A Valentine’s Day Idea

Do you  have an email account? Are you subscribed to various promotional email lists? Are those promotional emails all decked out in pink and red, love and hearts?

If you’re like me, you glance over them before hitting the delete button (if you even open it), right? Well, one promotional email today stopped me. It wasn’t what they were selling. It was the graphic they used in the email. I thought it was so wholesome! It made me smile, and I thought how nice it was that a mainstream businesses didn’t think it was necessary to rely on silly or sensual imagery to advertise their product.

Here’s the graphic:

Canva promo

So after smiling and thinking, I deleted the email. Then I got an idea. Why not tell them that I like it?

There is so much garbage used in advertising today and it is a good thing to speak out against it. But it’s a better thing thank people for doing what is good and pleasing to God, whether they know it is or not.

So, I un-deleted the message and sent a thank you email to their “Customer Happiness Team”. I said something like this:

Hi Canva team,

I just received your promotional email “Create Infographics with Canva”. I just wanted to say “Thank You” for choosing a graphic in in the email that promoted a wholesome, discreet, family-friendly message that makes me want to support you and recommend you to others! Thanks again. –James

I don’t know. Something like that. Whatever was going through my head at the moment.

But this was their reply:

Canva Ivan

I have no idea if my two-cents will make any kind of an impact, but it has at least effected one person. Ivan. And if not Ivan as a customer support agent logging hours at work, Ivan as a person. A person made in God’s image, with a conscience, with a family, with an intellect and belief system all his own that I hope has been sprinkled with some salt and light.

Deleting “junk” emails from your inbox? Think twice. Scan for wholesomeness and shoot off a “Thank You” email to let others know that you are grateful for integrity in the business world.

Let’s make a difference this Valentine’s Day season, one “junk” email at a time!

And why not do the same thing all year long? Put some purpose into weeding out those promotional emails. 🙂

9996_Many Glacier-Montana-USA_Canon EOS 40D, 17 mm, 1-8 sec at f - 11, ISO 100

5 Comments

  1. Kathryn February 14, 2015 at 12:35 pm #

    Thank you for sharing, James. I’d honestly never considered saying “thank you” to someone who sends junk emails to my inbox, 😉 but what a creative thought… an excellent way to let the light of Christ shine. How desperately both simple gratitude and encouragement in righteousness are needed in our culture.

  2. ANA February 14, 2015 at 12:44 pm #

    ESTIMADO HERMANO EN CRISTO: COMPARTO SU PENSAMIENTO RESPECTO A LOS CORREOS BASURA QUE HOY ESTAN INUNDANDO TODAS LAS REDES. LOS MUNDANOS CREEN QUE SI NO HAY FOTOS DE CARACTER SEXUAL O PALABRAS QUE SEAN DE TONO INAPROPIADO NO PUEDEN VENDER, ASI ESTA EL MUNDO, BAJO EL DOMINIO DE LA INMORALIDAD EN ALTO GRADO.¿ HERMANO USTEDES TIENEN SU IGLESIA EN SU CASA? USTEDES SON BAUTISTAS O EVANGELICOS O PENTECOSTALES? NOSOTROS HACE 20 AÑOS QUE NOS CONGREGAMOS EN UNA IGLESIA CRISTIANA DE LA GRACIA, ME GUSTARIA QUE ME CONTESTE LAS PREGUNTAS. BENDICIONES DESDE BUENOS AIRES,ARGENTINA.

  3. Nellie Prince February 14, 2015 at 4:08 pm #

    James, what a marvelous idea! Whenever communicating with an organization, company, etc. about something I found unsettling, I always try to include something that is pleasing to me as well. Frequently, I create the communication in my word processing software, so that I may reread it a few hours or a day or two prior to forwarding. This allows me the opportunity to review it for any negative emotional response on my part (annoyance, anger, bitterness) that may have prompted me to communicate in the first place. This is an important point to remember when communicating with legislators, too.

    Take heart, your communication was more than likely very important to its recipient.

    A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver. Proverbs 25:11

  4. Esther Staddon February 16, 2015 at 11:24 am #

    That is such a great idea, James! What a positive way to fight the good fight. 🙂

  5. James February 16, 2015 at 11:29 am #

    Excellent point, Nellie. Thank you for sharing from your experience.

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