| Your catalog or brochure designer should be able to | | | | better choice for you. Digital printers have come a long |
| recommend the most appropriate printing choice for | | | | way and can guarantee almost a 90% match to the |
| your project. There are several factors they should | | | | Pantone colors but your best quality still lies with the |
| look at to make the proper recommendation. | | | | offset printers. If your project is for general use as a |
| First, some questions need to be answered about the | | | | product catalog, a manual, etc and your print quantity is |
| type of project you have: | | | | under 500, then using a digital printer will be fine. |
| 1)What is the quantity you need? Generally speaking, if | | | | 3) Do you need consistency from job to job? |
| your print quantity is 500 or less, you will use a digital | | | | Regardless of whether you are using offset or digital |
| printer. For quantities higher than 500, it becomes more | | | | printing, you can never be guaranteed an absolute |
| economical and more efficient to use an offset printer. | | | | exact match from a batch printed a month ago to a |
| Digital printers can print as few as one at a time and | | | | new batch printed today. It is the printers' responsibility |
| still keep the price down. With offset printing, the | | | | to get it as close as possible but be aware that it most |
| process to print something becomes much more | | | | likely will not be identical. Some printers use gang |
| involved, requiring set-up fees, which when you are | | | | printing for their offset printing. That means that they |
| printing larger volumes balances out. | | | | print other clients' projects at the same time as yours |
| 2) Are you using variable data?Variable printing allows | | | | and therefore "blend" the colors to work best for all |
| you to personalize each print with a client's name, | | | | jobs on that run. If you use a printer that does this, you |
| address, postal bar codes and any other marketing | | | | will definitely not get the same colors from different |
| content specifically geared to that client. If you will use | | | | print dates. The most consistent way is to use offset |
| variable data then digital is the way to go. | | | | printing with only your job on the plate. |
| 3) Is your project for showcasing or general use? If | | | | There are many variables to consider when ordering |
| you need your project to be of the best quality | | | | your print job, but with the guidance of an experienced |
| presentation with exact Pantone color matching, | | | | designer, your project will be assigned to the most |
| basically a showpiece, then offset printing would be a | | | | appropriate print process for your needs. |
