You’ve got (actual) mail!

You’ve got (actual) mail!

How do you feel when you receive a handwritten letter?

It’s been studied and proven that handwriting helps you cope with depression and improve its symptoms, aids handling loss, and is mentally beneficial as it allows you to process emotion and have a mindful moment. We all know of the zen state we can reach when journaling or writing a letter to a loved one. I mean, we are Scribes. *self high five*

But how does the recipient feel? What’s that magical moment of opening the envelope, listening to the crisp paper unfold and take in the message that someone took time out of their own busy lives to share with you, only you?

When I moved to the UK I was amazed by the fact a huge percentage of people STILL sends actual physical Christmas cards. And birthday cards. And just cards to celebrate a milestone or to bring sender and receiver that little bit closer. I have discovered postcrossing (I’ve told you about that too), and I’m continuing to fall back in love with the “lost” art of handwriting. So I’m very much on both ends of the mail exchange. So I think I know how to talk about this.

I have received a letter from a friend last week. I was not expecting it. This new friend of mine folded her letter EXACTLY like I folded my letter when I was a teen, without knowing. She sealed it with some wax seal (oh my heart!) and within the page wrote emotions, jokes and shared moments with me. How did I feel? Elated. Warm. Like I matter to someone, even if they are so far away!

That is the main thing with a handwritten letter or note: it’s a token of someone’s time that you get to cherish and save. The special connection and feeling you had by opening and reading that piece of paper. Not a text stored in a cloud somewhere or an email you’ve found good enough to download and save in a hard drive, but something physical kept in a special place for you. Even if that special place is the fridge door where you display the love note your love left this morning, or the handmade birthday card your kids gave you last year.

In my mom’s house, there’s a note that embodies one of the most happy memories I have of my birthday: a single groceries list, where I, at the top, wrote “I love you” as a cute joke with my mom and that then members of my family, on the party, added in several languages “me too”. Now, every time I enter my suburban flat’s kitchen I smile at the “Eu também. Moi aussi. Me too. Y yo.”.

This feeling we get, when reading what a pen left on a paper by someone dear, triggered me to search for public displays of emotion after receiving Inkpact handwritten notes.

They are tricky to find (if you do find more than the ones I mention here, please send them my way! It’s thrilling to read them!) but I managed to discover a couple that hopefully will also leave your heart pumping with smiles.

  1. This lovely man on Twitter, referred to the note we sent back in 2018 as an “amazing thing to come home to.” He went on to, within the 120-character count of the platform at the time, say the unusual gesture elevates the brand, which also makes us proud!
  2. In a recent campaign to drivers from a well-known transport company, one particular recipient has resorted to the hug emoji to display his happiness at the card mailed to him!
  3. One of our more recent clients has also shared direct messages they’ve received from corporate gifting campaigns that are always accompanied by one of our lovely handwritten notes:
    • “(…) You made my day today, with an unexpected and very pleasant surprise. Thank you so much, it was the perfect day to receive such an uplifting token”
    • “You guys are so thoughtful and professional; you always keep impressing me!”
    • “Wanted to send a quick thank you note for the sweetest surprise package I received yesterday. You guys sure know how to make us feel special during this crazy time”

I guess it’s safe to say every time we write a note, or a letter, from a place of love and kindness, the energy will be carried within the paper and land on the recipient’s heart ready to make them feel loved, cherished and part of a bond that’s stronger than a quick Whatsapp message.

Speaking of these new technologies, yes, it is far easier and quicker to message someone, even make it personal by adding a voice note. But is there such a feeling that can replace seeing a letter arrive by post with your name on it and the expectation with the story that lies within? I don’t think so.

I usually end our newsletters with a “catch phrase” of sorts. And given the love, kindness and thoughtfulness we can share with our handwriting, I think it’s appropriate to use it here too:

Now let’s go save the world, one handwritten letter at a time.

Tania, Community Manager