The holiday cards are starting to trickle in and it’s always such a treat to receive greetings from dear family and friends from near and far. With each one, I’m reminded that we need to get moving on ours as well (as opposed to our Happy New Year card in mid-January like last year). I recently came across video holiday greeting cards from the geniuses over at Animoto, that may be our golden ticket.

Related: How to use the new Animoto video maker app

Most of us already know them for the service they provide, creating amazing, free professional-quality videos from photos and music. They
now offer holiday-themed videos and will help you create unique, 30-second videos that you can send out to everyone on your e-mailing list. All you have to do is upload your pics, choose the song you like,and let their magical software do the rest.

Besides, 30 second videos are free! (Although it’s so worth it to upgrade for a few bucks.) Now instead of seeing a still shot of little Parker in a Santa hat, mischievously tugging at that ornament, everyone can watch him pull the whole tree down.