Small. Simple. Powerful.

This week I received a postcard from Chewy.com.

It was handwritten and hand-addressed.

It was personalized.

It led me to place another order.

The handwritten message and hand-addressed portion made a difference, because I know how much time that takes.

I throw away a chunk of holiday cards every year just because I write them by hand, in pen, and if I make a mistake, I do it again. Crossing out words and continuing on as I did as a kid writing letters to my grandmother isn’t acceptable. If you’re representing a company, product, etc., the message and its spelling need to be on target. No crossed out words.

The addressing made a difference, because I wasn’t just another generic label. Someone had to write out my name and address—and my last name is a hard one, so they had to go letter by letter to make sure they got it right.

The personalization mattered because someone took the time to recognize my purchase and to say thank you.

I placed another order, just as I’m sure Chewy.com hoped I would.

I could shop anywhere, but they did something that I recognize takes time and thought.

These are the little things that count.

Small.

Simple.

Powerful.

Here’s something else:

From time to time, I’ve received thank you notes and postcards from readers of www.StevenPressfield.com and customers of www.BlackIrishBooks.com.

I track who sends them and I remember them, because they did something kind and spent their time on me. Time is valuable and valued.

And while I’m not buying everyone’s books and painting and albums, I’m more inclined to check out the creations from the individuals who contacted me before they had something to pitch.

There’s a lot of power in just a note, in just a thank you, in just a little personalization, and giving your time to someone else.