Print Design TipsTips and Information About Printing

Graphic design is the art of visual communication, using both imagery and words. Graphic designers use these two elements in a variety of media including print, television, web, packaging, advertizing and a long list of others. Probably the only medium within which graphic design is not utilized is radio!
Common design elements include photographs, type (font), illustrations, shapes, different colors and texture. By combining these design elements, a graphic designer will produce the finished design, however they are frequently assisted in the design process by powerful tools, usually in the form of software programs such as Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator.

Shapes are at the root of design and have been historically from cave paintings to ancient writing to the modern period. Shapes define layouts, make patterns and are fundamental to the other elements created on the viewed page. Lines are used to draw the eye and mind’s attention to specific parts of the design, to define the parameter or area of the design, or as a separator of different page content. Lines can be straight or curved, but they do not need to be drawn necessarily – a line can be implied by the design, for instance typed text following a curved path.

Color is a very important element in graphic design because it impacts upon viewer’s perception and it is changeable depending on the context within which it is viewed. Color is also a factor which resonates emotionally with the viewer – there are warm colors, e.g. orange, and cold colors, e.g. light blue. Type refers to the fonts used in text, but also size, color, alignment and spacing which all affect how the text is rendered and how it impacts within the overall design.

Images, including photographs are also powerful design elements because they can bring a design to life and as the saying goes, “A picture is worth a thousand words!”

Color is basic and yet so powerful in its effect on our senses while providing deep rooted emotional responses; this makes your use of color absolutely vital when it comes to presenting your ideas to the world.

A simple absence of color can convey a lack of emotion, a professional aura, prudent and sober decision making.

A presence of color can convey bright ideas, shock and taste, happy go lucky approach, friendly and easy to deal with attitude and much more.

The use of color or its absence is intrinsic to the success of your brochure, newsletter, direct mailing or sales flyer and cannot be ignored so let’s look at teh basics with color without blowing your budget in the process.

There are two ways color is used: spot color printing and four-color process.

The Four Color-Process uses a combination of four colors to produce the actual colors you will see on your finished product.

Spot Color Printing uses different color inks applied as required to produce the finished product.

You will need to be familiar with terms such as grayscales, screens and halftones along with CMYK, RGB and PS to understand how color is working with your printing projects.

CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black – this refers to the four inks used in the 4-color process and from these colors are produced the rest as required.

RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue and is used on monitors (computer screens) and televisions to produce color – this is important to know as you will be scanning pictures in RGB (to produce the best monitor reproduction) but the actual finished product needs to be printed as CMYK files to ensure maximum quality in reproduction.

PMS stands for Pantone Matching System and is used in the spot color inking process with a computer design package having literally thousands of Pantone color schemes for you to use in creating your design and ultimately finished product.  Use swatches when selecting colors because on the computer screen they will always appear brighter to your naked eye due to the back illumiination of the monitor screen but this will not be available in the finished product which will appear duller in comparison.

Many printers and designers belive the design is the key to a good piece of printed media, however, this is not the case for many readers looking to find your message within the content – design is critical and the visual impact and style play a great deal in the success of your material but ultimately, do you wish to produce art or send a message that your target market will easily see, read and understand?

A sound principle is to place content first  and design second – assuming you are following this, let’s now concentrate on some design issues.

Inversion Impact

When you read a headline of a newspaper, you will frequently find it has been inverted, that is the headline is in white against a solid, black background.  This leads to a greater visual impact than simply printing teh headline in, say, larger typeface.

This can also be used for grapic imagery and photographs may be particularly effective but you need the help of a skilled designer to garner the most out of such complex imagery.

Less is More

Buy no means are we advocating the minimalist approach but if yiou are trying to pack as much content into one page or one document, you are going to overload your readers.  Marketing and company brochures in particular are prone to this common error and it pays for you to take a huge step back and look at what truly is vitally crucial for your readers to understand and cut out the extraneous pieces of content you are stuffing in.

Work with the Grid

The grid is a design technique for arranging layout and especially for simpler pieces it is best to “Stick with the Grid!”

You don’t need to strictly follow the grid and settle for the staid 3 column layout; try experimenting with different combinations and personally I find the 7-column setup expands the possibilities enormously with sidebars, 2-column overlaps and so on.

When selecting the printing company to cater for your marketing requirements, it is important to familiarize yourself with what products they offer, examine the different print quality, artwork, colors, layout, font and wordage used … promotional brochures must deliver your message with maximum impact, displaying at a glance the professional service offered by your company.  

Both quality and cost can vary significantly so ensure that you have been informed of any special deals that may be on offer, only order large quantities if you are likely to use them all to avoid the risk of a false economy! 

Make sure that the printing company are aware of any important time schedules you may have, and obtain assurance that they can meet any dead-lines. 

The essential Information to include on a detailed draft layout is: your Company name, logo, graphics, photographs, or digital images. Contact details, including address with zip code, web site, email, telephone number (many people forget this one) and remember, your customers will vary in their choices of how to communicate with you so it is important that you cater for their needs.  

Include all services that your company offers but don’t focus so much on what you do and who you are – focus on what problems and needs you can satisfy and solve for your prospects and customers because that is what they are looking for.

When your Brochure is ready for print, consult the printing company design team for advice, after all, it is their expertise that you are paying for!  Most print and design shops that are worth the name will be able to take your brief and information on CD, DVD or email and you can also send a print-out of the artwork for their reference.  This makes sure that everyone is working from the same material and pool of ideas so you are not disappointed when you get the proofs.

If you’re considering a company marketing campaign, you will most likely need quality printed promotional collateral as they are a powerful tool in your sales armory. 

A two-fold brochure is an easy and attractive means of presenting your company to potential clients and with a little research into the work produced by the copious number of print and design companies available to undertake this work for you, you are going to see a wealth of choice.

Make sure you request samples of their work and pay special attention to the design; is the artwork-eye-catching?  Are the colors powerful enough – it has been scientifically proven that people are more likely to respond to color and retain information! Does the wording inspire you to read all the content?  What is the overall feel of the quality of the finished product they are producing?  How happy are their existing customers?  What other projects have they carried out that are similar to your own needs?

Once you have satisfied yourself that you have found the perfect printing company, make some notes on how you wish them to portray your business and the services you offer.  Communication with the design department is crucial if they are to understand your requirements and they should have the expertise and production capabilities to deliver what you are looking for but you will need to clarify what you wish to portray.

You need to present an impressive impact in order to glean the most productive response to your marketing campaign.

Consider the extent of your marketing campaign, it is usually far more economical to order in larger numbers (but only if you need that quantity) while there are often offers of other stationery and printing supplies at much lower prices if all are included in the same order: business cards, headed notepaper, reports, packaging etc.

Discuss and agree the prices in advance of placing your order to save disappointment when presented with your invoice.

The information and ideas you have provided will be used along with the professional skills of both the design and production teams to produce a proof for your examination.  Don’t pay for your printing until you have examined the proof and agree it is correct, free of errors and what you are looking for because it is too late to argue once the job goes to print.