Sending that file to the professional printer always has that little bit of stress… That little thought of “What if I missed something?”  Hitting that send button feels so final, and whatever typos or little errors in your formatting that you missed are there once it’s been printed.  Even worse though than the possibility of missing a typo, is the possibility that your finished product will come back completely different from what you had expected.

I was recently working on a multiple page project for a Brighton, Michigan hospital client, who was very concerned before the project started that I speak with the printer to ensure that the pages would be collated correctly.  Apparently, they had a problem with the last designer they worked with and when the job went to the printer at the last minute (which of course never happens for any of the rest of us) it came out with all of the pages in the wrong order.  Regardless of past issues, she had a good point.  You should always contact your printer before you start designing your printed piece.

There are a couple of reasons for this. 

  • If you have a specific budget, a good printer or even print sales rep might be able to give you ideas on what sort of piece to put together. 
  • You want to make sure that the sizes and specs of your piece match what the printer needs.  Things like page collation, bleed and even the actual size can vary from printer to printer – even on supposedly “standard” printed pieces.
  • You definitely want to contact your printer before designing any sort of specialty piece.  Anything with unique shapes, sizes, folds, closures or collation will need to be designed and formatted in the way in which the printer will need it.
  • While all graphic designers should contact printers prior to design, it’s even more important for non graphics people who may not have as much experience with professional printing needs and lingo to take this initial step.

One of the benefits of using a reputable local printer is there is usually an actual person who you will be working with, and who can often (though not always) catch issues before hundreds of copies have been run.  Even if they don’t have set templates, they may offer you the ability to send them a blank mock up prior to starting your design (with nothing more than page numbers or direction cues) so that they can check to be sure that the final folded, trimmed and collated piece will work right.

But even if you are using an online print house, make sure to find any templates the site offers – and use them.  These should make it clear as to the format and exact size your artwork needs to be, as well as any bleeds and areas that need to be kept “empty” because of trimming needs.

Basically, know what you’re aiming at before you start your design, and you can help eliminate a lot of the anxiety of working with a printer.

What are problems you’ve had when sending your stuff out to be printed?

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