Feb 24 2009
Planning Your Printing - Graphic Design
Many projects can be completed in a more sustainable way if a certain amount of time and planning are put into the process before the order is given to a printer. In this series, I will focus on a few ways to ensure the most earth-friendly solutions to your printing needs.
Graphic Design
This is a crucial part to any project. I have already discussed how designing your items without a bleed helps save paper, but this is just one way to be sustainable. Try building your art in a way that can fit more per standard sheet. Want 4×6 postcards? Try designing them as 4.25×5.5, which can fit 4-up on an 8.5×11 sheet. This size still qualifies for the USPS postcard rate, but saves a lot on paper. Or if you work for a company with a lot of internal documents like forms, handbooks or training materials, can any of these be printed smaller than 8.5×11? If you reduce the size to half (5.5×8.5), you get twice the materials for about the same price and half the paper use.
When submitting files (or even before you start the design process), ask in what format your printer prefers the artwork. Most will probably want pdfs, but it’s always good to know ahead of time what your printer’s requirements are. When you submit the correct version/format of your file the first time, you reduce time and energy spent in revamping your work, decrease the stress that process can elicit and increase your printer’s efficiency.
If you hire a graphic artist to create your artwork, have them speak to the printer directly. I have had to relay messages I don’t know how many times to a graphic designer through the customer that was placing the print order, and there was almost always something lost in the translation. It is so much more efficient to have the designer talk directly to the printer to make sure everyone is on the same page.
These are just a few parts of the design phase that can save time, effort, energy and resources. Stay tuned for future posts on other ways to plan ahead…after all, a little planning goes along way for our planet.
Other posts in this series:
Planning your Printing - Proofing
Planning your Printing - Timing
Planning your Printing - Budgeting Money part 1
Planning your Printing - Budgeting Money part 2
