It’s easier to make mistakes when you do not have any idea of how printing works. Whether you are responsible for producing corporate booklets or doing it for your personal use, there’s always a possibility of committing common printing mistakes. Thankfully, if you know what you need to avoid, you can easily steer away from such disastrous mistakes.
The printing mistakes can range from choosing the wrong paper to not using Wire-O Bound book printing for producing premium and professional lengthy booklets. To help you further, here are six common mistakes you need to avoid while printing booklets.
1. Choosing the Wrong File Type
The correct file type is essential when it comes to booklet printing. All the printing service providers prefer PDF file formats for printing. That means you should not send a Word file, .jpg files, or any other file type other than PDF. Though you can convert your files into PDF format, make sure it doesn’t mess up the alignments and formatting of your document.
PDF format is used because all the text and images in the booklet are embedded. It means you see the exact text and images in your final print as you see in your booklet’s PDF format. It would be bizarre to see the colors in different shades in the printed copy from what you expected.
2. Choosing the Wrong Resolution
You surely want to see your booklet with the highest resolution. Unfortunately, many people make the mistake of giving low-resolution to their booklet soft copies.
The standard resolution for your booklet must be 300 dpi. The PDF file of your content must be in 300 dpi resolution to get the same print quality in your output. DPI stands for dots per inch. That means more the dpi, better the print quality. Though you can use any resolution from 150 dpi to 300 dpi, it’s best to stick with 300 dpi so you get the best resolution for your printed output.
3. Not Sending Bleed
Before setting up the bleed, you need to understand what bleed is. The bleed refers to the extra space of background color or image that goes beyond the trimming area of your print. The standard bleed measure is 1/8” (.125 in), which means you need to set an extra space of 1/8” (.125 in) from the trim line so you can get the effect like the image or background color is bleeding off the edge of the paper.
Bleeding is added to avoid white lines around the desired print area. When the final print is cut down, the bleeding ensures that it does not have any white borders, and the image looks seamless till its edges.
4. Not Being Specific About Your Requirements
Before you look for a printing provider, you need to have a clear understanding of your requirements. Many people ask the printing services to use the standard size of the booklet. But, in reality, there is no standard size for booklets, brochures, invitations, etc., like the letterheads and business cards have. Booklets can vary in length and orientation too.
Before you ask the printing provider for quotes, it is best to lay down your specific requirements for your booklet. Give them the exact measurement of the booklet you want to print, so there isn’t any mistake while printing a bulk of booklets. It’s also important to provide helpful information like what type of paper, binding, or cover you want. Though numerous binding options are available, Wire-O Bound book printing would be the best choice for printing your booklets.
5. Adding Too Much Content
As much as you want to add all the helpful information for your readers, adding a lot of content can make the bookless too crowded and difficult to read. The content should be short yet crisp. You need to provide more information within the right number of words.
That is why you can use pictorial forms of information like graphs, pie charts, tables, infographics, and diagrams. That way, you won’t have to add a lot of text to explain your point. You can add a flowchart or a graph to give the readers short yet insightful information on the topic.
6. Not Choosing CMYK colors
Every printer requires different color types. Many providers use RGB or PMS color type for printing, which offers colors prints that are slightly off than original. If you want your booklet’s highest color accuracy, it’s best to stick to CMYK colors, as many top printing services use the CMYK color system.
Booklet printing can be a somewhat tricky task if you don’t know what you are doing. It’s best to have enough knowledge to make a better decision while printing the booklets. Whatever you do, try to avoid these mistakes to have the best quality of booklet printing.