When you want to print brochures, flyers and other marketing materials, you might think it’s best to try to save money by printing them yourself.

But no desktop printer can print with the quality you can get from a commercial printing press. Commercial printers use four-color process printing (also known as CMYK printing), which is best for big projects, such as 500 to 50,000 brochures. Commercial printers can also help you in other ways, like binding your brochures and using special paper or ink to make your marketing materials shine.

Here are some tips for using commercial printers.

Some printers specialize in short runs, which can save you money. A short run in printing is considered to be about 7,500 to 100,000, but you can get even lower quantities. If you only need 200 flyers printed, there’s no reason to pay for 500 just because that’s the minimum at some of the bigger printers. Shop around for short run printers who can print whatever quantity you need. PsPrint (www.psprint.com) has print runs for catalogs, brochures and other materials available in quantities as low as 125.

Commercial printers aren’t just for projects with deadlines weeks or months away. You can use commercial printers even when you need something the next business day (if you order early in the morning). Anymore, with many printers using digital technology, you can get your printed materials as soon as one business day.  With online ordering, you can approve your proof online and then get your item printed the same day or the next day.

You can choose an on-demand commercial printer to get your items doubly fast. If you can’t wait two days for your printed items, you can get your items within 10.5 hours if you go with an on-demand printer such as Mimeo (www.mimeo.com). If you order by 10:00 pm EST, you can get your order by 8:30 am the next day. That’s some quick service! Everything they do is online and digital so they can get your order to you lightning-quick.

You can customize your brochures, flyers or catalogs. If you want to add something special to your direct mail pieces, like a special die cut or embossing, you’ll need to contact a commercial printer. These little added touches can change your postcard’s potential trash factor to an attention-getting postcard that will get read. Koolprint.com has die-cut options on presentation folders that make them look like a folded box. Very cool presentation piece that will have prospects talking in sales presentations.

Some printers will do all the order fulfilling for you. This means not only will they print and bind your materials, but they’ll also mail them for you, saving you yet another step.

Ask what they charge for overages. Most printers have a clause that lets them print 5 to 10% under or over the number of items you ordered. Then they charge you for the exact amount printed. Make sure you ask how much this charge is per piece.



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