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Embossed Business Cards - Worth The Expense?

2009-07-14T13:52:00.000-07:00

Embossed business cards are among the most interesting available.

If you're not familiar with embossed business cards, basically what happens is a die (and counter die) are used to push up the paper from the back. In other words, one side of the die has the image raised, the other side of the die has the image indented... so when the paper goes between it, it molds into the shape.

One of the benefits of an embossed business card is it's ability to stand out. It looks different. It feels different. And it elicits that "hey cool!" reaction that every business owner hopes for. After all, the more of an impression your business card makes (and the bigger the conversation it creates) the more likely it is to achieve its desired result. That is, generating more business.

What to emboss?

Well, you can emboss your logo or any other shape you can think of. Like a dentist for example, who might emboss teeth marks to suggest someone bit down on the card. You're limited only by your creativity.

Embossed business cards even have some customization options. For example, you can blind emboss, whereby the image is simply raised. There is embossing with ink which coats the raised area with color. And there is foil embossing as well, which coats the image with a shiny metallic coat.

There are a couple of drawbacks to embossed business cards however.

First is the additional expense. Due to the custom design, die creation, and effort required there is often considerable additional expense compared to some other stand out options. Naturally, they can't be produced as quickly either. For many, this may not be a big deal as the expense can be outweighed by the added benefit and response your card generates.

Second, printing on the back of embossed business cards is not advisable (or more difficult) for obvious reasons. Proponents of double sided cards may be deterred by this.

Finally, (and similarly) an embossed business card generally has less flexibility and less room for content, limiting the amount information on your card to just the basic contact information. For some this ok, but those who want to add additional content, selling points, bullets, offers, images etc. in addition to basic contact information, will find that an embossed business card may not be the best option.

What your decision should come down to is this:

Is the idea you have for your embossed business card (as in the shape of the die you intend to create) creative, unique, and attention grabbing enough to justify it as an option? Is embossing your logo, for example, going to elicit the reaction you're looking for?

Or are there other options that allow you to be unique -- like 3d lenticular cards (flips back and forth between two images), plastic business cards, die cut cards, or fold over cards, etc. -- that offer you greater flexibility and opportunity to stand out, without limiting your card's content?

As long as you're thinking about the ultimate goal of generating clients, your decision... will be the correct one.

Die Cut Business Cards - Worth The Investment?

2009-07-11T13:51:00.000-07:00

Smart business owners, job seekers, freelancers, and designers know that one of the keys to an effective business card is simply, standing out.

One of the best ways to do that is by choosing a card of an original shape.

Think about it: if 9 out of 10 business cards your prospect receives are the traditional rectangular shape, it stands to reason that having an odd shaped business card might earn you a little extra attention.

With that in mind, companies began producing cards in different shapes and sizes. Some oversized (like chubby, for example), others undersized (like slim and mini for example), square business cards, and of course, rounded corners. They were different enough to stand out from traditional cards, but approachable enough for the masses.

But some people like to break out even further from the mold.

Enter die cut business cards. An endless opportunity for creativity. If you can think it, it can be done.

No matter what industry you're in, a die cut business card can be made to match it. A hamburger shaped business card for a burger joint... a pipe shaped card for a plumber... a rectangular card with a bite cut out of it for a bakery (or a dentist!)... a card that looks like a city skyline. Even die cut metal business cards are a reality with virtually unlimited flexibility.

From simple to ornate it can be done.

While die cut business cards are virtually guaranteed to stand out, they can cost anywhere from a little extra to a lot extra. It all depends on whether the shape you're interested is an already existing template or whether it needs to be custom created for you. It's also important to make sure that if you're choosing a unique shape, that you don't sacrifice the image you're trying to portray. An attorney, for example, could create a business card in the shape of a gavel, but that doesn't make it wise. So make sure your decision is in line with your company image.

And work with an expert who you are confident can implement your idea (or his or her own) in a way that's sure to garner not only a lot of attention, but a positive reaction as well.

The bottom line is, die cut business cards are but one creative option that exists. Choose it if you're confident enough in your concept that it justifies the added time, expense, and effort. If not, there are so many other creative business card shapes, materials, and effects to choose from that me be equally impressive, but easier to implement.

Professional Website Design

2009-07-08T13:50:00.000-07:00

There are many website design companies that guarantees you a professional service in every detail. However, it is not easy to determine which company is the most professional and reliable and which is not. There are no many things to consider especially if you are searching for web design services on the internet. the neat part of it is that there are many professional companies that are disposed to offer you the best services with an excellent support.

A good designing company should understand the world of the E-Commerce or Businesses in order to create your page according to your special needs. This company must have professionals that are experienced in web design development, website design, flash design, and marketing.

This company should know a lot in developing and designing brands or logos, flash animations, custom website development, shopping cart software, blogging, hosting, advanced graphic and flash programs.

These companies should tell you about their portfolio and their client’s impressions or testimonials. Consider their work and check whether they are providing you with an easy to use website. You should play with the company that offers you a professional website but with the simplicity to update and modify it with ease.

Also, you can look at their own website features such as menu navigation, SEO content, customer friendly pages, and interactive maps or features, that suggest you a good positioning of their name on the internet.

Be sure to hire the perfect website design company to have your own website. Here, your website should be a complete pack in itself that best complements and empowers your e-business to a large extent. To know more about web design companies

How to Change the Prosense Wordpress Theme Header and Overall Colors

2009-07-04T13:50:00.000-07:00

How to Change the Wordpress Theme Header and Overall Colors.

This post is for all the people out there wordpress theme how toare using prosense design, but need to customise theme. Assuming you understand ways to use FTP and edit images, I am going to show you how I customised the header image, the subscribe button image, and the overall color of each column. When I searched for the way to do that I found small info that related to this particular theme. So that is why I decided to pen this post. The wordpress theme how to has 3 main image files. They are

header_footer_img. jpg - wordpress theme how to. Changing this image will only change the background image. It won't change the title text and the RSS subscribe icon.

rss-feed-icon. jpg - Controls the look of the RSS subscribe icon on the header.

page_background. jpg - This image controls the way in which the column colours will look and the way in which the overall colours will look.

IMPORTANT : These wordpress theme how to were released under a wordpress theme how toAttribution-Share Alike license, so you should not remove the links in the footer of the theme.

The two things you'll need to do this are an ftp program and an image editing program. I used filezilla and photoshop to change mine.

First wordpress theme how toyou need to do is ftp copies of the 3 files from your prosense wordpress theme how to directory wp-content twordpress theme how to prosenseimages folder to your pc. Simply open each of the pictures in your image editing program and change them as you see fit.

Note: The boundaries, and kind of the header are under the .CSS code in your style.css page. I do not suggest changing this code unless you know what you are doing.

header_footer_img. jpg - This is a solid color wordpress theme how to that may be changed to whatever you want. Keep in mind that the title text and rss icon will stay in their same position on the wordpress theme how toand will overlay any background image you put. Also if you would like to remove the title paragraph you can simply take away the title in your wordpress admin settings but you will luck out on the ability to push the title to get back to your house page.

rss-feed-icon. jpg - (A little secret ) If you increase this icon size it will increase your header size but will tile the header background image. You can change this icon to however you want it to look and it will still work properly when you themes for wordpress

page_background. jpg - This image is a particularly thin image with 3 or 4 colours on it. Every one of the colours outline the color of each column of the theme from left to right. You can simply change the color of each tiny section to modify the entire column color. Be cautious and backup this image before altering the colors.

It is relatively straightforward to change these photographs if you have some knowledge editing pictures. You may use any program you want to edit the photographs just ensure you keep the file names and types the same as the style sheet will be looking for those express files. If you've got any questions about this be happy to get in touch with Me or visit my site Revenue Reservoir and leave a comment on this post.
How to Change the Prosense Wordpress Theme Header and Overall Colors.

The Nuts and Bolts of Designing for Print

2009-07-01T13:49:00.000-07:00

Most articles about postcard design and creation deal with the artistic and marketing decisions that go into the making of a great card...this is not one of those articles. What we are dealing with here are the nuts and bolts of making a good final product. How to speed it along at the printer and how to help get it into the mail-stream faster.

When artwork is sent to a printer the majority - by far - of the time that a card spends at said printer is in Prepress. Prepress is the magical place at any printing company that has 15 computers to every one person and where your artwork, files, concepts and designs are digitally prepared to go to the printing presses. If there is an error with your file or a question about the workability of a design, Prepress is where you want to catch it because once ink goes on paper it is too late. Here are some tips to help flow your artwork through Prepress without them calling you with questions.

1. Make sure that you use High Resolution artwork. I suggest 300 dpi or better to make sure that your printed artwork does not come out pixilated. Nothing looks worse and stands out more than when you have low resolution artwork next to high resolution artwork - it makes the whole piece look bad. Never use artwork that you have copied from your computer without checking to see how many dpi it is, web artwork can still look great at a low resolution but if you try to use that same artwork in print, it will look bad. Also, if you do download high resolution artwork make sure that there are no copyright issues with it. There are several great online companies where you can buy royalty free artwork.

2. Be sure to add a Bleed. This may be the biggest bugaboo that a Prepress department will see - a card may be meticulously designed but the artist forgot to add a bleed onto the card. A Bleed is a printing term that refers to the area that goes beyond the edge of a printed piece. It is needed in both cutting (to make sure there isn't a white border) and to aid the Prepress department in fixing any design inconsistencies. The typical bleed is 1/8th of an inch around all four sides. For example if you wanted a 4"x6" Postcard, the artwork that you would send in with a bleed would be 4.25"x6.25".

3. Use a Print Optimized PDF file. If you are sure that your file is correct - you have checked for spelling and checked the phone numbers and all the information on the card, then use this format to send your file. A helpful hint is to have someone else check your information if you designed the card - you can't be objective after working on a card for an extended period of time. A Print Optimized (Please note that this is the second time I have mention Print Optimized, it is one of the options you have when saving a file and if you do not select this option you will be sending junk to your printer) file locks down the artwork for the printer. The benefit of a PDF file is that the Printer won't be able to accidentally alter your file. The bad news about a PDF file is that if you decide you did make a mistake when you look at the proof, the printer will more than likely have to send you the file back for whatever change you want - costing you time and money.

4. Send your Native Files. When you do have a change on your Print Optimized PDF, if you have sent the Native Files (the file on which you designed your artwork) the printing company can make any changes for you. It is quicker this way and since printing companies charge you every time they touch a job you might as well have them make any small changes. Just make sure that the printing company you are working with knows not to touch these files unless there is a problem.

5. Get a Hard Copy Proof for color critical jobs. When you send your artwork into a printer, the colors you see on your monitor will not match up exactly to what is printed. Your monitor works on a RGB (3 color) system. Printers use CMYK (4 color) to print your card. They should be close but if you have a specific shade of magenta that brands your organization, spend the extra time and money to get a hard copy Proof. If you don't, not only will you be unhappy with the outcome but you will still have to pay for the job.

The Address Area on a mail piece is typically just a blank space with a permit so not much thought is given to how to design it. It is actually quite simple to design, just have 2.5 inches in height by 4.25 inches in width of blank space (that means no permit info in this area) on the bottom right hand corner of the mailer and you should be fine. You may need more space if you have a lot of address information or a special code but 2.5x4.25 should be plenty of space for your Mailhouse to address your mail piece. Just remember to add your permit or return address information above that space.

Folded Mailers. There is just one simple rule for folded mailers, make sure the piece is designed so that the fold of the piece is at the bottom and the opening is at the top. You do not have to design a piece this way but if you don't then your Mailhouse will have to use extra tabs (wafer seals) to make sure your piece meets USPS standards and this will cost you money.

One last piece of advice is to use thick cardstock when printing a postcard. I recommend using 14pt stock (which is the standard sheet at Gage Press) since it has a good "feel" to it - it isn't thin or flimsy.

For more information, visit our website: http://www.gagepress.com/

Using Printers in Sub Zero Temperatures

2009-06-24T14:00:00.000-07:00

How the food distribution industry was revolutionised by heated printer enclosures:

Printers and barcode labels for stock control in the food industry does not only make things easier, in an age of traceability and sell by dates they are crucial in monitoring food products as they are stored. Barcode printers especially have taken the headache out of monitoring perishable goods as a simple scan will input all he information a computer needs.

Barcodes are printed from conventional or industrial printers and placed on food items to allow large amounts of information to be stored simply and without fuss, ensuring products are distributed with complete traceability and confidence.

Most large retailers such as the big supermarkets distribute most food stuffs from large regional distribution centres which include chilled and frozen sections where deliveries can be loaded and unloaded directly into the chillers and freezers.

However, this does pose a problem for the stock control of food items as no printer, including industrial printers, can work in sub-zero temperatures. This is because print heads are extremely sensitive to heat and any temperature falling close to zero degrees will fail permanently, meaning any printing of food labels in these large distribution centres has to be done in a warm office location. Now, when you consider the size of many of these regional Freezer or chilled distribution centres (FDC.CDC) can often mean a thirty minute walk from some unfortunate employee.

But it is not just workers shoe leather that gets affected. The turn around for transport in these centres is also impinged upon which too has a knock on effect throughout the distribution chain causing:
• Disruption to the transport schedules as drivers have to wait for labels before they are unloaded/loaded
• Take up the time of staff members who have to regularly walk to the printer and back which could often be in excess of thirty minutes
• Hinders labelling and cause problems in stock control and the potential for products to be labelled incorrectly
• The delayed transport effects the stock levels in the supermarkets, deterring customers who couldn’t buy the products they wanted

Many of the larger food retailers managed to find a solution by using a heated printer enclosure. These allow standard printers to be used in temperatures that fall to below -30 degrees. The enclosures keep the printer and more specifically print head warm allowing the device to be used in the middle of the freezer section.
Once installed these heated printer enclosures drastically reduce the turnaround time of transport to these centres, improves operations and logistics and prevents the possibility of incorrect labelling.