Create E-Invites from Your Invitation Cards

Turn the cons of e-invites into pros. And use your invitation cards to create e-invites that will make your guests look forward to your party or event.

Just like invitation cards, your e-invites tell your guests what to expect from your party or event.

Don't know what electronic invitations or e-invites are? Fundamentally, if you send a text with the date, time, and venue of an event, you’ve just sent an electronic invitation. In the same sense, if you post a sentence online containing similar information, you’ve just created an e-invite. However, in reality, there’s more to it than that.

From this, it's obvious that electronic invitations play an important role in today’s event planning. Nonetheless, they sometimes lack a personal touch. So, don’t be blind to this and their other disadvantages. Instead, proactively turn those cons into benefits.

By the way, e-invites are also called electronic invitation cards, invitation ecards, and ecard invites

Advantages of invitation ecards include:

1. There’s one source for your invitations. Consequently, no one can say it got lost in the mail.
   
   
2. You are not limited in space or size. Thus, you can include all the things, stories, and pieces of information you couldn’t squeeze into a regular card.
   
   
3. You can use it to simply announce the event to people that live too far away to attend. Thus, unless you just want to, there's no need to spend the time and money to create and send an invitation card to someone you already know cannot attend..
   
   
4. If there's someone you don't want to attend, but you still have to inform that person about your party, then an e-invite is perfect for that.
   
   
5. If you've made an invitation card that's too complex or too expensive to recreate, then showcase it in an e-invite, and use it to invite many people. For example, if you’ve created an animated card like a pop-up invitation, you can record and use the video of that card in the e-invite.
   

Now, for disadvantages and possible solutions:

1. As mentioned already, ecard invites could connote a lack of personal touch. Hence, from time to time, you may run into people that feel you didn't properly or personally invite them because they didn't get an actual card. This is even worse if your ecard invite is just generic with a few lines of text.
   
   To resolve this, personalize the invitation. One idea is to show your guests you've created a physical card for them. For example, include pictures of the card in the e-invite, instead of just a caricature or cartoon from a generic ecard site.
   
   
2. Electronic invitations could give the impression that your party or event is going to be the same ol’ cookie cutter occasion. People are busy busy busy - or at least they want you to think so even if they are not. Hence, they don’t want you to take their time for granted.
   
   Therefore, if your generic e-invite makes them feel your event will turn out blah, they may plan to leave early or avoid it altogether.
   
   As a solution, don’t make a generic e-invite. Just as before, find ways to personalize it. The e-invite should make them look forward to your party.
   
   
3. Invitation electronic cards could make your guests think you’re too self-centered to host them properly. In truth, the event is really all about you, the celebrant. Nonetheless, your guests are quietly wondering, “what’s in it for me?” Thus, an e-invite could give the wrong answer to this question.
   
   To proactively give the right answer, add substance to the e-invite to show that you have your guests in mind. Include interactive maps and directions to the venue (by adding "embed code"). Append your agenda or plans. This way, they will know that you’re putting together an event that they would surely enjoy.
   
   
4. Again, the intangible nature of electronic invitations may cause your guests to think you do not want them to attend. Instead, they may assume you just want to inform them of your party.
   
   On the other hand, if your guests see that you took the time to make or buy a card and decided to showcase and tell them about it, it may change their minds. Furthermore, engaging your guests by inviting them to RSVP, rate, like, and comment on the e-invite goes a long way.
   

Are you trying to choose between physical cards and electronic invites?

It's worth repeating that, since invitation cards set the tone for the event, your e-invites should do the same.

Even if you're sending actual invitation cards to all your guests, it's wise to create an e-invite at a centralized location for your guests to access. Better yet, use the invitation card to create your electronic invitation.

The point is: don't choose. Instead, use both.

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