In a very unscientific survey, I asked 20 people what was the first thing they thought of when I said the word, “Hallmark.” Almost everyone (95%) said a “card” or “greeting card”, which I assumed to be the same answer. The one person who answered differently said, “A television channel.” We can guess what this individual most often watches on television, and it’s probably not sports on the ESPN network.
Hallmark Cards, Inc. has had a huge impact on American society. It is a brand name that has become almost synonymous with its main product. Its branding phrases are used far beyond the realms of the use of its products. The phrase “Life is a special occasion” summarizes an upbeat, philosophical point of view that is used at joyous occasions and as a celebration of life at those time that may not be completely joyous.
The phrase, “When you care enough to send the very best” has been Hallmark’s official slogan since 1944. It became a pass phrase for excellence, and drove Hallmark to the position of being the number one card company in the world. With the demand for greeting cards it helped develop, this one phrase may have also changed the whole industry of greeting cards. It opened the door to other niche card companies to become successful as well.
What is the original of the name and word Hallmark? There are two primary dictionary definitions of the word. The first is a “signature characteristic.” What does that mean? A signature characteristic is that one distinctive trait that “says it all.” It describes the essence of the object or organization. The second definition is a “mark or indication of excellence, quality or purity.” It is the sign that guarantees the purity, origin or genuineness of an object.
I found the etymology of the word very interesting. It all began with the “Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths”, first chartered in London in 1327. In addition to being a livery company, they were also entrusted with the task of ensuring the quality and purity of gold and silver objects that were sold in Great Britain. The Goldsmith’s Company has operated out of the same location since they built the first of three Goldsmiths’ Halls in 1339. To show people that a particular object had been tested and its purity and origin were verified, a seal of approval was stamped into the object or attached to it. That seal became known as the Hallmark.
Five years ago, I would have loved these word games associated with the term Hallmark. Today thinking visually, I have my own definition of Hallmark. FIrst, what’s a hall? It can be a large building that can serve as a meeting place for large groups of people, or for special purposes such as a classroom building on a college campus. However, a hall is also a passage way within a building to allow people to go from one area to another.
Although I can envisioned a hallway in a college classroom or administration building, the hall to which I was drawn was a hall of a large castle. If one walks down a hall in a castle, what does one see? Scattered on the walls are portraits of family members or ancestors of the family that owns the castle. These portraits celebrate the people of the family and their greatest accomplishments. The second thing one sees as one walks down the hall are mementos of the family celebrating the great events of the family. The portraits and mementos are hallmarks, celebrating the origin, the quality and the excellent achievements of the family of the castle. This is my visual definition of the term hallmark.
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