Remember how you squealed in excitement when your best friend’s wedding invitation card arrived by post? The neat package, with beautiful ribbons and calligraphy. It was so beautiful that you could prop it up on your mantelpiece for years to come.

Wedding invitations are important. It sets the tone for the event. For example, exorbitant wedding cards will most likely mean an extravagant wedding party too. Likewise, a more formal wedding reception invitation will reflect a black tie wedding. Lately, digital wedding invitation card has replaced paper wedding invitations for a variety of reasons.

Every couple in the age of the internet will find themselves battling to decide whether to opt for paper invitations or digital invitation cards. The following points may help you to arrive at a decision much faster:

If you are one to follow traditions and etiquette, then paper wedding invitation cards are the way to go. They are the first announcements to be sent out to guests and are held in high regard by traditionalists. While online RSVP and virtual wedding invitation cards are gaining popularity, paper invitation cards are still vital when it comes to abiding by customs.

Paper invitation cards may have become cheaper than before, but they still constitute a sizeable part of the wedding budget. Deciding on the paper, design, colour, printing and delivery is time-consuming and expensive. With online wedding invitation makers, the entire process can be cut by half. Within a few clicks your card is ready and often with little or no cost at all!

Digital wedding invites are extremely convenient. It helps you track RSVPs easily, saves delivery time, and helps to keep your guest list organised. Guest lists and RSVPs can get difficult to keep track of when it comes to paper invites.

No trees are harmed when you send out e-invites for your special day. You do not need to purchase paper, or leave harmful carbon footprints to get them delivered.

Online wedding invitation makers save you ample time when designing your card. Wedding planning takes months, and the nitty-gritty of designing your card can take a while. Log on to one of these online wedding card makers and get your wedding invitations made in a few clicks!

Can you imagine getting your wedding invitation card made absolutely free? Some sites offer bespoke digital wedding invitation cards free-of-charge or at a nominal fee.

Pre and Post-invite information like ‘Save the date’ and guest reminders become easy to share with your guest list with electronic invites. It also makes social media announcements a lot easier than paper invites.

The ease of delivery is one of the biggest advantage of using virtual wedding invitation cards. When you have relatives and friends living abroad, postal delivery or physical visits may be a tad impossible. These are some ways you can send them fun invitations:

The most common method of delivering virtual wedding invitations is via email. It is convenient, formal and almost everyone has an email address. Many wedding invitation design sites also have their own email platforms which you may use. If not, email marketing services such as Mailchimp can provided automated email delivery and establishing guest lists.

It is slightly informal in nature than email invites. You may set up Facebook Events to post announcements, invitations and updates about your wedding to selected friends.

This is also another viable method of delivering wedding invitations in the 21st century. WhatsApp wedding invitation has picked up steam among close friends lately but it is still not a popular method. Other messaging services include the standard SMS, or apps like Telegram and Messenger. Messaging can be a great way to send brief updates or reminders or links to wedding websites.

Event websites like Eventbrite.com, eventcreate.com, rsvpify.com, and onlive.io help you create virtual events via which you may send invites, set up guests lists and easily collect online RSVPs in return.

These sites bring you a complete paper-free package beginning with a variety of online wedding card design, guest list maker, emailing and RSVP tracking. Some of the best ones include greenenvelope.com, paperlesspost.com, evite.com, and withjoy.com.

Digital wedding invitation cards are a great way to send out invites for your wedding day. But e-invitations lack the feel of romance that a tangible paper wedding invitation brings. Sending out letterpress invitations are more like a gift that an invitation to your guests. It creates a magnificent first impression and is more formal in nature. Get the best of both worlds in the following way:

• Send out digital invites for events happening before and after the wedding. Send printed wedding invitations for your nuptials.
• Your printed wedding invitations can also have information on how to RSVP online for easy tracking.
• Save the printed wedding invitations for older family members, seniors, bosses, and other VVIPs. Send out digital wedding invitation cards to the more tech-savvy guests.

There are certain digital etiquette to keep in mind to ensure that your guests are not annoyed by your e-invite.

1. Try to stick to email, event websites and e-invitation services when sending out your digital wedding invitation cards. These are more personal and provide a formal image when inviting guests.
2. If you are using email as a mode of delivery, do not forget to add your guest list to BCC. This is so that, when they RSVP, they do not send it to everyone else in the mailing list. This way you can also maintain the confidentiality of your guest list.
3. Keep the language of your invitation formal, since this will create the first impression of your wedding.
4. Include a note in your invitation, requesting your guests to RSVP even if they are not sure if they will be able to make it.
5. If a guest does not RSVP, try calling them instead of dropping several emails.
6. Do not combine other wedding events with your nuptials in one invitation. They are separate events and may require different invites.

Lastly, it is always good to keep your older guests in mind and have a few paper invites printed. Digital wedding invitations may appear impersonal, and may not be appropriate for everyone especially close family members. If you look it up, there is something common among all the best wedding invitations. It is the ability to design a card that is elegant and warmly invite people to your special day.