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Home Greeting Card Business:  An Opportunity for All Seasons 

 

Greeting cards never go out of style.  Between holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and other occasions, there is almost always some reason to send someone a card.  While ecards are growing in popularity, a real, tangible greeting card is just more personal. 

Because of their steady popularity, greeting cards present a wonderful opportunity for the work at home mom.  There are several ways that you can get a piece of the greeting card market.  Whether you would like to sell premade cards, design cards for companies, or make your own cards from scratch, greeting cards present a fun and profitable way to start a home business. 

Becoming a Card Distributor 

For those who excel at selling, becoming a card distributor might be the best option.  You could acquire a territory from a large greeting card company, but that would not allow you to do much of the work from home.  Joining a greeting card direct sales company would be a better idea if you do not want to travel much. 

Direct sales companies enlist distributors to sell their cards online and off.  Send Out Cards offers their representatives a truly unique opportunity.  They allow customers to select a card and personalize it completely online, and have the company send it out for them.  I

t makes sending cards fun, quick, and easy.  It is also a popular product for businesses to use to send cards to their customers, so the potential income is very good indeed. 

Selling Your Work to Card Companies 

If you are more interested in the creative side of things, doing freelance work for card companies could be your cup of tea.  Lots of major and minor card companies purchase art and verse from freelancers. 

Pay differs by company, and getting started takes resilience and dedication.  But those who are passionate about their work often find this option quite fulfilling. 

Freelancing requires you to seek out companies on your own, find out if they are accepting submissions, and pitch your work to them.  Building a portfolio is essential so that prospective buyers can see samples of your previous work.  And you must be able to bounce back from rejection and move on to the next company if necessary. 

Doing freelance work is not for everyone.  If you prefer to have complete control over how your art or writing is used, you would do better to make your own cards. 

Starting Your Own Line of Cards 

Creating and selling your own greeting cards from scratch is probably the most expensive and challenging option, but it has many rewards. 

By doing everything yourself, you have complete creative control over your work.  You don’t have to worry about rejections, and when you’re selling your own work, your passion shines through to your customers. 

The equipment required to make cards can range from your basic computer, scanner and printer to expensive printing equipment.  You could also design the cards yourself and have them printed by a third party.  How you handle the printing is a matter of preference, but making sure your cards look professional is key. 

Starting your own line of cards also means being responsible for their distribution.  In the beginning you can save money by handling that part yourself, but once things take off you will probably need help. 

You could hire a person or two to handle the marketing aspect, or you could offer independent distributors the opportunity to market your cards. 

As the owner of a greeting card business, you would be in charge of financing, development, production, marketing, and administrative tasks.  This requires a lot of hard work, but is also extremely rewarding.  You have the freedom to run your business as you see fit, and what could be better than that? 

If you have a love for greeting cards, selling them, creating them, or both can prove to be an enjoyable way to make a living.  While you will see boosts in sales around major holidays, people buy cards year-round.  And that’s good news whether you’re selling cards, designing them, or producing them from start to finish.

Recommended: Moms Talk Biz Guide to Start Your Own Greeting Card Business - How you can make money in the greeting card industry, selling your ideas to greeting card companies, how to price your cards, and tons of tips and advice to help you start your own Greeting Card Business from Home.