Glide Print actively share our expertise with our clients because we want to see top quality in every product we print for you. It’s part of our commitment to outstanding personal service.
Here’s a simple guide to the most common print specifications and why they matter to help you order your print products and assess how you can get better print quality for your budget.
Paper Stock
If you haven’t reviewed the type of paper you’re using for your print products, you may be missing out on some of the many recent advances in paper manufacture that can give you an excellent result from a lower weight or grade of paper.
An experienced printer can also tell you what the appropriate paper stock is to use for your product. There’s usually more than one that will work, but you need to know you’re going to end up with the finish you want. You could use a lower weight paper, eg. a 100gsm instead of a 150gsm, to save money but you need to be sure your artwork isn’t going to show through and reduce the quality at the same time.
If you have a chat with your printer, they can advise you so you understand why certain paper types are right for your specific print products. A print expert can also advise you on specialty papers that can add quality without the price tag you may be expecting.
One of our clients orders a smaller quantity of top quality business cards and only gives them to good prospects. Because they’re more like mini artworks than regular business cards, the recipients value them and see her as a quality supplier. Her budget remained the same but its effectiveness grew.
Paper Size
It’s worth exploring if moving away from the standard sizes can work for your print product and either save you money or give you more copies for your budget. You don’t always have to stick to standard sizes either, a quality printer can print just about any size you want.
Sometimes, less is more here too. A custom-sized print product stands out more than the standard DL or A4 sizes. By asking a few questions, you could get a more interesting looking product for the same price and by being more selective in your distribution, you can increase your ROI because your print product stands out from the crowd.
Finished Size
Flat size is the size of the paper it’s printed on, finished size is the size of the end product. A catalogue, for example, can be printed on A3 paper but once it’s folded and stapled, the end product will be A4.
Ink Colour
The standard ink colours to specify are one-colour (for a black and white print product), or four-colour/full colour (CMYK) but you can also have spot colours for specific looks you want to achieve, usually used to ensure a specific shade or tone of a colour for elements such as a logo or gold.
Quantity
Always get a quote for more than one quantity. A large chunk of the printing cost is the set-up, so the price for twice the quantity isn’t going to be double the price. A good printer will give you a price on two or three quantities so you can decide if more on this print run is cost effective for you.
Size
Print sizes are generally stated as width x height. So, a brochure that’s 210mm x 297mm is a portrait A4 brochure and a 297mm x 210mm is a landscape A4 brochure.
Page Count
This is a specification we get asked about all the time! The face of a page is one page. A four-page brochure is a single sheet of paper that’s folded to give you a front, inside front, inside back, and a back page: four pages.
The other term used is ‘leaf’: this is both sides of a single page.
For a book, you’re counting each side of each page and the cover is a separate specification.
If this still isn’t clear, call us and we’ll help you work out how many pages your product is.
Trim and Bleed
These are graphic design terms for the amount of space around the edge of the artwork. Trim marks indicate where the guillotine is to cut the paper. Bleed is the additional area that allows the ink to go past where the artwork ends.
Both of these make sure your text and artwork don’t get cropped and it goes all the way to the edge of the page.
Finishing
You need to specify how you want your print product to look when it’s done. For example, a book’s finishing specs could be ‘Fold, stitch and trim to finished size 210mm square’. This will give you a 210mm square book that’s stitch bound. You could also have it perfect bound or wiro bound, which are two more options you could consider.
There are lots of ways to complete many print products so don’t be afraid to ask about options. Your best option may be one you’ve never even heard of that saves you money and does a better job for you too.
Recently, we had a client order a document they wanted to be perfect bound but we could see that it was too thin for that process so we had a chat and suggested they saddle stitch it instead for a better quality finish. This is the kind of personal service an experienced printer gives and is normal at Glide Print. We make sure you get the best quality for your budget and will correct those kind of mistakes for you before your order goes to print.
Delivery
When do you need it and where does it need to be shipped to? Include any special delivery requirements, office hours, or packing requirements. Good printers are happy to package up your order in the quantities you need.
Advice
Ask your printer if they have any suggestions or ideas for you that can improve your print job.
Print is a complex business.
You need experience to know all the options.
If you'd rather not wade through all the print options yourself, just call us.
We've been printing for decades and are happy to walk you through
the best choices for your print products.
See our extensive print glossary for more terms, our Free Resources and Articles pages for loads more helpful print information. If there’s anything else you need to know, give us a call. We’re happy to share our expertise.