Christmas is one of the most anticipated holidays of the year.  It is the season of giving and sharing.  Besides the tradition of gift giving, many people enjoy sending and receiving holiday greeting cards through the mail.  This makes greeting card business a very lucrative and successful business.  However, many people are getting more aware of the impact of buying and sending holiday greeting cards to the environment, especially if the greeting cards are made of paper direct from trees.

There are a number of ways to eliminate or lessen the usage of paper greeting cards.  If you must send paper greeting cards, opt for those printed on recycled papers.  Nowadays, greeting cards printed on recycled paper are growing in popularity.  The recycled papers are typically made of at least 30 percent of post-consumer products.  There are also more recycled papers that are made of higher post-consumer products, which are even better.  You can also opt for your cards to be printed with soy or vegetable-based inks.  Ask your recycled paper manufacturer for recommendations of green printers, if you prefer personalizing your recycled holiday greetings.  Recycled greeting cards are as pretty and classy as the traditional paper greeting cards, if not better.  They usually come with recycled envelopes too; hence allowing you to have 100 percent recycled products.

Another greener way to send holiday greetings is by sending ecards.  Ecards are electronic cards that work very much like emails, thus allowing you to eliminate the usage of paper completely.  Most ecard websites are offering their services free.  All you need to do is register, choose an ecard, and send it to your recipient’s email address.  There are hundreds, even thousands of ecard designs to choose from, and some websites do not require any registration at all.  Ecards are also easier and faster to send, requiring no envelopes or postage stamps at all.  They are safer than the traditional paper greeting cards as they will not get lost in transit.  Of course, you will need valid email addresses of your recipients to ensure the ecards are delivered successfully.

If you must send paper greeting cards during this holiday season, the wisest thing that you can do is probably cutting down your mailing list.  This is especially for businesses, as you may have hundreds or thousands of clients in your clientele database.  Perhaps you can send one general greeting card per company and not to the individuals of the same company.  Sending ecards to thousands of clients is fine and they are cheaper and more efficient.  However, if you really must convey your greetings and best wishes on paper, do consider sending recycled greeting cards.

Insist on using green products this holiday season.  If you have not tried any recycled greeting cards yet, perhaps it is the time for you to get started.  Otherwise, if you cannot avoid sending your greetings to your large clientele, ecards should be your best option.  Nevertheless, whether it is paper or electronic greeting cards, it does not really matter.  It is the thought that matters the most.