If you landed on this post, you may be wondering if you can make money selling your handmade greeting cards.
The answer is YES.
A few years back, I was considering adding greeting cards to my shop. When I was talking to my mom about my idea, she brought up the fact that she thought cards could be outdated and a thing of the past.
In this post, I cover some of my research on the market behind handmade greeting cards, how I make my cards, and some other interesting bits (along with my best-selling designs!).
If you’re looking to sell cards in your handmade business, definitely keep reading. I’m here to help as best as I can for anyone getting started.
Related:
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Handmade Greeting Cards
Some may have different definitions for “handmade greeting cards” so I want to cover this quickly.
A handmade greeting card can be:
-A card you literally construct and make as an original work of art OR
-Be a printed card from a design you have made
My cards are printed designs of my original artwork. So, for example, I scan a painting into my computer, edit it to fit into a card, load greeting card paper into my printer, print, fold it, and package it.
I just wanted to make it clear on what my handmade cards are, but there are several ways you can make them. News flash: making them literally by hand is obviously 10x more work! Mine are still handmade, but I can print them over and over which saves time and money.
Is There A Market For Handmade Cards?
After some research, it seemed there was still a huge market for greeting cards, especially handmade ones from small shops and sellers. I learned these cards were more sought out than the ones you buy in the big box stores.
So I decided to add cards to my shop.
Now, greeting cards make up more than 75% of the profits in my business! I guess they aren’t outdated things of the past, are they?
To generally answer the question of this post, yes, you can make money selling handmade cards, but I’m not saying it’s easy.
There is a lot of competition, but if you create interesting and niche cards, you are likely to grow a customer base that will come back for more.
Can You Make Money Selling Greeting Cards On Etsy?
Yes, and Etsy is a huge platform for handmade cards. I’m not a numbers person, but I would say 8/10 of my sales on Etsy are greeting cards. Take a look on Etsy and search for cards, you’ll see many different options.
The competition is fierce on Etsy, but it’s easy to stand out with unique designs.
Get 40 Free Etsy Listings! (New Shops Only)
How I Make My Greeting Cards
I can make a more detailed tutorial on this if anyone is interested (comment below if you want that post!), but my process is pretty simple when creating my cards.
1. Create artwork
My cards are created in many different ways. Sometimes my greeting cards are just cards of my artwork and sometimes I make a design specifically for a card. It all depends!
2. Scan/import onto the computer
If it’s an original painting I want onto a card, I scan it onto my computer. But if it’s a digital design, I just airdrop my design onto my computer and go from there.
3. Edit in Photoshop
I create my cards in Photoshop and print directly from there. Red River Paper (the company I use for my art print and card paper) has templates, so I used their templates when figuring out how to lay out my card to print.
I highly recommend Red River Paper for greeting card paper, they have very high-quality paper, amazing resources, tutorials, and helpful support!
4. Print and fold card
After my design is set in Photoshop, I print out the card. I use a Canon Pixma Pro-200 to print all my artwork and cards.
When printing is complete I use a bone folder to make the fold line nice and crisp. The greeting card paper I print on is scored already, which makes for an easy fold.
5. Add envelope and package
After my card is folded, I add an envelope and package them both in a cellophane sleeve. I sell single cards and sets of 6, and my sets are also packaged in a single sleeve with the envelopes.
I also purchase my greeting card envelopes from Red River!
My Most Popular Cards
Though this changes often, some of my most popular greeting cards aren’t for any specific holiday or occasion at all. They are just cards of my art!
Check out my best-selling greeting cards here!
Some other best-sellers are very niche cards. For example, my Artist Birthday Card. I always get nervous about very specific or out-there designs, but honestly, it always works in my favor. It makes you stand out!
Conclusion
So to conclude this post, if you put the time and effort into making cards, you definitely can make money selling handmade greeting cards. My advice is to create what you love. If you checked out my best-selling cards you’ll see they definitely aren’t cards you would find in the store.
If I didn’t add cards to my shop, I wouldn’t have nearly as many sales as I do today! Experiment with your small business and see what works for you and never give up.
Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions about selling greeting cards. Thanks for reading!
-Amanda
Thank you for a great informative post. I am a 72 year old female stroke survivor. 16 months ago, I had a stroke that affected my whole right side. Previous I was right handed. I did a lot of detailed artwork. In the hospital I asked for a pencil and paper and took up to drawing with my left hand. Art is one of the main therapies for me right now. I do watercolor, pencil, acrylics, and other forms. I am very curious on selling some of my art mainly for inspiration that shows others with disabilities how to move on with their life. I am discouraged a bit with not knowing how or where to start. Is there places that would sell for me if I created cards , book markers, small works? I also create miniature items for dollhouses. Animals, artwork ,wreaths, hats, lamps, etc. Your post sparked excitement, but leaves me with lack of “how to make this happen” thoughts.