Blast From the Past: 5 Photo Card Tips

From a past Newsletter, here’s an article you may have missed the first time around! BTW, don’t forget that it takes 3-6 months for new cards to be indexed by search engines, so you should be designing and submitting holiday cards in July for any chance at sales in the same year. Otherwise, expect to see action next Christmas.

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Top Five Tips for Designing Photo Cards

Now I know some of you already have Photo Card templates available at places like Zazzle, and like me, you find this an exciting development. Others are completely new to the concept, or perhaps aren’t as confident as the seasoned pros, so I want to address them here in my Top Five Tips for Designing Photo Cards.

First, don’t panic. Whatever graphics editing program you use (Photoshop, PSP, Gimp, etc) you will find tutorials on-line for how to work with transparent layers and make .png files. Learn how to do that first, as this knowledge is paramount to successfully creating Photo Card templates.

Second, study your market. Many on-line greeting card retailers offer Photo Cards these days. Go have a look at their offerings. Do your homework. Can you identify any trends?

Third, do your best. Treat new Photo Card designs exactly the same as you would any other design: it MUST have commercial appeal, be well composed and have eye appeal. Shoppers are more discerning than ever, and there’s plenty of competition out there for their hard-earned dollars. In addition, new Marketability Standards have to be met. If you aren’t sure, feel free to submit a new design to the Critique Clinic held on this blog every Friday-Saturday-Sunday.

Fourth, find a niche. You know everybody’s going to be designing Photo Card templates for the super, ultra popular categories like Christmas. But there are many other opportunities for sales if you design Photo Card templates for less well represented categories. Study the categories list. Identify categories that have few or no cards, and make some to fit.

Fifth, don’t be afraid to try something new. Shoppers tend to be a little more fickle when it comes to Photo Cards versus traditional greeting cards. They like what’s hot and new, so a Photo Card template that’s on the cutting edge one year may decrease in sales the next. Break out of a design rut by trying new ways to express your creativity. You may find that by staying on top of the trends, and offering new templates in a timely manner, you’ll see more sales.

And don’t forget to have fun!