Choosing the right imprint process for maximum impact

Promotional products, which are an integral element of marketing and advertising today, have a history of over a hundred years. Calendars and congratulatory letters with only text were printed using a technique called foil stamping and handed out to customers and prospects. With the advent of time, company logos became more colorful and graphic and the need to use them in promotional products brought about the use of techniques like silk screening. 

Today, different technologies and techniques are used to print on promotional material, depending on the type of products involved and the overall goals of the advertising campaign. Some of these techniques are:

Screen Printing: Screen printing is the most cost-effective option and uses premixed inks and a screen to transfer the design onto the product. It is used for printing on bottles, pens, smooth surfaced balls, tote bags, pens and appliances like water coolers. 

Digital Printing: Digital printing also known as CMYK or full-color printing, color burst or 4-color process printing offers a larger range of colors to print logos. This process uses printing machines instead of screens. Digital printing is used for printing colorful stationery like books and notepads, fridge magnets and mouse pads. 

Heat Transfer: This process is an age-old technique that uses heat to press ink onto the product. It is an effective process for printing multi-colored logos and is used for printing tote bags and apparels like t-shirts.

Laser Engraving: A design is loaded onto software in the engraving machine. Then using the laser beam the design is etched on to the product. This technique is ideal for engraving on metal, glass, or wood and is also used on elegant gifts.

 

Debossing/Embossing: This method engages a combination of heat, pressure and a metal screen to imprint the design on the product and is the most preferred method for leather and vinyl products, chocolates and some varieties of thick fabric.

 

Embroidery: The vibrant colors of a logo or design are best reproduced using embroidering machines, and is the ideal option for apparel and hosiery products like shirts, blankets and towels. 

Foil Stamping: Foil stamping is used when a shiny metallic look is required in the design. This is also the best option when the design has to be customized every time, like the name of a person to be added in the design. 

Lithography or Offset printing,: This is the most favored method when large numbers of prints are required on paper based products like calendars, books and posters. 

Laser Printing: The technology used in this process is similar to that of photocopiers and this is the most preferred option for printing on paper and other substrates. Laser printing offers a better color rendering and is a quick and cost-effective process. This method is used for printing posters, pamphlets, newspapers and billboard contents. 

Pad Printing: Pad Printing is used for printing on irregular surfaces. This imprint method uses a silicone based rubber pad, ink and a hard polymer or steel screen to imprint the design on products like golf balls, liqueur glasses, squeegees, key tags and key chains, calculators, technical and musical instruments,  picture frames, etc. 

Color Filled Debossing: In this technique, a silk screen ink or foil is used, to transfer the design onto the product. It is popular for printing on vinyl based products. 

Silk Screening: Is used for printing colorful and complex designs on a variety of fabrics. 

Dye Sublimation: Naturally occurring dyes are sublimated on to intermediary products like plastic cards or printer paper. Using a heat press, the design is transferred from the intermediary product onto products like apparels, ceramic, metals and other materials.

Tips on creating an effective brochure

In an age when increasingly online and mobile marketing play a dominant role, one would expect paper brochures to go the way of the dinosaurs. Surprisingly, the truth is far from it. The personalized touch that comes from handing out a brochure during a conversation with the prospect at your office or at a conference, any day, beats the impersonal touch of an e-brochure.

However, to extract the best from print brochures, here are a few guidelines to follow:

• Shape and Design: Though the more common rectangular brochure, folded once or several times over, is convenient to handle or print, brochures that come in creative shapes and sizes tend to catch the target audiences’ attention and spurs increased brand recall. Some of the largest brands in the world, who consider brand effectiveness more important than cost-effectiveness, print brochures, in unique shapes and formats. Prospects invariably appreciate brochures that exude class, exclusivity, spending power, and the market positioning that comes with being different.

• Imagery & Aesthetics: Stock photos are a booming industry that is sustained with the use of printed brochures. It is no longer necessary to spend on expensive photo-shoots. At a fraction of the cost, one can buy stock photos that are breathtaking and which, convey exactly the message intended. When using stock photos, make sure that the photos blend together with the overall imagery and text used in the brochure.

• Layout: While one can be a little adventurous with the layout, it would be prudent to stick to convention. In general, people do appreciate aesthetics that stand out.However,they also need all of the related information presented in a single location, so as to assimilate the content, easily. 

• Fonts and Colors: Most industries have strict conventions on what kind of colors can be used in a brochure. Traditional sectors like Banking & Finance, Hi-Technology and Medical industries prefer a smaller range of colors, while industries like Retail, Hospitality and Devices like to experiment with brighter and unusual colors. Just ensure the colors are in harmony in order to wow your readers. For best, maximum impact, use optimum amountsof blank spaces, better known as white spaces in design parlance.

• Flow of content: The flow of content should be sequential. Tailor the content to your audiences’ requirement. Present the most important data or details on the cover page and fill in the less important and more intricate data on the inner pages.Remember, people are often on the fly and will scan the first 20% of the content to get a grasp of the subject. So, keep all the best content, and what the reader may be looking for, on the front page.

• Quality of copy: In an impatient and hectic world, the content needs to be short,yet comprehensible and effective.Simultaneously, interesting themes and concepts should be used to present the copy, whileavoiding dull or monotonous content. Remember, a brochure is not there only to convey information about your services or products, but to concurrently persuade and perk, your present and prospective clients’ interest in your products and services. The brochure is your window of opportunity to enlighten your prospects on the benefits of using your products or services.

There are a whole lot of other factors like quality of paper, special effects like embossing and engraving, printing technology – digital or offset printing, which also need to be factored in. When incorporating all of the above points, make sure that you utilize the short interval of time frame, to create that first and last, indelible impression. Don’t forget the golden rule, “compose and create your copy with your customers in mind.”