Master Print Communications
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News & Announcements
Don’t you LOVE green printing?
For starters, you can minimize environmentally hazardous materials in your print pieces. Recycled, post-consumer waste and FSC certified papers are heavily available at most printers. If you have a project with size specific requirements, ask your printer what the most effective sheet or web-roll size is available to meet your needs.
Vegetable and soy based inks are available for offset commercial printing jobs, while digital printing uses a low VOC toner. When you choose offset jobs and print with petroleum based inks, you are using a toxic substance that contains carcinogens, chemicals known to cause cancer. Another type of ink that you should steer from is metallic and fluorescent ink. The pigments in these inks contain harmful elements like heavy metals, barium, copper and zinc. In terms of paper coatings, when considering book cover printing, brochure printing, flyer printing or any other printing that requires a coating, choose varnish, bio-degradable or aqueous based coatings instead of press varnish or film lamination.
Print design elements and paper size will impact your material consumption. Choose a finished paper size that will allow you to make an efficient use out of the standard paper sizes. If you are printing flyers or even handbooks, then design your printed piece, so that any supporting information is online and then direct the traffic to your site. Presentation slide placement can go 3-up, 4-up or even 6-up per page to reduce space. Margin space can also be reduced, whenever possible. A great example is page reduction. If you use ½ instead of ¾ page margins on a 200 page book, you will reduce the page count to approximately 180 pages. Font size can also help. Obviously, you want something readable and a good rule of thumb is 10 pt for Arial/Helvetica and 11 pt for Times New Roman. Books and handouts should be printed on both sides of the sheet for paper reduction.
You printer will give you the option to see printed proofs or to view your proofs online. Connect with the printer to drop by and see, touch and feel the paper stock and then proof your work online. Also, ask your printer if you can choose binding elements that are eco-friendly. These options should be available to you as recycled plastic coil and post consumer waste plastics. In terms of runs, try to print only what you need. Digital printing highlights this feature and enables you to utilize on demand production. Another feature of digital printing is Variable Data Printing. Targeting your print marketing materials to specific individuals reduces the printed quantity needed with most pieces. This is conjoined with cleansing and updating your mailing lists. Segment that which will benefit most from the materials.
Lastly, speak up! Tell the people about your green printing choices and encourage them to recycle your print materials once they are done using them. If you are having an event, demonstrate your green efforts and place recycling containers around the premises, to direct people to join the “greening.”
Want to do a green direct mail campaign? Email kate@mp4print, to get started.
Posted on Aug 03, 2010. XMPie's Creative Spin on Calendar Printing
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XMPie, a premier print marketing software company wanted to send out a unique holiday greeting to existing prospects and customers to demonstrate the promotional cross media marketing capabilities of their program. The ability of the variable data software had to be experienced by printers, the leading target purchasers of XMPie’s technology, so that they could understand the full potential of the cross-media capabilities. Personalized URL’s, which are intimately related to the variable data printing, were designed within a campaign that highlighted interaction and one-to-one capacity.
Out of an international audience of 1,871 printers who received the direct mail holiday greeting, 31.6% participated in the cross-media campaign by visiting their PURL. The holiday greeting card took an interesting spin as a 12 month calendar, while the inserts were delivered to customers and prospects in an appealing case. Content directed the recipients to a PURL for information on how the variable data on the calendar printing was created and how they could use the variable data technology for their own marketing. A follow up email reminder was sent to the recipients who had not yet visited their personalized landing pages.
The copy of the calendar was translated into 6 different languages, while each month contained a theme focused on an XMPie value proposition, like creating new revenue streams and tracking media in real time. The targeted messages in the landing pages contained tailored copy for the prospect and for the existing customer. The calendar direct mail piece included colorful graphics and collage imagery that incorporated numerous variables, including the recipients first and last names, company names, street addresses, cities, states or country.
So, why was this campaign such a success? Never underestimate the power of creativity. The personalized imagery in the campaign was colorful and fun, while the marketing message showcased XMPie’s value propositions all year round.
Better Print Design: 10 Easy Tips
Bleeds are a safety zone
There will always be paper and design inconsistencies. When you leave room on your document for the printer to move around on, you put your designs in a safety zone. To be safe, ensure that colors and designs that touch the edges, leak out about 3 mm on through the sides.
Have a blast with overprint
Sometimes, your budget will limit you to the amount of colors you can use. If you are limited to only 2 PMS colors, experiment with overprint options to explore various depths inside a limited color pallet.
Don’t get stuck in the paper
Many times, you will feel limited to the sized panels of your print piece. If you want to make your print interactive without having to print extra components onto the printed piece, think outside the box. People’s minds will instantaneously fill in gaps to a bigger picture, so using the boarder of your paper can provide for you a unique and creative interaction.
Sizes like to play
Remember, big is great but it isn’t necessarily better. Small square booklets can be used to create interesting reading experiences and are much easier to carry around.
Images Versus Words War!
I will ignore the temptation to clarify the importance of keeping each separate and instead give you a tip for function. If you are working on textual content, there is a time when you can merge text and graphics. By using typography as an element of design, you can increase the concentration on the content and allow for clear readability.
Minimalism is ATTRACTIVE.
Visual noise is never appealing. The brain does not like to process too many things at one time. If your idea requires putting too much on a single page, don’t try and make it fit-come up with another idea. If you have a client asking you to include too much information, you need to have a consultation and explain the logic behind the placement of the graphic elements.
Proportion to avoid Distortion
Sticking to a grid is key in design work. Composition guidelines are a simple way to execute proportion and relationship. You don’t necessarily need to work with a 3-column set up, a 7 column set up can be playful, 2 column overlaps can be tried or a 3/3/1 set up with a sidebar can work well.
The Ruler of Your Design: Typography
Typographical set up cannot be mended with lines and other elements. Whatever font you use will set the stage for the feel of your message. You must consider what type of voice you want the print piece to have because it is what enables you to communicate your message effectively to your target audience. To be safe you can go with Helvetica, Swiss or Akzidenz Grotesk, but it takes a lot of trial and error to find a font that works for you. Play around with a bunch of them to feel out what works.
Strengthen
If you want a title, quote or logo to particularly stand out go ahead and invert it. White against a dark color will give the design and the typography much more strength and impact. If your type size is 8pt or lower, you may have an issue with containing the ink just after printing, but this is also dependant on stock, printing speed and other factors.
In the Haze
If you are not demanding high quality source photographic content, you can have one low resolution photo ruin your work. On the other hand, a great high resolution quality shot can really transform the impact of the whole design.
For any additional questions or design requests, contact Master Print’s creative graphic design services.
Print a Successful Catalog Today!
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The catalog is a multi page presentation that offers plenty of room for images and copy. While catalogs are often used as product collateral, the booklet format is a familiar and flexible communications tool ideal for complimenting a direct marketing letter or using for annual reports. The style, design and photography of a catalog make it the perfect promotional mail in disguise. According to the PIA Digital Printing Council, just by having a superior quality front cover, revenue can increase by 30-40 percent. That said, let’s go ahead and look at the building blocks of successful catalog execution:
Beginning the Catalog
Every print project begins with an objective that will determine the look, the feel and presentation of your catalog. Once you have determined what you need to communicate, you can reach the right target groups with your product’s prices, style and fulfillment plan. You must also determine your budget. Being clear on your spending will help your designer choose the right papers, formats, printers and styles of your catalog. You can move forward by defining and organizing your products into groups for navigation and by designing the catalog format. The front cover is an important and forceful page, so do not clutter the cover with too many elements. Applicable elements that should be placed on the cover include the logo, tagline and volume. The cover should flow well with the inside front cover and internal pages. Your back cover is a space for the logo, return address, contact information, mailing panel or a feature product.
The Catalog Production Process
After you’ve planned the catalog layout and decided on the dimensions you must finalize your product data. At this point you are working on the master layout that has been sorted and categorized with images and copy. The master layout includes common page elements, grids, design themes and type specifications. Stick with product descriptive copy for consumer catalogs and if you are working on a business or technical catalog include any information corporate buyers may need to make informed purchase decisions. After you’ve completed and processed layout images, ensure that you have made a CMYK conversion.
Catalog Printing Suggestions
To save money and avoid printing delays there are a couple of catalog printing tips and suggestions you should make a note of. If you are pressed for time, consider adjusting to web press specifications. This will significantly speed up your printing. If your catalog meets a minimum quantity and page count, you can go ahead and work with this printing method. If you can organize your pages in increments of 32 for a catalog sized 8-3/8” x 10-7/8” or 64 for a 5-3/8” x 8-3/8” format, you will save considerable costs with the use of an 8 unit web press and less labor. You may also design a slightly smaller page width and save a considerable amount of money by reducing paper, freight and mailing costs. A standard catalog format is a 32 page 8-3/8” x 10-7/8”; the next cost effective format would be printed in 16 page increments on standard house paper.
To prevent direct mailing delays, submit your mailing list at least 7 days before the scheduled binding and addressing. You must also consider list cleansing and the calculation of estimated postage. When deciding on catalog specifications, you may be tempted to save money with a two color design. Research has shown that four color catalogs generate the best responses by grabbing more attention and generating more sales. If you have any additional questions pertaining to your catalog printing options, your printer will give you the necessary advice. Contact Master Print to get started on your catalog today!
How to Achieve the Digital Print Quality You’re Looking For
When designing print pieces for digital print production, one of the best practices to adapt is to proof consistently. Because digital proofs are printed on the actual production device to show an exact sample of the print piece, adjusting files, reviewing revised proofs and repeating the process for satisfaction ensures that each step of the process is monitored and optimal design capacity is reached.
Top of the line digital technology like the Xerox iGen4 pioneers color consistency, but optimizing larger areas of flat tints is still important. Digital color presses are excellent at reproducing color, but for larger areas the designer can choose lighter or darker percentages to ensure evenness. Imaging software like Adobe Photoshop can also assist with creating textures and patterns with mid tone tints or long blends to accommodate the larger areas.
With offset printing presses, black coverage over large areas is executed with rich blacks, which are created through a mixture in percentages of process colors. The Xerox iGen4 digital press utilizes an optimal formula that provides a 100 percent clean black, but other digital presses use process colors to improve solid black coverage. If your commercial printer is using a digital press like the Xerox iGen4, note that adding colors to a 100 percent black base will produce a colorful range of blacks that can be applied as a creative and not a necessary application.
While the use of image compression enables you to download files quickly and easily, it can cause the loss of valuable data and information which cannot be restored. Compressed files, like JPEGs must be opened with Adobe Photoshop and decompressed, or saved as TIFF or EPS files. Digital type reproduction is also much different from offset. It is possible that smaller typefaces will be more challenging on the digital press, but knockout types on black can work well. You must proofread the readability and effectiveness of your typefaces and ensure that the applicable changes are made.
In terms of resolution, if your print piece includes scans of text and line art you must produce a 600 to 1200 dpi. Continuous tone images will require a 300 dpi. If you are using variable data printing, increasing the resolution will have a minimal impact on continuous tone images and contain more data than is necessary. In terms of color and images, images with RGB will have a larger color gamut than CMYK. The programming of the digital press understands the optimal color translation to ensure color reproduction and flexibility.
Nonetheless, each print job will have specific requirements that must be met and the best way to ensure that your digital design meets your expectations is to seek advice from your printer on how to improve your proofs. Before you commit to any job with any printer, you should discuss your needs and feel out the experience and skill set of the printer.
Want to learn more about digital printing? Explore Master’s digital solutions here.
