Greeting Cards 101
Have you always wanted to be a greeting card illustrator? Or, maybe you just need a refresher course on the industry? Whether you are a freelancer looking to break into this business or simply want to create your own cards to sell or give to friends and family, we have 15 valuable tips to offer you.
Are you ready to learn a thing or two about greeting cards?
Overview
Greeting cards may seem like a simple product to create but tons of development goes into every single card. After all, a greeting card has a big job to do! They help us stay connected, share our feelings, and acknowledge life’s moments. When you send a card you are letting someone know you’ve thought about them and you are taking the time to let them know.
Together, we have designed literally thousands of greeting cards—Salli mostly! She has worked in the social expression industry much of her career—from her ten years at American Greetings to her ongoing roster of multiple freelance greeting card clients. She is even a four-time Louie Award winner—the Oscars of greeting cards...who knew, right?!
Recently, we spoke with the creative team behind the stellar stationery company Design House Greetings. Here we will summarize their advice—along with our own—about designing greeting cards and breaking into the business.
15 tips about greeting card design
1) Be Yourself
When designing a greeting card—first and foremost—it is important to create work that reflects your style rather than trying to emulate another illustrator's style. The more your own personality shines through, the more authentic the illustration will feel.
2) Do Your Research
Find companies that fit with your style. Some companies use more traditional artwork while others cater to a younger market. Look around and see which ones offer cards that are most in line with your art. Many companies have a submissions tab on their website—follow their instructions carefully!
3) Giving and Receiving
When you create an illustration for a greeting card think about who might be buying it and who might they be sending it too. What is the occasion? Some of the top selling occasions are: Birthday, Congrats, Winter Holiday, Valentine’s Day, Friendship, Sympathy, and Care-and-Concern. Within those occasions think about the people who would send and receive a card: mom to daughter, friend to friend, kid to grandparent.
4) Be Wildly Creative
Look for unique solutions to common subject matter. There are plenty of (too many!) illustrations of birthday cakes out there. How can you make one that is different? The same goes for Christmas trees and graduation hats! Go beyond the obvious solution.
5) Tell a Story
Illustrations are visual stories, mini-narratives. For example, rather than illustrating a cute puppy next to a birthday package think of how the two can interact. Maybe the puppy is wrapping the gift or delivering it on a bicycle. Aww!!
6) Animals vs. People
Using animals in place of people is not only super cute but it also makes the card sendable to a larger audience and span a wider age range.
7) Trends
Stay on top of current design trends. Everything from popular subject matter (remember the unicorn craze?) to trendy color palettes (day-glo!). You don’t always need to follow the trends but it’s good to be aware.
8) Messages
This is also known as “editorial, text, caption, or copy.” While you don’t need to create the editorial and caption for your illustration it’s good to think of the whole package and have an idea of what the card might say. Many companies provide the editorial component ahead of time. Do whatever works for you. Not everyone feels comfortable adding the actual lettering component—it’s OK to simply leave space on your illustration for the caption and copy.
9) Size and Format
Every company has their own standard sizes but 5 x 7 inches is a general guide to follow. Most cards are vertical, not horizontal. It’s common to feature the lettering/caption in the top third of the card, because many display racks obscure the lower section of a greeting card.
10) Payment and Contracts
Be aware of the various contracts and forms of payment when selling your work. Some companies pay a flat-fee up-front, others pay only royalties, some pay a combination of both. Since greeting card companies work with a large number of freelancers, they often have a set price and don't negotiate much.
11) Work Style
Every company works with freelance illustrators in a different way. Some provide a creative brief while others don’t. Many companies create complex cards that require knowledge of special finishings and tricky folds, but many simply need artwork for page one only. Illustrators who have a track record with a company can sometimes send only a sketch, but newbies should probably send a fully finished piece.
12) Wah!
Don’t worry if your illustration submissions are not accepted! There are many reasons that have nothing to do with the art itself. Every company needs to balance their offering. Perhaps you sent in a mermaid birthday design but there is already a mermaid birthday in the line. Maybe you sent in watercolor florals but their line already has too many watercolor florals. Don't take it personally. There are lots of other companies where you can send your work.
13) Glossary of Terms!
Here is a glossary of industry-specific terminology—the proper vocabulary to use when talking shop!
Social Expression: The social expression industry is associated with greeting cards, notes and stationery, gift wrap, and other “socially expressive products.”
Sender/Receiver: The sender is the person/s buying the card and the receiver is the person who will be receiving the card. This can some times be a group of people giving a card to one person or vice versa.
Occasion: There are two categories: Holiday and Everyday. Holiday occasions are events that fall on about the same day each year (Valentine’s Day, Halloween, etc.). Everyday occasions occur on different days for different people (birthdays, weddings, etc.). Within both categories there are endless sending situations: Congratulations, Sympathy, New Baby, Thanksgiving, Passover, etc.
Folds: There are many kinds of folds but the most common is a Single Fold, literally a piece of paper folded in half. Other folds: 3-panel, top fold, pop-up, french fold.
Pages: Page 1 refers to the front of the card and is most often where the main illustration will be used. Page 4 is the back of the card where the UPC might be and other info like artist credit, company logo. Depending on the type of fold used will determine the other page numbers. In a typical single-fold card, page 2 is blank and page 3 contains a message.
Finishings: Some companies add extra processes to their cards to increase their value. There are cards that light up, pop up, play music, have moving attachments, and more! The basic finishings are:
Embossing: A process that raises an area of the art and gives it a tactile feel.
Die cut: This refers to areas of the card that are cut away. Contour die cut is the outside area, interior die cut refers to a cut made inside, like a window that reveals art on the inside.
Foil: A shiny metallic finish
Glitter: A sparkly dust applied with adhesive, it can be a color or more like crystals.
Hand Attachments: These are add-ons that need to be hand-applied, like bows and gemstones
Verse Inserts: This is a thin sheet of folded paper that is inserted in the card and contains text.
Perceived Value: This is the overall value that the consumer might perceive when purchasing a card. Illustrative artwork can have lots of perceived value. Additional finishings increases the perceived value. Extra editorial can increase the value.
Editorial: This is the copy used on the card also known as the verse text. The caption refers to the main sentiment on page 1. “Happy Birthday Son” would be the caption. “Wishing you the best day ever” would be the text or verse copy.
Age Market: Larger card companies group cards by age categories while other companies try to design cards that are “suitable for a wide age range.” The main markets are: Juvenile/Kids, Teen, Adult.
Obligatory Greetings: These are cards sent for business situations. They are less personal and have a more general greeting and more traditional artwork.
14) Do More Research!
Go out into the real world—to the extent that you can—and conduct field research. Visit card shops and big-box stores, boutiques, gift shops, and even grocery stores. Go anywhere and everywhere that sells greeting cards and look at everything with a critical eye. Step back and look at the card line as a whole: its tone and personality, its color palettes, its visual impact, the occasions it covers. Then look at many many cards specifically and take note of the various price points, the card stock, the finishings, the visual vocabulary, the illustration techniques. And, of course, read the verse!
Understand and appreciate the work that went in to creating the collections you see. From line designer to art director to copywriter to graphic designer to illustrator to printer to salesperson to shop owner to the shelf before your eyes...and finally (hopefully) to the hands of some lucky recipient!
15) A Few Faves!
Below are some well-respected greeting card companies who accept submissions from freelancers. The links will take you to their submission page, but be sure to analyze their current product line before submitting anything!
Design House Greetings
Great Arrow Graphics
Red Cap Cards
Calypso Cards
Viabella
The social expression industry is full of lovely people and it can provide a wonderful way to make money!
➜ Thank you for purchasing this creative exercise!
If you post an image on Instagram of a greeting card illustration, please let us know by tagging @illustratorscircle with the hashtag #illustratorscircle
