5 Design Tips To Create An Eye-Catching Holiday Card

When it comes to expressing holiday cheer and sending goodwill to your friends, family, acquaintances, and business contacts, there are few opportunities as pressure-filled as a holiday card.

After all, these tiny missives serve not only as an important reminder that the end of the year is fast approaching but also as the go-to medium for keeping everyone informed about your happy new status. As with any design project, creating a memorable holiday card requires time and thought (and probably at least one red marker).

But there’s no need to stress. With just a little research, preparation, and insight from designers who know what they’re doing when it comes to crafting creative greeting cards; anyone can create incredible holiday messages that stand out from the crowd.


Introduction to holiday card design

Depending on your industry, function, and position, you may need to send a holiday card to customers, clients, vendors, suppliers, partners, and colleagues. In many cases, the decision to send (or not send) a holiday card is purely optional. But even though the need and expectation to send holiday cards isn’t uniform across all industries, there’s one thing that is: a great holiday card design is always memorable. Whether a card is sent to a client or a loved one, a memorable message is an ideal goal.

Whether you design your own holiday cards or hire someone to do so, there are some important things to keep in mind. The first is that your holiday cards are an excellent opportunity to show off your brand and give your clients, friends, and family something to remember you by. If you’re creating your own holiday cards, keep in mind that you also have a chance to show off your skills and creative side.

1. Research and plan

Before you open your design app and start brainstorming, it’s important to do some research and get your creative juices flowing. This all starts with the people you’re sending cards to and what they’re expecting. Are you sending cards to clients, vendors, or colleagues? If so, you may be expected to send a holiday card. On the other hand, if you’re sending cards to friends and family, you don’t have to send a holiday card unless you want to.

Now, once you’ve figured out who you’re sending cards to and how expectations may differ, it’s time to brainstorm some ideas. To get your creative juices flowing and start generating some truly unique and memorable holiday card designs, try doing the following:

Get ideas from the internet - As you may have expected, the internet is a huge resource for seasonal and holiday design inspiration. You can find a ton of pre-made designs, templates, and other resources online that can help you get a jumpstart on your holiday card designs.

Get inspired by old cards - If you have old cards lying around, you can use those designs as inspiration for your new cards. Just be sure to get permission if the design is someone else’s.

Use graphics and images that represent your brand - Employing imagery that represents your brand can be a great way to make your holiday cards stand out.

Create something truly original: It’s not always a good idea to try to copy someone else’s design. Instead, try to create something new and original.


2. Consider your audience

Another important step in designing holiday cards is considering your audience. You may want to send a holiday card to clients and vendors, but you’ll want to think about how those cards will be received. If you send a holiday card to a client, does that come across as unprofessional? If you send a holiday card to a vendor, does that come across as weird?

As you’re designing your holiday cards, think about who you’re sending them to and how they might interpret them. You may want to send a holiday card to a client but be aware that it can come across as unprofessional. If you send a holiday card to a vendor, but it’s too personal or comes across as weird, you can ruin your reputation.

3. Pick your color palette

Once you have a general idea of what you want your holiday card designs to look like, it’s time to pick your color palette. There are a few things to keep in mind when picking colors for a holiday card. First, consider the season. What colors do you associate with each holiday? Red, green, and gold may come to mind when thinking about Christmas, while blue, white, and silver may come to mind when thinking about New Year’s.

When picking colors for your holiday card designs, it’s best to pick seasonal colors. This will allow your cards to tie in nicely with the holiday and give them a more festive vibe. It also makes them more timeless. You can always pick seasonal and holiday colors again next year.


4. Establish a typography foundation

Once you’ve picked your color palette, it’s time to establish a typography foundation for your holiday card designs. What does this mean? Well, typography is the art of putting words together. In the context of card design, that means you need to choose the font, font size, and font color for your holiday card texts. There are a few things to keep in mind when choosing a font for your holiday card designs.

First, consider the tone of your holiday cards. Are they fun and festive? Or are they more serious and traditional? The font you choose should fit that tone. Next, consider the audience of your holiday cards. Do they skew more towards adults or children? Does your industry have any specific fonts?

5. Add the final touch with illustrations

Now that you’ve chosen a color palette and established a typography foundation for your holiday card designs, it’s time to add the final touch: illustrations. There are a few types of illustrations you may want to consider adding to your holiday card designs:

Photo illustrations - These are illustrations that feature a photograph. If you’re sending a card to a friend or family member who might want to keep the card on their wall all year, a photo illustration would be a great addition.

Mixed media illustrations - These are illustrations that combine different types of media. For example, you may want to combine photographs, illustrations, and even words to create a truly unique design.

Traditional illustrations - These are illustrations that look like they were created using pencils, pens, and paper. If you want your designs to be traditional, traditional illustrations would be the best choice.

Digital illustrations - These are illustrations that look like they were created using digital software. If you want your designs to be modern, digital illustrations would be best.


Wrapping up

Well, there you have it. With just a little research, planning, and insight from designers who know what they’re doing when it comes to crafting creative greeting cards, anyone can create incredible holiday messages that stand out from the crowd. Now all that’s left to do is pick the design you like best, send off your cards, and wait for the compliments to roll in.

Looking for illustrations for the holidays? Go check out the The Holiday Vibe Illustration Pack (Christmas / Kwanzaa).