Of all the different printing services you will purchase as a print buyer, hardcover books will cost more than most business printing jobs. It therefore pays to get everything right with these projects. Print companies that specialize in custom book printing will often send you a sample case upon request so you can review the part of the book the reader will see first, one last time before the book has been bound.
Custom printing services comprise multiple technologies, from letterpress to gravure, from digital to offset, from thermography to engraving to flexography. Whether you want to print custom labels to affix to your wine bottles or print custom decals to advertise your business, a printing technology exists that is ideally suited to your needs. Among these, one form of business printing with which you may not be familiar, but which you hold in your hand every time you pick up a carton of milk, is flexography.
The terms “Level 1, 2, and 3 proofs” are distinctions made by offset printing companies to qualify certain proofs as being of a higher color accuracy than others. Level 1, 2, and 3 are inkjet (not laser) digital proofs. This is a particularly useful designation for multi-page print jobs produced by paperback book printers, hardcover book printers, catalog printers, and magazine printers, since the proofs vary widely in cost, and over the course of a multi-page job, the price difference can really add up.
As a general rule, printing companies can charge for up to ten percent overs. This goes for paperback book printers, hardcover book printers, catalog printers, magazine printers, even vendors that print newsletters or provide brochure printing. They can also deliver up to ten percent fewer copies than ordered. This is industry standard.
A custom book printer recently sent me a contract including the following proposal for book binding. Hardcover book printers are very specialized in their skill set, and their jargon is somewhat arcane. The following explanation will help you understand the contracts you receive from book printing and publishing companies. Contracts from book printers are often more complex than contracts for such jobs as custom envelopes, print newsletters, and the like. Ask your book printer to explain anything you don't understand.
When you work with book printers, catalog printers, or magazine printers to produce multi-page documents, it is important for you to specify whether your job will be “self-cover” or “plus cover.”