The world has become far more acclimated to the digital continence of the modern era. People are doing more things online, and often from their smartphone or tablet computer, than they are doing them manually, as was the status quo in the past. A recent Forbes article highlighted this notion, referencing a Pew survey that purported that 56% of all American adults now own a smartphone. Naturally, this makes one wonder if the day and age of handwriting a thoughtful and heartfelt thank you note is still in question—seeing as people exchange billions of text messages each year in the United States alone.
Americans Love Sending Text Messages
On ongoing LifeHacker.com survey has found, so far, that 30% of Americans send 1-10 text messages from their phone daily. However, there are no real statistics that have been generated as to how many people use their cell phone to text a thank you note as opposed to sending a more personal and handwritten one. Of course, there are some reasons why people are not sending nearly as many thank you notes that are written by hand. Primarily, this has to do with technology. The ability to send a simple text message in seconds is far more convenient for most people than having to actually stop by the store, shop for thank you notes, fill them out by hand, address an envelope and then affix a stamp, finally placing the notes in the mailbox for pickup and delivery.
Are Text Messages Really Formal Salutations?
For all extents and purposes, a text message is not really a formal salutation. It’s not written on formal letterhead, and the text leaves little to the imagination, save for the wording. Most people spare themselves the rules of proper grammar along the way, too, and rarely are well articulated text messages or emails sent between persons. A cavalcade of different abbreviations has been adopted in recent years, leading to a categorization and logging of them all due to their prevalence. Yet a text message, and its informal makeup, hardly is acknowledging enough for a proper thank you note. Thankfully, a relatively newer solution is available for those who would rather be more formal, intimate and tentative, yet who may not have the time to handwrite note after note and mail them.
Digital Thank You Note Take the Woes Out of the Handwritten Process
Now you can send thank you notes online with Postable. Postable is a relatively newer service that began with a feature-rich and free to use online address book. Users can subscribe to the services for free online, and gain instant access to both the address book and the integrated and interactive thank you note card creator. By copying and pasting a simple link to their social channels or sending it via email, users can then request that recipients spend a minute or so filling in the info form provided from the link. After which, they can be instantly added to the virtual address book. After that, users need only shop for the thank you note design they like or create a unique design themselves, and select addresses from their address book. Using nearly identical cursive handwriting, and other fonts if so desired, thank you notes can be instantly created and printed to look like they were composed by hand. The service, which charges a nominal fee per note, then hand stamps the envelopes and mails them out to the intended recipients.
