Don't fence yourself in with holiday cards

If yours is like most U.S. businesses, times are rough. Customers are hard to come by, and harder to keep. Sales are down and costs are up. The last thing you want is to spend more money!

But before you deep six your traditional business holiday cards, spend some time brainstorming about all the ways those little messengers of holiday cheer could help your business thrive in the coming year. Step out of the box and soar into the wide open spaces of new possibilities. (Thus the lovely video today!)

Here are a couple of ideas to get you started on new ways to use your company Christmas cards to generate business.

Run a contest. The entries are your company holiday cards "remade" into something else. It could become anything...a gift box, a fan, a hat or a paper airplane (reason number two for my film choice!) Give prizes for the most original, funniest, etc., and make the day of judging a party.

Glue "golden tickets" or other prize certificates into the cards. Make it clear that the reveal has to happen in the store to qualify (that gets them in the door!) Add another layer by making the tickets 3-D so shoppers must don paper glasses in the store to see their prizes.

Send cards that do not match your region and then give away a trip as a prize. If your business is in a sunny warm clime, choose cards with icy, snowy images. Those in the north would send cards with scenes of tropical beaches. Customers can bring in their cards as an entry into the drawing for a trip. Floridians might win a trip to Minnesota, while those in New England would find themselves relaxing on a beach.

Ready to come up with your own? Who says a business holiday card is limited to putting it in the envelope and mailing it?