Greetings,
 
I don't post often but thought it was over due for me to stop in, say hello and thank all of our artists for everything you've contributed - art, comments, suggestions, encouragement and so much more.
 
Together here is what we have accomplished in the past year:
-  Created the largest selection of paper greeting cards, over 40,000 cards and growing
-  Assembled a dynamic artist community of over 1,000 artists and growing
-  Enjoying the top 3 listing for any search that includes the words "paper greeting cards"
-  Consistent monthly sales growth.  We sold 800 cards in February 2007 vs 5,000 cards in Feb 2008
 
We've come a long way however there are still many challenges ahead.  How do we grow sales to 100,000, 500,000 and eventually 1,000,000 cards a month?  It will require a major shift in greeting card shoppers' buying behaviors.  It's important to realize that GCU is still far from profitable.  Our investors continue to believe that we posses the right team, technology and vision to revolutionize this age-old greeting card industry by changing the rules of the game.      
 
From our investors perspective, one of our golden nuggets is our dynamic and responsive artist community.  Your suggestions, dialogue and support in the forum are truly priceless.  Our staff is energized to work even harder as a result of the wonderful appreciation and praise from our artist community.  Please keep that up as it keeps us pumped up!  However it's worth pointing out that over the last month the tone in the forum has changed a bit mostly fueled by a small handful of artists.  Although, we appreciate and need the feedback and suggestions, we feel comments even in jest about conspiracies, evil corporate folks with ulterior motives are unwarranted and unnecessary.
 
I'm not a big fan of rules either, usually because they're almost always flawed or don't make sense in all situations.  I ask you to not be so quick to criticize.   Consider yourself as part of a team working together and developing rules and guidelines that can work for everyone's benefit.   Overall our challenge is two fold - do the right thing for the artists AND the shoppers, all with our limited resources.  Please note that it's impossible to please everyone at the same time.  
 
We welcome and appreciate all artists, but important to note that GCU may not be for everyone.  If the GCU service, team and rules frustrate you on a daily basis perhaps GCU is not the right place for you.  Some artists are earning respectable commissions, and ironically or not, they rarely criticize.  The opportunity is real and commissions can be had.   Focusing on what cards shoppers are looking for and creating accordingly really works.  
 
What is the big challenge?     We need to figure out why is it that the paper greeting card sales have not shifted online?   How can we help make that shift?   Many other unthinkable product categories are doing amazing online sales.    Zappos did $1 billion in sales last year!    Who would have thought shoes would be that successful online.   There are many other examples from diapers to jewelry that do extremely well online.  
 
Our primary challenges for shifting paper greeting sales online are:
1. Awareness - Most people simply don't know that they can buy, personalize, and mail paper cards online.  All for $2.49 plus postage.
 
2. Confusion - Most people only think of ecards when online.  Even if they're searching for paper cards, they don't realize to include "paper" in their search.  Until recently, American Greetings and Hallmark have added to this confusion by not actively selling paper cards online.
 
3. User Experience & Content - It still takes too much effort to find a card and the cards you find are good but not always exceptional.  Our redesign plans for later this year will knock shoppers' socks off and include a powerful shopping interface that will help them quickly find the cards they want in just a few clicks.
 
Interesting to note that the top selling cards in traditional card stores are humorous cards.  It is very challenging to create clever and up-to-date humorous cards.  We could improve our content in this area.  Anyone up to the challenge?  The leading company in that space is Recycle Greetings.  Take a look at their cards next time you're at the store.  Another example of clever humor is an ecard company that has done very well.  Take a look at www.someecards.com.  They use very simple images, but their humor has created a sizeable following.
 
4. No Pain Point - Buying a card offline is not that inconvenient, as they're available at any grocery store.  To address this, we must deliver on #3 above.  Imagine an experience that is so easy, and content so rewarding that the shopper is completely "wowed" and compelled to share the experience with others.
 
5. Last Minute - Most shoppers don't think about the needed card until the day of or day before, even most holiday cards are purchased within the last 5 days before the holiday.  This is a tough one for an online model.  Possible solutions are print at home cards, ecard version of your cards, and doing a better job in getting users to adopt our reminder service.
 
We are well on our way to change this industry and can only do it with your help.  We have some incredible plans for the future with some exciting news promised in April.  Our resources are limited, but we're determined and will succeed with your support.  If you have thoughts/feedback on the challenges listed above, please share them.    
 
Lastly, I want to publicly acknowledge the great work Mindy and Shaun do especially on the forum.  Also our programming team, especially Bryce and Matt, who diligently work their magic in the background.  
 
Happy Easter,
 
Nasser Gaemi
CEO, BigDates Solutions
GreetingCardUniverse.com

You folks have a wonderful company here.  with your attitude, teamwork, and the ...ahem...superb collection of artists contributing, it won't be long before GCU is #1!  
I, for one, think your programming is top notch.  The ease to place images and set up cards is quite easy and quick compared to other places.  The moderators in the forum are exceptionally sincere, prompt, supportive and helpful.
All we have to do, in the words of Walt Disney, is keep moving forward.
Keep up the great work everyone!
~David

Hi there - good to see one more face of the team
 
Thanks for your encouraging words.
 
I love the way feedback and suggestions are handled here.
I've had it in a different way at another place and I save my breath over there since then.
 
Anyway.
 
You are asking about how to sell more and make people aware of the online possibilities.
 
One answer is, give us more possibilities to promote GCU on our web pages and blogs.
 
Give us those fancy wee buttons and more widget possibilities.
 
At that "other place" I have over 40 linkovers a day (depending on how active I am even more). Not THAT much and not all sell, but multiply those 40 with some more artists  
 
Have a great weekend, even though you are probably working

Thanks, Linda.
 
I sure hope that product linking will be easier soon.
It's a pain in the "you know where" right now and I don't think I got the referral code in there
 

Hi Nasser! Glad you stopped by!  
 
Having seen our earnings grow each quarter, we definitely believe in GCU and what it's trying to achieve. The new shoppers' interface that's been talked about sounds like it will help make the experience much easier for shoppers to find exactly the card they're looking for without having to wade through irrevelant search results. We've very excited about that. The new tool should boost sales.
 
As for increased brand name recognition... we've noticed - and I'm sure you have too - that a Google search for "greeting cards" yields free e-card sites first. GCU only pops up on page four. Can anything be done to improve that ranking?  
 
A further observation - at the bottom of the "greeting card" search page, Google offers suggestions on refining the search. One of those suggestions is "print greeting cards." You mention printable cards, Nasser. That's a good idea. What about offering a few free "print-your-own" greeting cards to the public as a marketing tool? American Greetings and Blue Mountain offer a small selection of free printable cards on-line. We'd be willing to donate a couple of designs to the cause of creating greater brand recognition for GCU, which of course means more potential sales for us. Would other artists be interested? You wouldn't make any earnings on downloads, but every card downloaded and sent to the recipient is an advertisement for GCU and you, too. Printable cards offer much more potential for marketing than ecards. Recipients usually delete ecards within a short time period, while many people save paper cards (for scrapbooking, keepsakes, etc).
 
Making humorous cards is a rather daunting task, we admit. First you need an idea, then the wherewithal to implement it in a way that your target audience is going to find appealing. For example - these are the first couple of examples that spring to mind - Jen Cosgrove's cards have a lot of visual humour, and Tom's captions do a good job on the chuckle front. Not everyone can do that. Then there's selling them on-line.
 
In a traditional retail setting, it's the image that makes the consumer pick up the card, the verse that clinches the sale. However, potential on-line buyers at GCU can't stand in front of racks scanning and comparing every available humor card the way they can in a brick-and-mortar store, unless they want to browse through the Birthday >> Humor category (which has nearly 600 cards, but if an artist has a funny card and it isn't in that category, they're missing out).  
 
The experience is different on-line; consumers have to search for what they want, and wade through a lot of results. A search for "humor" on GCU yields over 3,000 results. "Humorous birthday" yields 229. "Humorous 21 birthday" yields nothing. Unless the consumer chooses exactly the right keywords - or the artist anticipates what buyers might be using as search terms - the results are going to be decidedly mixed. We're hoping the new shoppers' tool will help.
 
As to your point about last-minute shoppers... we think the solution lies not in more ecards (to be frank, everybody and his dog offers free ecards on-line these days) but perhaps in something the merry band of programming elves can consider adding to the site. In fact, we're not sure if such a thing is already in place but we'll throw the idea out anyway. At the end of the checkout process, why not include a little advertisement for the reminder services? Like a linked banner - "never forget another important date - free reminder service" or similar that the consumer can click on? That will probably drive more traffic to the reminder services.
 
Sorry to be so long-winded.
 
Corrie
http://www.corrieweb.nl
 
 
 
 

Quote from Linda_132742 on Mar 22^nd, 2008, 5:42am:

 
 
I second that!  
- Awesome suggestions, Corrie!  
- I'm willing to add a few designs for free printables!
 
When I first started on GCU I made almost every card available for free e-cards.  I "sold" 2.  I changed most if not all of them back about 6 months ago... the internet is loaded with free e-cards and it dawned on me that mine were just a drop in a very huge bucket.  Not to mention that having them out there didn't bring me any noticable sales  
 
Linda - I thought about that very same thing a while ago, tried it on a few cards,  but nixed the idea mainly because of how it shows up on GCU.  But if you think it's bringing you more sales...well... I may have to rethink that one again!  
D.

Hi Nasser!
This is the first time I have met you.  I've only been here since Jan. of this year.
I love this community.  Every day now holds an excitement in creativity for me that is unmatched in the past seven years, since I became disabled.  My writing career has slowly been taking off this year and the Greeting Cards allow me to join my writing and photography in a marriage made in heaven.  I cannot thank the GCU community enough--administrators Mindy and Shaun have been there with their support, knowledge and patience...They are there for us, day in and day out.
It is with their help and the help of fellow artists that even computer illiterates can become proud owners of a professional Greeting Cards Store on line.  Our only limitations are within each of us...
Your idea, Nasser, of the printable cards seems brillant to me.  I had not thought of this myself.
Thanks for all of your critism--both negative and positive.  Taken in the right spirit, it can only help us grow and flourish.  For the most part, we are a very supportive and sharing community.  It still amazes me when an artist offers their 'secrets' up to the community.  I don't believe I have ever been part of another writing community where jealousy played such a minor role and encouragement such a major role.  "GCU--the way life should be..."
Hope to see more of you Nasser.   Your words of wisdom were greatly appreciated.
SueB

GCU was an answer to my prayers... I love it... It fulfills something in me that was missing... I cannot begin to explain the lovely feeling of honor and fulfillment when someone buys one of my cards... Each card I sell brings as much excitement as the very first one.  I thank God for this business, for the Admins and for everyone who works so hard to make GCU bigger and better than ever.  Hope everyone has a nice Easter.  God bless...
 
gina