aunt Edna
either because she's not online or she is the more formal type, there
are other times that e-cards are not appropriate.
For example, some folks are vary wary of 'opening' e-cards. Even if
they are safe, your recipient may not believe so, and
your greeting will not be read. 'Not read' is as good as 'not sent'.
Others may only have internet access at work, and sending personal
e-mails to people's work addresses may be a problem as many companies
have policies against receiving and sending personal e-mail at work. If
your greeting isn't outright blocked, the recipient may get in trouble
-- which is likely not the way you want to be remembered for sending
birthday wishes.
And of course, there are some situations with some people in which e-cards
may be in bad taste. Some of these include condolences for the loss of a
loved one through death or even divorce. And, in some cases, e-cards
sent for romantic purposes may well end in, well, a reason for another
to send you a condolence card. Know your recipient!
So e-cards have not replaced paper greeting cards -- they have not even
decreased the use of paper cards.
In a recent article, the Washington Post notes that the rise of e-cards hasn't
diminished the popularity of old-fashioned paper cards. In that piece,
Valerie Cooper, executive vice president of the Greeting Card
Association, is quoted as saying "I think because people are e-mailing
so much, they're connected to a lot more people than they were 10 years
ago."
So it seems that building your friends and contacts in a digital world
increases your real world connections.
Posted by photocartoonist at March 2, 2006 11:04 PM