The 6 Biggest Custom Poster Printing Mistakes You Can Easily Avoid
When you need impactful and quick-communicating print materials either to advertise a business or to promote events or, in general, put up awareness information, custom posters are ideal. Many custom poster printing companies can help you with excellent design ideas and stellar print quality on posters, regardless of the quantity you need. Companies like us are equipped with the latest large format digital printing machines in various substrates and an in-house design team to help you get it right every time.
Over the last ten years, we have seen clients make simple and easily avoidable mistakes that become expensive to correct after all the printing materials are ready. That is why in this article, we are discussing the most common custom poster printing mistakes that can be easily avoided by clearly communicating your requirements to the printing staff and enjoying a hassle-free printing experience. Some of these mistakes are:
1. Not knowing the number of custom poster prints needed.
At Print My Sign, we have both digital and offset custom poster printing capabilities. Based on the number of posters needed, we can choose either one. When you need in bulk quantities of more than 250 and upwards for poster size less than 22”x28” offset printing is a great solution for crisp quality and cost-effective rates. For larger-sized posters with less than 100 numbers, we can digitally provide quick and vivid imagery filled custom poster printing.
Offset printing takes time to set up but can churn out custom poster printing in large quantities within 48 to 72hrs. If you are unsure of the numbers, then it would be expensive to go for a second run of the print than it would have been just to print the larger quantity in the first run. Plus, there is obviously going to be timeline delays that will have a ripple factor.
That is why we make sure to ask and double-check the quantity before we go ahead, so you can be sure and get your custom poster printed that aligns with our timeline and budget.
2. Sharing files in the wrong format
This is a typical mistake when our clients want to change a design meant only for digital consumption into custom posters to be printed; then, they just share the original digital files. However, designs files for poster printing need to be of a particular size and in a particular file format that is readable by the new-age printing equipment, or sometimes the unsuitability of the file format will only be made clear after the first run of posters printing is over, which is an expensive way to learn about it.
When we don’t have the right format, there could be delays in setting up the printer and queue the project to achieve the desired deadlines. Therefore, we require PDF formats for custom poster printing, only PDFs and not any open formats or doc files. Based on the requirement, some printers may ask for a TIFF file and might even instruct you to specifically export your file in the way they need, all to ensure that the poster quality is the best possible.
At Print My Sign, we ensure that you have shared the right file format with us when we take on the project and will revert immediately if we need a different format.
3. Sharing files with low resolution
Custom poster printing requires a resolution of 300 dpi. Anything higher would be redundant and will result in a longer processing time. However, the most common mistake is using online designs optimised for screens for poster printing, which is a low dpi file (70 dpi). Foremost, it’ll result in a pixelated output without clarity and costs money for the first unsuccessful run. So, make sure the poster design is 300 dpi and more.
4. No allowance in design for bleed
Bleed in custom poster printing is the allowance provided in the design to have a boundary that extends beyond the cutting line. Bleed is an important parameter, especially when you need a complete edge-to-edge poster without a white edge. Forgetting to include the bleed allowance will only leave an undesirable white line edge.
5. Fonts that didn’t replicate when converted
While it might be visually appealing to include new fonts and styles, it is important to check whether the fonts can be replicated on a poster and that the printer can accommodate the font. Hence, most printing services suggest using standard fonts that can be easily replicated.
6. Be mindful of the colours
What you see is not what you get when it comes to translating the colours on your computer screen into a poster. Understanding that the digital or offset custom poster printing machines have a unique colour scheme will
help you translate your screen’s colouring onto the poster. The computer has a backlit screen that works with RGB colours, while the printers use the CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black). So, when designing a poster for print, make sure you use the CMYK colour space to get all the vivid colours you imagined.
Have a design in mind for your next poster? No worries. Print My Sign is here to provide you with high-end custom poster printing services. You can count on our team of printing professionals. Call 03 5250 5132 to discuss your project needs with our expert team.
