Paper vs. Online Invitations: A Big Decision for Your Event

Go back in time 20+ years and you will find that sending event invitations was straightforward. Your only option, for the most part, was to send paper invitations. In today’s day and age, things have changed a bit. Now, you have a couple of options though the most popular is online.

Which one is right for your event? Which one will attract the most attendees? Here is what makes a decision so difficult: there is no right or wrong answer. The choice is yours, and you can only make a final decision once you are comfortable with the pros and cons of each.

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To start, let’s take a look at a couple primary benefits of paper invitations:

• Tangible item that recipients can keep in a “safe place.”
• People still get excited when they receive snail mail.
• High sense of style and personalization.
• Connects with older generations who are not using email frequently or at all.

Before we discuss the comparison process, let’s examine the benefits of online invites:

• Fast and efficient.
• More customization and personalization options than ever before.
• Free (if you want it to be).
• Immediate delivery.
• Opportunity to show recipients who else is invited and attending, such as when you use Facebook.

Now that you understand the benefits of both paper and online invitations, it is time to make a big decision: which one will you rely on for your next event?

The good thing is that you cannot go wrong with either decision. Just understand your audience and what they will react to the best. Usually, it is easier for many attendees to easily RSVP online, giving you more accurate attendance numbers, which is very helpful when setting the budget.

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Here are five questions you can answer to make an informed and confident decision:

• What type of invitation will your audience best respond to?
• Do you have a better chance of converting invites to attendees if you choose one method or the other?
• Will you be able to get the level of customization you need with both options?
• Are you comfortable with the cost and time requirements associated with both?
• Do you have a higher level of comfort with paper or online invitations?

What Next?

This information is meant to give you a closer look at both types of invitations. Only you know what is best for your event. Only you know what has worked best in the past.