If you aren’t doing a Christmas card direct mail campaign this holiday season, you could be cheating yourself out of a great opportunity to form a better relationship with your clients or customers. Christmas card design for your small business doesn’t have to include any sales pitch or calls to action for your business. They can simply send a message of holiday cheer. It’s a great way to remind those on your mailing list that your company is staffed by “real people” who send holiday cards, go to office parties and celebrate the good times in the winter season.

This year, why not take a few pictures of you and your staff and create a photo Christmas card? For the cost of the printing and a few stamps you’ll be well on your way to bringing your clients back to you in the new year. The key to keeping your business top-of-mind after the holidays? An effective follow-up campaign. Your custom Christmas cards should be only one step in a larger push to remind your customers by mail that you want their business.

Making Christmas cards and sending them out gets your recipients thinking about you. When they get another card a week after the new year begins with a promotional message featuring a discounted service, a freebie offer or some other enticement, you’ll have the advantage of being associated with the warm feelings of the holiday season. Those holiday cards you sent out were probably put out on the mantelpiece or on the fridge along with the other Christmas cards that came in the mail. Sending out that follow-up message capitalizes on the holiday spirit before it’s faded away later on in the month.

That may sound like a small thing, but when perception counts for so much in business, you deserve every advantage you can get. Don’t underestimate the power of the holiday season to provide you with new opportunities; if you develop a reputation for a personal touch in your marketing, those on your mailing list will respond well to your campaigns. You may not have that reputation now, but you can take steps to create it by using the humble Christmas card.