CardThis is proud to be a part of New York’s Photo Hack Day this Saturday, August 20^th.

Smart people from across the country are coming to General Assembly to build awesome photo apps in an old-fashioned hackathon.

We’re giving away $500 to the team that best incorporates our awesome technology in its app.

Here are the details:

What CardThis Does:

There are so many amazing photo apps coming to the market these days, but so few ways to turn these incredible images into meaningful, tangible items that people can cherish and share with one other. The CardThis technology is absolutely the best way to share images offline. With one click of a button, users can turn any images into fantastic greeting cards. After the users type in their messages and input their addresses and payment info, we print the cards at a top-notch facility and send them directly to the recipients.

How the Tech Works:

The CardThis technology is incredibly simple. It’s just one line of javascript, and it can be built into any program, mobile or otherwise. CardThis is built for everyone and every platform. All you have to do is sign up here to get access to the code (and get paid whenever a card gets sent from your app!) Got a tech question? Email our founder Josh – Josh@CardThis.com – and he’ll get you all set in no time.

Ideas for Apps:

By letting people share the web offline in the form of gorgeous personalized greeting cards, CardThis instantaneously makes the world a more thoughtful place. Any app that truly incorporates that spirit of sharing will grab our attention. Here are a few examples:

• InstantCardma: Any picture taken with this app is automatically turned into a greeting card and sent by mail to a loved one.
• PenPals: Like a mashup of PostSecret and ChatRoulette using printed greeting cards.
• ThankYouNow: An app that automatically sends printed thank you cards once gifts have been purchased from wedding registries.

Come join us – sign up here:  http://photohackday.eventbrite.com/

If you’re like my mom – SuperSow – then you’ve already got all of your holiday mailing addresses alphabetized together in a notebook under your rotary telephone. But if you’re like my brother – BumblePig – then all you have in the way of addresses for your friends and family is a saved Facebook invite from last spring to your buddy Dave’s party in Greenpoint.

If You’re Organized…

For you SuperSows out there with all of your addresses together, just download this form, transfer your mailing addresses into it, and import the file to PigSpigot here. All of your contacts will be immediately added to your PigSpigot profile and you can send cards to any of them at any point in the future with just the click of a button.

If You’re Not…

We’ve also made it easy for you BumblePigs to get in on the fun as well, no matter how disorganized you’ve been in the past. If you are a Gmail user, here’s what you can do:

1) Open this template we made.

2) Click the “Use This Template” button in the top left.

3) Send out the form to friends and relatives by clicking “Email This Form” on top of the next page.

4) The responses will be saved in your Google Docs as “Copy of PigSpigot’s Address Book” – you’ll get an email message with a link to the file, as well.

5) All you have to do then is go to that file and click on “File” then “Download as CSV.”

6) Then import the downloaded file to PigSpigot here.

All of your contacts will be immediately added to your PigSpigot profile and you can send cards to any of them at any point in the future with just the click of a button. In other words, you’ll be just as responsible as your mom. Not bad for a few clicks of a mouse, huh?

What comes next? Well, you’ll have a PigSpigot profile full of great people whom you probably like – and may even love. Why not make an awesome holiday card and then send it to them?

Remember: PigSpigot makes it easier for you to send better cards!

See you around the sty,
The Pig

PS: Make sure you check out our new video!

Here’s how you do it:

1) CREATE A CARD

Go to our Create Page and pick a good theme (I like “Season’s Greetings” and “Holiday Fun”). Then upload your family photos and write something nice like “Happy Holidays” then click Finish. Looks pretty good, right?

2) ADD YOUR RECIPIENTS

So you’ve created a great card. Now, click on “Send Card” and add in the addresses of everyone you want to send your card to. You can add them one at a time, or you enter them all at once by clicking on the “Import Contacts” button.

3) WRITE ONE MESSAGE – FOR EVERYONE

That’s right, just one message for everyone. We’ve come up with cool technology that lets you personalize each card with the name of its recipient at a click of a button – plus you can go into each card and tweak the message to make it even more personal.

4) FIRE AWAY

Send all of your cards right away, or schedule them to be delivered closer to the big day(s) of your choice.

If you have any questions, call me or email me – I personally want to make sure that all of our users have a great experience with this amazing new technology.

Thanks!

Josh Stein
CEO, PigSpigot.com
(347) 422-7370
josh@pigspigot.com

Today is a great day. Today is P-day – the day we introduce our new and improved site to the world. We’ve spent the last several months putting in long hours to try to make PigSpigot not just the best greeting card site around, but also the best place in the universe to be thoughtful. As we emerge from the sty – carrying trash cans full of empty Mountain Dew cans and Cheetos bags – we can honestly say we’ve succeeded. Here’s why:

We Give You the Best of Both Worlds

You want to be considerate, but you don’t have the time to regularly send out personalized, printed greeting cards the old-fashioned way. So we’ve designed and built a flexible template system that lets you write – and personalize – dozens of cards to dozens of different people in minutes. You can write one holiday card for all of your friends and relatives, and then personalize each message in several different ways, in just seconds. It’s the coolest thing since bacon.

We are the Address Book of the Future

Every time you send cards to folks, we save their addresses. The next time you come to the site, you can send another card to them simply by clicking on their names. It gets better, though. Much, much better. With our contact importer, you can upload all of your contacts from any other address book in just seconds.

We Listen to You

You are our core users. You told us what you liked about PigSpigot, and then you told us what you wished we would do better. When Jessica T. told us she wished she could schedule delivery of printed birthday cards to all of her friends throughout the year in one sitting, we got to work making that happen. With our new delivery scheduler, you can pick a different delivery date for each of the cards you’re sending, and schedule cards to be sent out months from now. Jess, you’ll never forget an important date again!

So go check it out, and send a printed card or ten.
In fact, if you’re willing to send out your holiday cards with us, we’d be so honored that we’ll help you design it – for free.

Remember, we make it easier for more people to send better cards!

See you around the sty,
The Pig
ThePig@PigSpigot.com

What inspires you?

I wish I knew. Inspiration comes sporadically and from the strangest places such as dreams, conversations, flashes of images from tv, other images…

What’s your favorite kind of greeting card to receive?

Funny, cute, sarcastic, naughty.

What’s your favorite kind of card to send?

Funny, cute, sarcastic, naughty.

What is the last card you received / sent?

The last card I received was on my birthday, June 11th. The last card I sent was on my son’s birthday in July. Ironically, I’m not real good at sending cards.

Where do you do your best work?

Where I live.

What’s your favorite medium and why?

Photography, instant gratification and capturing moments in time.

Where are you located?

Amherst, Massachusetts

Where can people find your art for purchase?

Gift shops, card shops, grocery stores, floral shops, etc.

Tell us what you think about the Pig!

It’s a great site, great idea. I like the edgy cards. I particularly like the fact that the uploading of cards is very simple and easy.

What’s your favorite pork product?

I’m a vegetarian but I do miss bacon.

When people experience life’s most important moments, they remember those who shared in their success. There’s no better way than a greeting card (ok, maybe a Ferrari) to tell them “way to go”! Here at PigSpigot, we have a wonderful library of cards to celebrate special accomplishments.

The Importance of Being Earnest

Sometimes, you don’t want to mess around. You just want to give that special someone a solid pat on the back and tell them, “You did good.” And then that person can show off how smart they are by correcting your grammar. These cards are the best when you just want to say, plainly and simply: “Congratulations.”

This beatiful, typographic congratulations card gets the job done, shortly and sweetly.

This carnivorous creation, emphasizing a job “well done”, makes a wonderful visual pun.

This archer’s delight, celebrating a bullseye, compares achievement to an ancient, violent sport.

Congrats! Now, Drink!

Some of our cards are quite obviously an attempt to excuse or condone the imbibing of alcohol as a mechanism for celebration. Maybe that means PigSpigot artists are a bunch of drunks. Or maybe it’s just that they are plugged into cultural or social norms. For what is more traditional than throwing a few back to celebrate a job well done, a baby born or a hangover cured?

This fantastic design shows a popping champagne bottle and lots of colorful, effervescent bubbles.

Likewise, this card shows two clinking champagne flutes. Nice stems!

Our Piglets really know how to party!

Let’s just hope they party responsibly.

Remember, we make it easier for more people to send better cards!

See you around the sty,
The Pig
ThePig@PigSpigot.com

Become a Pigspigot Fan on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter @PigSpigot

For the under-50 TV fan who played the game and brought you the package

For the over-50 TV fan who’s been down the road and back again for you

For the Vulcan-eared TV fan who came to visit from afar

For a fellow ’80s movie buff who busted you out of your funk

For the relative who sent you a sweet present

For the 10-year old who will eventually move to Williamsburg

For the retro hipster who scored you some Animal Collective tickets

For the non-vegetarian in your life

For the non-PETA member in your life

For the friend who did the dirty work you couldn’t do

For someone who’s taken care of you when you’ve been down

For the person who took you down the rabbit hole

For the exceedingly strange man in your life

For the person who gave you wings

In other words, thanks a ton.
Remember, we make it easier for more people to send better cards!

See you around the sty,
The Pig
ThePig@PigSpigot.com

Become a Pigspigot Fan on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter @PigSpigot