What is the point of these? I have no idea how much it costs to send one and am not going to bother finding out. We get 2 or 3 a year and I simply watch the charming, or otherwise, cartoon and then read and reply to the message in an email.
But something has changed. The latest just arrived is from an American lady living in France to whom we re-homed a dog 15 or so years ago when we were still fostering for Phoenix. She sends us one every halloween and new year.
This time, apart from the ‘card’, it is completely taken up with a hard sell for us to use the things ourselves and, although there was an instruction to click and read the message I c ould not find one anywhere, so I simply sent good wishes back as usual and brought her up to date with our news.
I was absolutely entranced with her very first card when she was still an amateur and it wasn’t her business. I still subscribe all these years later. No idea how much it is these days, not much. Some are lovely and it’s useful for friends in far-flung places where I may not even have their home address. An email feels unfestive. I tend to send the chatty emails NOT at Christmas - can’t bear the round robin messages saying things like “and little Johnny came third in his clarinet exam” when I’ve no idea who little Johnny is, nor do I care.
We usually get several from distant friends / relations. the only shame is that I hang up the cards that come in the post and can’t do that with an ecard - well maybe I can if I print off the final screen.
Sorry to hear you feel you are getting the hard sell. I’ll keep an eye out and I’ve been with them so long I’m happy to contact them.
I think they are a whole step above the competition (Blue Mountain, or whatever) and it’s a shame if they lose that quality through mistaken hard sell.
Do you mean that you can send out these cards to multiple recipients at one go?
Do you, and they, especially appreciate the little cartoons?
Otherwise can you help me to understand why, rather than email? I am genuinely puzzled, and this latest one bears no personal message that I can find, at all.
There are two basic styles, @David_Spardo - both of which require you to click on a particular spot on the picture. The simplest form then opens up something like a letter, which is written by the sender.
The other form is more complicated and, after clicking, things start to happen and a little sotry/adventure/something-or-other plays out with musical accompaniment and finished with the personal message being displayed on the last screen. Does that make sense?
If not, I could send you one and “talk” you through it! There’s a great deal more to it than an email and the current ones all play in your browser so you click on the email link and a tab opens on the browser and you go from there. How far have you got with the one you were sent?
Well I have deleted it now but previously there was a link to click on and then, as you say, a spot on the picture to get the video running. When it is finished, normally there is a link to click to read the message from the sender. This time it took me to a website which was all about signing up myself. I looked all around but nowhere could I find the personal message from the lady who sent it.
I thought it was a step too far, I have not been particularly charmed by the rather twee videos on offer but, as they only last a minute or so, sit through them in order to read the greeting. This time it never came.
That does sound disappointing, David, and also rather odd. I shall do some investigations! It’s cheap to subscribe so I use it occasionally to make contact with people in a friendlier way than a plain email, but I agree that a lot of the videos are twee in the extreme and I wouldn’t dream of sending them.
However, being harassed to sign up is not something I have seen before so I shall have a look at that. If it’s a new “feature” I shall stop using it.
I automatically delete any and all e-cards and think rude things about the senders. They are the perfect way to deliver a viral payload and, as pointed out already, offer no more personal interaction than an email. If you enjoy them then that’s great, but I loathe the things from the heart of my bottom.
Just as an aside - imnmediately after reading the posts above about viruses, my computer froze and I couldn’t do anything so had to reboot. Coincidence?
