Learn about 8 common errors designers make when sending collateral for commercial printing, from file formats to color settings, and how to avoid them.
Designing effective marketing collaterals, such as brochures, flyers, and business cards, is essential for promoting your business. However, even the best designs can be compromised if they aren’t prepared correctly for commercial printing. Mistakes made during the design and file submission stages can lead to costly delays, reprints, and compromised print quality.
In this article, we’ll explore the most common errors businesses make when sending collateral designs for commercial printing and provide tips on how to avoid them to ensure a smooth commercial printing process and professional results.
One of the most common mistakes when sending collateral designs to a commercial printing is submitting files in the wrong format. While it may seem convenient to send files as JPEGs or PNGs, most commercial printing require print-ready PDFs or vector files (such as AI or EPS files) to ensure the best quality.
Always check with your printer for their preferred file format. Typically, printers request high-resolution PDFs with embedded fonts and images. Use software like Adobe InDesign or Illustrator to export your designs as PDF/X-1a or PDF/X-4, which are optimized for print. Make sure all fonts are outlined, and images are embedded to avoid missing elements.
Using low-resolution images is one of the most frequent mistakes when preparing designs for print. While images may look sharp on a computer screen, they may appear pixelated or blurry when printed at larger sizes.
Ensure that all images in your design are at least 300 DPI at the final print size. This means resizing images correctly during the design process and avoiding any upscaling, which can degrade image quality. Use high-quality stock images or professional photography that meets print standards.
Designers often create collateral designs in RGB (Red, Green, Blue) mode, which is used for digital screens. However, commercial printing use the CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) color model for commercial printing. Sending files in RGB can result in color shifts or dull prints.
Always design in CMYK mode from the start if your project is intended for commercial printing. Most design software, such as Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, allows you to switch between color modes. Before exporting your design, ensure that the color mode is set to CMYK to prevent any unexpected color changes during Commercial Printing.
Neglecting to include bleeds and safe margins is a critical mistake that can result in important content being trimmed off or your design having uneven borders. A bleed ensures that no white edges appear after the material is trimmed, while a safe margin prevents important text or graphics from being cut off.
Add a bleed of 1/8 inch (0.125 inches) around all sides of your design to ensure the color or image extends beyond the trim line. Additionally, use a safe margin of at least 1/4 inch (0.25 inches) from the edge to keep important elements like text or logos away from the trim area. Most design software allows you to set bleeds and margins during the setup process.
If you send a design file without embedding the fonts or converting them to outlines, the printer may not have the fonts installed on their system. This can lead to missing or substituted fonts, causing the design to look completely different when printed.
When exporting your design as a PDF, make sure to embed all fonts in the file settings. Alternatively, you can convert text to outlines, especially if you're working in Adobe Illustrator. This ensures that your text will appear exactly as intended, even if the printer doesn’t have the font installed.
Failing to set proper trim and bleed lines can lead to uneven borders, cut-off text, or important design elements being trimmed. Inconsistent bleed setup also risks producing poorly aligned materials.
Work with your printer’s recommended bleed and trim specifications. Use a standard 0.125-inch bleed around the edges of your document, and ensure trim lines are clear and set accurately in your design software. Double-check your design file to ensure all key elements remain within the safe margin.
Rich black is a combination of multiple ink colors used to create a deeper, more saturated black for large areas of ink coverage. However, using rich black for small text can cause problems, such as blurry or hard-to-read letters, as multiple inks are applied to small text areas.
For text, especially small fonts, use 100% K (black) only, instead of a combination of CMYK inks. Reserve rich black (a mix of all four CMYK colors) for large areas or backgrounds to achieve a deeper, richer black without compromising readability.
One of the simplest but most overlooked mistakes is failing to proofread the design before sending it to print. Typos, grammatical errors, and incorrect information can easily slip through if not checked carefully.
Always take the time to proofread your design carefully. Check for typos, grammatical mistakes, missing information, or incorrect contact details. It’s also a good idea to have someone else review the design to catch mistakes you might have missed.
Sending collateral designs for commercial printing requires careful attention to detail. By avoiding common errors such as submitting the wrong file formats, using low-resolution images, or forgetting to include bleeds, you can ensure that your printed materials come out perfectly. Working closely with your commercial printing and following their file submission guidelines is crucial to a successful print job.
By ensuring proper file formats, accurate color modes, and paying attention to details like font embedding and bleed setup, you can save time, avoid costly mistakes, and create high-quality print materials that elevate your brand.
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