1. “With electronic [invitations], you have to assume everything gets forwarded, so it has to be tested that it forwards well, and [you have to] understand people are looking at it in different formats,” says Regina Miller, RSM Consulting.
2. “You need to think about the difference between HTML and PDF formats,” says Marc Friedland, Marc Friedland Couture Communications. “It’s always easy to send a PDF, but it’s very likely to get tagged as spam if you send a lot. And you can’t track PDF. The other option is to have it embedded into email [HTML]. It requires more work and distributing it through a bulk email service, but you can track it better.”
3. “For events designed to cater to a guest’s every whim, send a printed invitation but direct guests to respond using a Web form,” says Christine Traulich, RedBliss Invitation Design. “It’s much faster and allows you to obtain further information from attendees that will maximize their experience. For example, learning of a food allergy or a transportation preference ahead of time will eliminate confusion or frustration on site.”
4. “With outside purchased lists, focus on print and skip electronic,” says Isabel Chattas, Siinc Agency. “Very few email lists provide good results. Direct mail is still getting responses when trying to acquire new prospects, so use print as a way to boost and attack a new segment, and save the electronic for the loyal customers.”
5. “Much as it is a challenge to stand out in the conventional mailbox, it is also challenging to get attention in increasingly full email inboxes,” says Andrew Brown, Mackenzie Brown Design. “Understanding the nature of the event and the target audience are key to creating invitations that are memorable and appropriate.”
