They cared enough to send the very best

I was privileged to attend the Blogger’s Conference at the Hallmark International Headquarters in Kansas City last week (disclosure: I was a guest of Hallmark, they paid. I have not been asked to write anything in particular about the visit. In fact, they never discussed what we were going to write about at all).

Hallmark invited several bloggers in order to discuss the issues and get feedback on caring and communication, the heart of their business.

I landed in Kansas City last Wednesday night, and, after establishing that I was indeed in Missouri (Didn’t want to mix that up, I hear that would have been bad. Kinda like Crips and Bloods or something), I set off to meet the driver who was going to whisk us off to the Hyatt. It was my first time being met by someone at the airport who’s carrying my name around on one of those little signs.

In our Town Car, I met new friends, Stephanie from Back in Skinny Jeans, Dotsie from Boomer Women Speak and the National Association of Boomer Women. We arrived at our hotel, put our things away, and, set out to figure out where all the people in downtown Kansas City went. Along the way, we enjoyed a huge dinner once we found the restaurant.

We all met in the lobby bright and early the next morning, and, in addition to Stephanie and Dotsie, and, our hosts from Hallmark, I met Jerry from Your Life After 50, Beverly from her personal site, Boomerworld and Baby Boomer Talk & Other Stuff, Sylvia from Diet-Blog and Sylvia’s Insight and, Jennette from Half of Me.

Next, we ventured a few blocks away to Hallmark where we were welcomed with open arms.

After a warm greeting by our hosts, and, me getting over the fact that a good many of them were diet bloggers, we were treated to breakfast and conversation in the Hallmark Visitors Center. I was immediately stuck by the kindness, sincerity, and, genuine interest in who we were, and, why we agreed to come to Hallmark to the conference.

Imagine my surprise when we found out the nice people included Don Hall, Jr., the grandson of the founder, and, the current big boss of Hallmark. Yes, the President and CEO of this global company met us at the door, and, greeted us upon our arrival.

We then were treated to a tour of the Hallmark Visitor’s Center, a must if you’re in the area, and there’s so much great memorabilia there, including the actual Hallmark crown. There’s also an impressive art collection including original Norman Rockwell and Winston Churchill paintings, and, we learned that the founder of Hallmark, J.C. Hall was a personal friend of both artists.

I will never look at a card the same way again, one stop on the tour was a man running Valentine’s Day cards for an audience. There is so much that goes into it. You know the little cards, often baby announcements, that might have a button or a bow on them? Those are attached by hand.

Next, we were treated to lunch at a very cool Union Station where we had a presentation about the Journeys card line. If you’re not familiar with the line, they are cards that express encouragement for real life situations including cancer recovery and caring for aging parents.

I know the line gets a lot of grief from people out there, but, I am here to tell you that these folks want to get it right. The writers and artists put such time and emotion into these cards, and, they took the time to ask us our opinions and to get our reactions to the line.

After lunch, we showed our credentials, achieved double secret probation security, and, entered the actual Hallmark Headquarters where we enjoyed a presentation on trends in a great room full of really artistic stuff. There’s a cool design library as well as an in-house supply store where the artists can just go get what they need. I was kind of drooling, and, I’m not even an artist.

Then, we got to go to the crown chandelier bejeweled eating area for some rockin’ desserts, and, a presentation by four artists and writers. I was so impressed at how much these people love what they do. They told us a bit about the creative process, and, we asked them lots of questions.

Among the other things I learned is that Hallmark employs over 5,000 people in Kansas City, they own Crayola, and, they are a partner of (Product)Red.

Before we knew it, we got our bags of Hallmark logo M&Ms and it was time to go. We said goodbye to Sylvia, she was within driving distance, and, the rest of us piled into the waiting limo for the after party ride to the airport. Beverly will have video up sometime. Just so you know, that really isn’t me in it, and, the driver eventually recovered.

We were given all kids of goodies that organized people like some of my fellow attendees are giving away. Me? My daughter has already gotten into the swag, and, claimed it as her own. Please know that if I had protected it properly I so would have had a giveaway. It’s not that I didn’t think about you guys, I was just too slow.

There was never a time where they gave us a sales pitch, it was all about communication, letting us see what they do, and, asking us how they could do it better.

Again, I have to say how much I enjoyed the whole thing. it’s easy to see why Hallmark is a special place, and, that the people there love what they do.

They are an old, established company, but, have reached out to the new blogging medium, also a form of personal communication, and, they genuinely want to know how to do things better.