Our blog, D Brief, shares succint expert advice, trends, tips, and ideas for marketing communications tactics—focusing on print, Web, social media, and promotional products—from a corporate visual identity perspective. We welcome your thoughts so we can learn from each other.
How to save $ on print: Proof, proof, proof (Tip #4)
Make sure you’ve proofread your content at least 3 times before placing your print order.
In addition, having another set of eyes review your art (including spelling, fonts, colors, and graphics) prior to placing a print order and during subsequent proofing stages will avoid last minute changes during the prepress phase and even on press. The most common errors are numbers transposed in a date, phone number, or address.
Remember: It is not a commercial printer’s responsibility to check your copy for spelling and grammatical errors. The printer’s job is to print your art, as close to how it is supplied, as possible.
Insist on a high-resolution prepress proof—in color if your print order is not black ink—after you submit your art but before your order is scheduled for press. If you miss an error during the prepress phase, and instead find it while the piece is already on press, most commercial printers will charge plate change fees and press check rates upwards from $300 per hour to hold the press while errors are corrected.
Do yourself a favor by reviewing the prepress proof carefully to avoid that hassle, or the cost of having to reprint your order, because of errors that went unnoticed.
At D Media, when you hire us to manage your printing we thoroughly review all prepress proofs before moving on to the press schedule, so you don’t have to worry about this process. We alert you to any potential print problems that may arise, to troubleshoot and prevent issues up front as much as possible.
Leave a Reply
