As I noted in the last blog entry, I'm brokering a multi-signature print book for a client.
The Specifications of the Book
To recap the specs, the directory is 194 pages, 4” x 9”, printed on a 60# white matte text stock in 4-color process inks with bleeds. The book printer will need to provide only the book blocks (no covers or binding), drilled (26 holes) for the insertion of Wire-O binding by my client. Press runs could range from 100 copies to 5,000 copies.
A client came to me me today with a new variable-data custom printing job. It's a directory of congressional information--names and data--and my client wants to be able to change various names in the text and then print 100, 500, maybe even 1,000 copies.
We all still have to eat. Have you noticed that even in tough economic times, people still go out to restaurants. Maybe they don't go to high-end restaurants, but I still see long lines at Chipotle and similar venues.
I had mentioned in my last blog posting that I was designing and purchasing the custom printing for three new jobs: a business card, an oversized postcard, and a large format print banner. I'd like to share a few things that have happened along the way because they may help you in your own design and print buying work.
A colleague of mine designs books for the World Bank on a freelance basis. They are essentially text books, reports, and such, but they do require a good amount of design acumen to make the print books attractive and to make them look consistent within a series.
I'm designing a banner for a trade-show package that will include business cards, oversized marketing postcards, and the large format print banner itself, which will be loaded into a banner-stand assembly. Here's some more information on this design job, which I've been describing in recent blog entries. Hopefully the descriptions will help you sidestep technical issues in your own marketing design work. After all, it's very easy to turn a gorgeous custom printing job into an unprintable mess.