All posts tagged UV

Business Card Printing Pitfalls To Avoid

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Engaging a printer to produce your custom business cards is a fantastic idea. The quality of the finished product will always be much better than a business card printed from a personal computer or stationary store, and most industry printing companies offer a wide assortment of quantities, card materials, and enhancement features (such as spot UV business cards). Some will even create your high-resolution, print-ready artwork for you, thereby eliminating the time and hassle of creating your own card files.

However, in order to optimize your print job, it is important to avoid or at least consider some of the potential problems that could create a less-than-perfect finished product.

Pitfall #1: Cards with Spot Colors

Accurate color reproduction is by far the most common problem seen throughout the printing industry. Most times, problems arise when a CMYK printer attempts to print a Pantone color. Pantone or spot colors are typically highly customized colors that fall outside of the normal CMYK 4-color printing process.

CMYK is a process whereby thousands of colors can be created by mixing various percentages of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y) and black (K). Open any full color magazine and you will see CMYK printing. The vast majority of printers in the market utilize a CMYK process that is not compatible with spot colors.

Usually, whenever a CMYK business card printer attempts to print a spot color, a color shift occurs. In other words, the shade of the color might come out differently than the artwork file dictates. It might be possible to match a spot color to a CMYK color by utilizing a Pantone swatch book, but this is more of an art than a science and there is still no guarantee that the spot color will be accurately reproduced in a CMYK printing environment.

If you have a logo or some other design element that utilizes a Pantone color, attempt to locate a Pantone printer. Otherwise, you will have to recreate the logo in CMYK mode as closely as possible to the Pantone color.

Pitfall #2: Cards with Black Backgrounds

Whether you are printing a black business card or mixing black paint at the local Home Depot, black is by far the most difficult color to reproduce due to its deep, dark nature. A common problem with black cards is that they turn out gray, or that the black bleeds into other areas of the card.

This problem can be solved by following the best practice of utilizing a rich black for your cards background. Rich black incorporates other colors of the CMYK spectrum into the black color. A black background consisting of 100% black (C=0%, M=0%, Y=0%, K=100%) will almost certainly result in oversaturation and produce unexpected results.

A rich black incorporates values of C, M, and Y into the mix. To the naked eye, the black will look the same, but rich black is much more printer-friendly. The specific rich black CMYK mix varies depending on printer preference, but a good mix is C=40%, M=30%, Y=20%, and K=100%.

Pitfall #3: Business Cards with Borders

Artwork containing a border is a tricky proposition because even if the cardstock is perfectly lined up in the equipment, a slight shift could occur during the trimming process. Thus, the border may have one side larger or smaller than the others, or it might be off center on some of the cards.

Theres really not much you can do about this because this shifting possibility is an industry-accepted standard. Just realize the possibility, and if the risk of uneven borders seems too great, remove the border from your custom business card artwork.

Pitfall #4: Cramming Multiple Enhancement Features on the Same Card

Enhancement features refer to such bells and whistles as spot UV, embossing, foil stamping, scoring, perforation, and more. It is not advisable to put more than one of these options on a single card because it puts too much stress on the cardstock.

You should only consider multiple enhancements with thick cardstock (15pt or higher). However, no matter how thick the cards are, the possibility for flaws is still high. Spot UV could crack, foil could flake, or embossing could show up unclear, among other possible problems. Your best bet is to stick with a single enhancement like spot UV business cards.

Pitfall #5: Hidden File Problems

Whenever you submit your files to the printer, pay careful attention to their file specifications. Many business card printers will check your files to ensure they are in-spec prior to production, but its not a good idea to rely on this because you just never know.

Hidden problems include things such as transparencies, overprint, and embedded fonts. Transparencies are basically layers in your file that could cause unexpected results. Always flatten your files. Also, always turn off overprint, and outline any and all embedded fonts to ensure they are not converted to an unwanted default font during production.

Conclusion

Hiring a business card printer for your custom business cards is an excellent idea, but occasionally printing problems could occur. By following the advice in this article, you can eliminate 99% of these potential problems.

When in doubt, ask your printing company for specific advice, especially if you are printing spot UV business cards or some other enhanced product. Most printers are highly accommodating, and are more than willing to provide advice to avoid problems down the road.

When To Use Embossing, Spot Uv And Foil Stamping On Business Cards

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Business card enhancement features like spot UV, embossing, and foil stamping can truly help differentiate your business in the minds of your customers and clients. But which one is the best? Read on to find out.

Embossed Business Cards

Embossing is where certain elements of your business card are raised by virtue of them getting pushed through from the opposite side of the card. The effect is similar to a credit card, where the account number is raised on the front and recessed on the back.

Embossing works well for text or even a water seal type of logo effect, however it does have limitations.

For one, you do not want artwork in the embossed area; you want the embossed areas to be clear of artwork on both sides or else the artwork and embossing will become jumbled and will look awful.

Additionally, most printers are not able to precisely line up embossing with ink. The exact embossed areas could shift 1/16 1/8 during the production process. So for example, if your card has a black background, the embossed areas must be black as well. You would not be able to have, say, white text embossed because it is not feasible for the embossing to line up with the underlying white text perfectly every time.

If you want your business card enhancement feature to allow for color that is different from the cards background color, consider either spot UV or foil stamping.

Spot UV Business Cards

Spot UV is where specific areas of your card are treated with a glossy coating. This effect does not impact the underlying color, it only makes the treated areas slightly raised and shiny relative to the non-glossy business card stock.

Typically, spot UV does not have the same alignment problems as embossing. With todays technology, spot UV can be precisely lined up against any ink-based design element. So here, if you had a black background with white text, you could have the text treated with spot UV so that it is shiny, raised, and white.

Spot UV works only on non-glossy cardstock, as doing spot UV on glossy business cards will not create a visible effect (everything is already glossy). Silk business cards are the best option for spot UV, because they are non-glossy and extremely durable.

Foil Stamped Business Cards

Foil stamping is where specific parts of your card are coated with a layer of metallic foil. It is typically offered in gold, silver, green, red or blue.

The foil stamped areas are not limited to only the cards background color like embossing. However, although color can be utilized, you are limited to the foil colors offered by the printer.

Also, foil stamped business cards are usually subject to the same shifting that could occur with embossed business cards, so it is important not to have any artwork in the stamped areas.

Which One Should You Use?

Generally speaking, none of these enhancements are available on glossy business cards. All 3 are most effective on silk business cards, so if you plan on utilizing a silk cardstock, your options are wide open.

Of the 3 options discussed, embossing is typically the least preferred because of the aforementioned color and artwork limitations. Additionally, embossed business cards are usually the most expensive of the three.

Foil stamping is also relatively expensive, but at least this feature offers more color options. The downside is that the foil can sometimes flake, peel or appear blotchy. Additionally, foil stamped business cards tend to become worn at an accelerated rate as they get pulled in and out of a wallet.

Most often, spot UV business cards provide the best bang for your buck. This option is by far the least expensive of the three, offers the full gamut of color availability, and is not subject to the same flaws as foil and embossing.

Innovative Business Card Printing Ideas

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As the name implies, business cards are usually used for business purposes. These business cards usually possess a business or individual information that is why they play a very vital role especially in formal introductions. Sharing these business cards especially during formal introductions is a matter of convenience. The format of a standard business card typically includes the business name, contact information and the logo of the business.

In todays modern world, technology has come a long way compared to the past years. Do you still prefer to use letters? Because nowadays email is more convenient. Do you still want to go to the banks? Now you have the option of internet banking. You need not go to the bank personally. Do you still prefer to send out your business cards for networking? The most probably answer would be yes since business cards are very vital when it comes to networking, however, you do not want to use the business cards in the traditional form.

These days, where most people are so much conscious about their status and reputation, no one would want to let his status be jeopardized just because of using a traditional business card. Therefore, the idea of a customized or modernized business card is always challenging.

1. Plastic business cards. Plastic business cards can help distinguish your card from all other cards in the market. There are two types of plastic business cards, the transparent and the translucent types. There is a bit of difference between these two types. The transparent plastic business cards can always be printed with one color on one side only while the translucent or sometimes called as the solid plastic business card can be printed on both side with the use of multicolor. Compared to all other business cards, a transparent business card has a square corner while the solid or the translucent one has round corners. And because these types of card are durable, water resistant and very good looking, a plastic card is now widely used by most business card holders in the market.

2. Matte finished business cards. This type of business card usually has a smooth, non glossy look and appearance and also looks graceful. This type of card is typically applied with an aqueous coating after the printing process, which makes the card smoother than the normal printing after the matte finish.

3. Ultraviolet or UV coated business cards. UV coated business card are considered as one of the most preferred types of modern business cards especially when it comes to modern cards. The main reason for this is that they speed up the process of printing and also have a longer life than the traditional cards. These types of business cards can also be colored on each side depending upon your taste and preference.

4 Last but not the least is the silk laminated business cards. As the name implies, this type of card is usually laminated with a special type of high grade material on both sides that provides a silky look and feel to the business card templates. When a card is silk laminated, a rich and thick effect is created that make the card look silky and feel smooth. This type of business card is usually waterproof, reliable, durable, and also looks very expensive.

What Are Silk Business Cards

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Your business card is extremely important, because it is part of the equation when potential clients form their first impression of you and your company. Therefore, a high-quality, professionally-printed card is critical. This is not an area for self-service; always hire a reputable printing company to produce your business cards.

Top-notch business card printers typically offer a variety of cardstocks to choose from. One such cardstock option at the high end of the quality scale is silk, sometimes referred to as silk-satin. This is one of the classiest and most elegant cardstocks you will ever see.

Silk Lamination

First and foremost, lets talk about what exactly the silk is comprised of. The silky coating is accomplished via silk-lamination, typically on 10pt or 15pt cardstock. This laminate coating is completely unnoticeable and invisible unless you try to tear the card. If you try and rip a silk business card, you will see the ultra-thin, transparent layer of silk-laminate peel away from the card.

It is this lamination which gives silk business cards their uniqueness. For one, it makes the cards more durable. The laminate coating makes the cards a little more difficult to tear, and helps minimize the possibility of corners and edges getting frayed.

Additionally, the silk lamination is completely writeable, meaning you can write on the card with pens, pencils, and markers with ease. This is a nice feature and is something that is not possible with glossy business cards. This attribute works well for jotting down appointments, so it is particularly appropriate for doctors, dentists, attorneys, or similar professionals.

No-Gloss Elegance

Another key attribute of silk cards is that they are non-glossy, which eliminates the common inconveniences associated with glossy business cards such as fingerprinting, streaks, smudges, and the cards sticking together.

Glossy business cards are coated with a varnish-like substance known as glossy UV (ultra-violet), which is completely different from the lamination associated with silk business cards. It is this glossy varnish that creates the aforementioned inconveniences. Conversely, non-shiny silk lamination eliminates these types of problems.

Additionally, the non-shiny look is more upscale and elegant. Many people correctly perceive glossy UV business cards to be a relatively low end business card product. The non-shiny look seems to be in these days, which positively influences peoples perception of quality.

Enhancements

Finally, the durability and composition of the silk cardstock make it the best choice for business card enhancement features like spot UV, embossing, and foil stamping.

Spot UV business cards in particular offer a unique look, as the areas treated with the spot UV are slightly raised and shiny compared to the non-shiny silk cardstock. Thus, the treated areas jump off the page and provide a striking visual impact. It would not be possible to produce spot UV business cards on an inherently glossy cardstock.

Embossing also works better on silk business cards. Embossing is the process of raising certain design elements by virtue of them getting pushed through from the backside. The net effect is similar to the account number on a standard credit card, where the numbers are raised on the front and recessed on the back. As you can probably guess, embossing is a delicate process that puts much stress on the cardstock, and thus is a more appropriate enhancement feature for durable business cards like silk.

Summary

To sum it all up, silk business cards are laminated, durable, writable, non-glossy, and support enhancement features. Outside of metal business cards or plastic business cards, silk cards are generally considered the highest-end business cardstock in the market today. They have an elegant look and feel, and do not have the same inconveniences as glossy business cards.

Principles In Business Card Creation

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Business cards or also known as the calling cards are considered as one of the most powerful tools in marketing today. If you have to get good market recognition, you need to have effective business cards. It is always a must for you to send or give out your business cards to many people in many different places to get good market reach. Your business cards are your representative so it important that you have it designed and printed well. Likewise, your cards need to use high quality materials to give you a professional and reliable image. If your business card is lacking one of these things in one area, the whole purpose of investing your money in creating and printing these cards will just be a waste. To improve your skills and know-how about business cards, below are some of the principles that you can consider.

There are usually so many different online printing companies that offer different business card designs. But most of these designs are common and have been used by many other businesses. So, be sure to choose a unique and memorable design. Look for a good online printing company who will design only for you and always ask them to guarantee you that they will not use the design that they have made for you to their other customers.

1. Do not stuff so many things when it comes to your business cards. Keep in mind that your card does not have enough space, so always make it simple, attractive, and professional.

2. When you hand your business card to someone, he or she will first look at your business logo. Therefore, it is very crucial to highlight the logo of your business. Be sure to create an attractive and compelling logo.

3. The choice of color and especially the background always matters. You can always use the colors which are related to your business theme. If you do this right, you will have a good and suitable business card for your business.

4. Using effects on your business card is also a great idea. These effects can include lamination, matte filing, embossing, UV coating and the ink rose. All these said effects will aid your business card to look better and become a good marketing tool that will effectively promote your business in the market.

5. There are so many different online printing companies that are available in the internet nowadays. Check out each of them; always check their online portfolios to know how capable they are in handling your printing job. Once you are satisfied with their work sample, it is now time to check their prices. Do they have a reasonable price? Do they give some discounts for first time customers? These are the things that you should always think off for you to attain a good and high quality business card even with just a limited budget.

There are also some online printing companies that offer bundled packages in printing. Trying these offers will help you save money since these offers are sometimes budget friendly and provide a good output. Always keep in mind not to make any compromise when it comes to the quality of the printing. If some printing company asks for a high fee in printing your business card templates, you can also consider getting their service since they will also provide you with a first class output.