The importance of greeting cards

September 13, 2022 • 3,270 views • 3 mins

There are many reasons why card sending is important, but it's good to know why we send cards in the first place.

Why do we send cards?

Dating right back to the 15th century, sending cards for birthdays and special occasions have been a tradition in China, where they would send notes for Chinese New Year. Similar traditions also took place in Ancient Egypt in the 15th century, where they would send notes for occasions on papyrus scrolls. It was in the 1850s when greeting cards started to become more popular, with companies starting to produce greeting cards that you could purchase in shops. Since then, greeting cards have been an important part of all occasions.

Why is it important to send a card?

For many of us, our mobile devices are our regular go-to option for communicating, however, there are still plenty of reasons to send a trusted greeting card. You can find greeting cards for birthdays and weddings, Mother’s Day, Christmas, and every other celebration. During the early 2010s, people believed that e-cards and social media messaging would take over the greeting card industry, replacing cards with non-personal electronic images. This has since faded and greeting cards were found to be as important as before. There’s a wholesome feeling when receiving a greeting card that’s so much different to any e-cards or messages over social media.

In this modern era, it’s easy to send a quick e-card, text or message on Facebook, but a lot of people will argue that a traditional greeting card offers a much more meaningful touch. Royal Mail carried out a scientific study on the difference between receiving cards and receiving online messages. This study found that receiving a handwritten note or card had much more of an emotional impact and made people feel far more special and cared about than receiving emails or texts.

These tests were held under laboratory conditions by Mindlab, which is an international scientific research company on behalf of Royal Mail. During the study, emotional activity was measured in response to different stimuli. This experiment included volunteer mums being fitted with a cap and electrodes, which measured changes in voltage caused by cognitive activity in the brain. The electrical activity in the Mother's brains saw a greater positive emotional response to handwritten letters, greeting cards and other cards compared to messages on social media. Twice the amount of happiness was recorded towards letters and cards compared to social media messages, and three times more than email.

This study has proved how much greetings cards mean to people, and that it’s important to keep this tradition going rather than leaning towards social media platforms. With the tough times we are currently facing in the world, we have seen a spark in our inner kindness, with people going out of their way to help others. It’s amazing how much a greeting card can impact someone’s day, and put a smile on someone’s face. Show someone you’re thinking of them with a high-quality greeting card from Blackwell Print today.