Getting Personal
Writing a note can sometimes be the hardest part, but with some structure, it might ignite the inner Shakespeare in us!
When purchasing a DONO gift, you have the option to personalize a message to the recipient. I already foresee sweating, writer’s block, heart palpitations, and any coping mechanism to get us motivated (or unmotivated) to say something heartfelt and meaningful. The easy way out is to keep it short and simple. A message that simply states, “Congratulations!” or “Happy Birthday!” can suffice, but with so many mediums available to us these days (social media, eCards, billboard messages, skywriting, etc…) I think we owe it to ourselves and our sophisticated capabilities beyond a furrier group of primates to spend a little extra time to get a bit more personal. So where do we even begin?
DONO allows you to personalize a message through pictures, video and writing. Here are some creative ways to get the juices flowing:
Pictures- You can always include a selfie of you and the recipient (or up to four, because you know you have them!) but some other ideas to consider are below:
Replicate the scene in Love Actually- Do you remember when the Andrew Lincoln character declares his love to Keira Knightley on a bunch of posterboards? He flips through various posterboards that says things like, “And my wasted heart will love you” and “To me, you are perfect”. Pictures of you holding up written signs expressing how you feel about them is one cute way to show two mediums of expression (picture and word) in one.
Take a picture of pictures. I like laying out a bunch of polaroids or photo booth photos on a table and take a picture of it all together. You are limited to only four pictures on the app, so it’s a way to add a little more to the mix.
Add pictures of candid shots, where not everyone looks put together. You can couple it with a message that says, “for better or worse, through sickness and in health….”
Video/Audio- For my husband’s birthday, I got a bunch of his friends to secretly send me clips of them answering various questions like, “what is your favorite/funniest memory with him” or “if you can toast to him with one drink, what would it be and why?”. I also asked them to say “Happy Birthday” in any language other than English (if they knew any). Then I compiled it all together into one video. It was a fun surprise for him to see who of his friends would appear in the video and really sweet to hear all the messages. This would be a great way to add some extra personalization to a DONO gift card. You only get a minute of video though, so make every second count! Don’t discount singing, reading a poem, or just a simple message expressing your wishes in person.
Writing- This can sometimes be the hardest part, but with some structure, it might ignite the inner Shakespeare in us!
Find a meaningful quote. Simple google searches like, “Funny quotes about aging” or “Quotes about friendship” might bring up some that you can relate to.
Use each letter of the recipient’s name to describe them (ex. Dan: D-Daring, A-Artistic, N- Noble), or if you are feeling extra poetic, write an acrostic, where the first letter of each line of a poem or paragraph spells out their name.
Write about an experience with that person or a memory that was meaningful to you.
Write what you are thankful for in the friendship or relationship. If it’s a birthday and the person is turning 30, write 30 reasons you are thankful for that person or 30 things that make the person awesome, etc…
Without getting too sappy about the topic on personalized messages, I will just end with how much a meaningful message can be the gift itself. Words go a long way and can carry on for a lifetime so give it a try and channel your inner artist.