We hope your holidays (Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/other) were all that you wished for and more.  We are lifting ourselves out of the “Christmas is over” blues with the best kind of retail therapy ~ a sale!  All of our holiday items (holiday greeting cards, photo cards, invitations, ornaments and other decor) are 40% off.  Hurry in for best selection.  This sale will only last until we close for inventory in a couple of weeks!

They say that, in difficult economic times, people reach out and communicate with friends and family more than ever.  I think it’s because, at times like these, we tend to focus on what is really important to us - like staying in touch with the people we care about.  Most of us don’t have the time throughout the year to let these people know that we’re thinking of them.  But saving up all of that well-wishing for the holiday card season can get expensive.  And, with Thanksgiving falling so late this year, most of us are scrambling to check all of our holiday to-do’s off our list!

Salutations is making it easier and less expensive for you, our Inspirations readers, to send your holiday wishes with an incredible promotion that you can tailor to your preferred savings!  We can print within 2 business days any holiday greeting cards or photo cards we have in stock!  And, for a limited time, you can choose either 20% off any in-stock holiday item (cards, photo cards, invitation, ornaments, decor, gift wrap, gift tags, etc.), free personalization of your holiday cards or invitations, or free printing of your recipients’ addresses.  See our Holiday Gift to You from Salutations post for all of the details.  Remember to mention the promotion and the option you’d like when you’re in the store.  If you’re shopping online, tell us your choice in the Order Notes during checkout.  Please feel free to pass this fantastic promotion on to your friends!

If you’re like me, that increasingly familiar orange RSS logo stands for Really Super Scary!  But I have conquered my fear and you can too.  {For you younger 20-somethings ~ OK, 30-somethings ~ who already know Web 2.0 like you know how to breathe, please just skip this post instead of mocking the rest of us and subscribe to the Salutations RSS feed!}

Now, I have always considered myself fairly technologically advanced.  I taught myself every software application I know (including Adobe InDesign, and that’s saying something!).  I am a firm believer in using technology to make my business more efficient.  I recently launched my online store, worked with my web designers to redesign my website, I’m blogging, I joined Facebook (yes, I was forced to create a personal account when I wanted to publish a Salutations Facebook page and now I’m hooked), and I joined LinkedIn.  But, when I found out that my mother had a Facebook account before I did, I decided it was time to broaden my horizons even further.

Here is what you need to know to get started. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and is basically a standardized format for delivering regularly changing web content from news-related sites and blogs.  {You can read a more in-depth explanation here on Wikipedia.}  By subscribing to an RSS feed, you are able to stay current on the latest information from your favorite sites without having to visit each site separately.  And, you reduce the clutter in your inbox by not having to subscribe to email newsletters.

You can subscribe to your favorite news feeds or blogs in several ways.  You can add the feeds to your web browser’s start page (I use iGoogle and I love it) or you can download a free RSS reader (like Google Reader).  Click here for an article on the best RSS newsreaders to choose one that you like.

So, give it a try and start your first subscription with Salutations’ blog!  See that little orange, no longer scary, button on the right side of this page?  Go ahead and click on it . . . you can do it!