The first step in insuring that the final result of any printing project is a successful and effective one is preparing the design files for printing. Insuring that your files are in proper order can help you steer clear of any unforeseen delays or problems.

Even a service such as My Postcard Printing’s Free Project Review cannot guarantee that you will get the exact result you are looking for if you have not done the work in preparing your files to insure that the printer knows exactly what you are looking for. The following are some general hints to help you present an accurate file to My Postcard Printing so that we can give you the best possible result on your printing project.

File Preparation

• Make sure that your print you have the right size for your postcards
• Check to be certain that you have the appropriate bleed size – 0.25” bleed all around.
• Try to keep a 0.125” distance for the trim area to help avoid text or images from being accidentally cut off.
• Center your documents or design properly within the live area.

Graphic Elements

Images and Resolution

• Images or photos must have at least a 300dpi or dots per inch.
• Flyer and brochure designs must be in CMYK.
• Submit the original copies of images you used in your design. All of these should be in the color mode of CMYK.
• It is ideal to save your images in the .tif or .eps formats. Using these lossless file formats maintain the accuracy and quality of your images.
• If you want “rich” blacks for your prints, a 100% black color will not suffice. Combine other colors of ink with black for that deep, dark black color.

Text and Fonts

• Remember to embed the font you used for your design.
• Include all the fonts you have used for your design – both screen and printer fonts.
• It helps to have fonts that are organized in folders.
• Fonts should be set at 400 dpi.
• Always check for your texts for typographical errors, misspellings, grammar, punctuation, and the like.
• Check to see if your fonts or text can be printed legibly. Consider your text’s or font’s spaces and if they are vector or raster.

Putting in the work in preparing your files for the printing process before you send them in, will go a long way in preventing any problems with the print project. The better prepared the files are before they are forwarded to My Postcard Printing, the more likely that the printing process will proceed without any additional problems.