A few months ago a colleague of mine asked if I had ever heard of Paperless Post. I hadn’t, but was intrigued, so I did a little research and discovered something truly fabulous! Among all the praise, Vogue says that it’s the luxury version of Evite. I even found out that Zac Posen, the showman of fashion, recently used it for a benefit, how cool is that?
I knew I had to give it a whirl, so just a few weeks ago, I sent out a few invites for my mother’s annual Christmas Eve party. First, I selected the style, a beautiful square red trimmed card with a green satin bow that shined just like the real thing. Then, I used their “wording assistant” to help me write the card and chose the envelope and I was ready to go! Within a few minutes I already had an email back from my sister telling me that this year’s evite was better than year’s past. Of course, there is nothing like getting a card in the mail, but I am pretty sure this comes close.
So why do I like Paperless Post? It’s the fact that I can send out beautiful invites virtually and they actually look and feel real, an element that has been lacking in many e-services. There’s also something to be said about the luxury aspect. Who wouldn’t want to receive a fancy looking invitation in their inbox? Sending out a Paperless Post is also a greener way to invite people to an event, which is something I desperately try to include in my life. I know the first two reasons are a bit superficial, but as Madonna once said, “we are living in a material world.”
Ultimately, Paperless Post provided me with an easy yet unique way to send out my invites this year. I didn’t have to sacrifice the look or the feel of a paper invite just because I created them online. This makes me wonder what other sites and companies will succeed when it comes to creating services that are simple, while still maintaining the visual appeal of something more personal. In the end, are we inevitably giving up something, or is it possible to have our little luxuries sent to us via email?
Love this post. For some of us, it is indeed a tough leap from the warmth and personality that a ‘classic’ paper card can provide to what has been a somewhat cold and impersonal experience of the e-card. For me the benefit has been solely the convenience factor. Clearly that is changing as services provide new tools to really upgrade the experience.
I think the same thing is happening in photo development, where you can store your photographs online, share them in a customizable virtual environment, and even order beautifully appointed photo albums to share off-line.
Again, great post. Thanks for sharing!
Love Paperless Post. We opted to use it to send the “Save the Date”s for my wedding in October. Even some of our more formal/traditional guests thought they were beautiful, and my now-husband (who is a typically-opinionated graphic designer) thought the design motifs were well-conceived. Oh, and you can manage your guest list online and even track who has (and who has not) viewed the invite – very helpful.
As James mentions in his post, brands are giving us important tools and services which enable us to become more resourceful. Our DIY projects may range from a bathroom remodel to designing an online “Save the Date” – brands that make it possible for us to pull off these small feats offer us a new kind of value: self-reliance. It will be exciting to see what else we’ll be able to accomplish in 2010.