Carol Miller
Executive Director, New Product Concepts
Social Expressions Innovation Expert

To schedule an interview, please contact Frank Cirillo or Meghan Olmstead, 216.252.4938

Want to know a secret? When it comes to innovation, the greeting card aisle is quickly becoming one of the most exciting places to be. Music cards continue to be wildly popular, technology cards are gaining momentum, and consumers are suddenly demanding that greeting cards have more “wow” than ever before.

So, who’s in charge of innovating the “wow” at American Greetings? Well, in a word…everyone. Creativity is the soul of American Greetings and our talented writers and artists generate innovative ideas every day. But, as best-selling author and marketing guru, Seth Godin, so eloquently states, when it comes to innovation success, "What's missing isn't the ideas... it's the will to execute them."

Enter Carol Miller. Carol and her team of concept developers are charged with examining new ways to add innovative features and benefits to the company’s products. “It really is a great time for the social expressions industry and there are a lot of fresh innovations on the horizon,” said Carol. “The hard part is identifying innovations that meet a consumer need. We don’t want to just create the next best tech enhancement, we want to always step back and ask, does this really add value for the consumer?”

Details of next year’s batch of “wow” products are obviously top-secret, but Carol is optimistic and believes it will be a big year for innovations in the social expressions industry. “It’s funny. The big themes never change. People want to say, ‘I love you.’ They want to say, ‘I care about you.’ They want to wish someone a happy day or make someone laugh. What’s different is the desire people have for new and different ways to deliver these universal ideas. Hopefully, we can help them out.”

And, if you’re interested in hearing more about product innovation, communication trends, and how consumers are utilizing technology to stay in touch – well, she promises to help you out, too.