Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Greeting Cards: Do You Say It With Humour Or Sentiment?

When it comes to greeting cards it seems that there are two types of people. Those that like to find a card that will make the recipient laugh and that even pokes fun at them a bit and those that look for a card that is carefully worded, says exactly how they are feeling and has a cute picture on the front.

But what is the best style of greeting card to send? Or is there even a best style? Greeting cards have developed a lot over the years and there are now many occasions littered throughout the year for which it is appropriate to send them. In the days of online personalised cards we now have more choice than ever, but which do you prefer; humour or sentiment?


Funny Haha Or Funny Peculiar? –
I must admit that I personally fit right into this first category. Sending cards is all about making the recipient laugh to me and so I trawl the streets looking for the best jokes I can find. And I have to say that things are getting better. In days gone by there were times when I had to settle for an overused stereotypical joke about the difference between men and women, or one that was just on the cusp of being funny but not quite there.

However, humorous cards have come on in leaps and bounds and there are now quirky, hilarious and even risqué cards to be found in most of the high-street stores. And the move to online customised greetings cards has benefited everyone who can’t quite find a card that brings about a raucous belly laugh. You can now simply log on and write your own joke straight onto the card. Just don’t be surprised when you find that a joke writer’s job is not as easy as it seems.

Celebrating With Sentiment –
Conversely there are others who like to send their greetings cards with a far more serious tone attached. There is an argument that this makes the card mean more because the words inside express the exact sentiment that the person is trying to convey to the recipient.

Similar to the way in which humorous cards evoke an emotion of happiness through laughter; serious cards can create the same feelings through a mixture of pleasing pictures and a choice of lexis that hits the perfect spot in order to bring about emotion. And the result is that the person still feels happy but because of the nice words said in relation to them rather than something which makes them laugh.

Online greetings cards have also helped people that like to send sentimental cards as there is less pressure on finding the exact words for that particular occasion. You can now fill the cards with your own verse so that your particular message is conveyed in the exact way you want it to be.

A Third Group –
The reality is that most of us will fit into neither of these categories and would rather let the situation and the type of person receiving the card dictate the style of greeting they choose. No one is realistically going to send a humorous condolences card in the same way that it is very unlikely that granny is going to be given a jokey card on her 90th birthday bash. The truth is that you can send serious sentimental cards on any occasion and to any person but when it comes to humour sometimes it’s not appropriate. It’s interesting that we choose to convey our feelings in these different ways and perhaps it says a lot about the kind of person you are depending on which category you fall into.

So what type of greeting cards do you mostly like to send; humorous or sentimental? Add your comments below.
Featured images:
Chris Mayhew likes to send comic greeting cards and wondered what the rest of the nation preferred to do. He would recommend Silver Stamp to anyone wanting to customise their own cards online.

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