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Tip of the Week
Make sure your photos are 300 dpi or better. What does that mean?
It means DON’T pull your photos off your website. Use the original photos from your digital camera, or scan color prints at the highest resolution your scanner will allow.
Warning: Low-Resolution Images Don't Print Well!
Many images, particularly 72dpi jpegs taken off the Internet, look jagged and blurry when printed on paper, especially glossy stock. Those images have already been reduced in resolution so they load fast on the internet, and you can’t go backwards to make a low resolution file into high resolution. You need to start with a high resolution file. For best results, we recommend that your images be at least 300dpi (dots per inch). The best thing to do is send us the original images from your digital camera.
To get good images from your digital camera, use the highest quality setting available on the camera.
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Business Stationery Guide
Stationery is one of the most visible aspects of any business.
The category of stationery includes letterheads, matching envelopes, mailing
labels, business cards and possibly invoices. Your stationery will be seen and
kept by customers - it will influence the way they see your business.
The stationery you use can say a lot about your business - it's
an important part of building and projecting your image. High-quality stationery
that displays an attention to detail will reflect well on your business. Cheap-looking
stationery with no real design values will detract from your image and may even
lose you customers.
Make sure that the business image you present is consistent. The
various different items, such as letterhead, envelopes and business cards should
match each other, and your stationery should also match your signage and your
marketing material.
You should think about the following factors when designing your
stationery - each will make an impression on your customers and other contacts:
typeface
logo and overall letterhead design
ink colors
the text to be included - such as address, phone number, your business slogan,
etc.
paper stock - heavier paper is more expensive but can project a high-quality
image
Don’t cut corners on logo design or
stationery design. Unless you are a graphic designer, don’t try to do the
logo yourself. Hire a professional designer to do it right. Homemade designs
result in lost sales. It’s that simple
Checklist: the types of stationery you need
Business stationery covers every aspect of your printed communications - with
customers, suppliers and even between different people in your business.
The types of stationery most businesses
are likely to require include:
- Letterhead paper – This is typically 8.5 x 11, and printed with laser-safe
ink for use in laser printers. Also be sure it is printed “long grain”
so it feeds through your printer without jamming. (Be sure to include all
your address and contact information.)
- Matching envelopes – don’t get cheap
here. Use the same paper as your letterhead.
- Labels – Having a nice sized label to
use for larger envelopes or boxes when necessary is also very professional.
We recommend 6-up laser labels, which fix 6 labels on an 8.5 x 11 sheet
of laser safe label stock. You can use this in any laser or ink jet printer
to print a batch of labels, or also just use them one at a time for handwritten
labels.
- Invoices and Receipts – You can use your
standard letterhead stock and let your computer printer print the details
of the invoice, or have a completely custom invoice form printed as well.
- Business Cards – This is a necessity.
Be generous in giving out your business cards, and make sure you think carefully
about how you want your clients to contact you before including information
on your business cards. For instance, cell phones are handy, but if you
publish your cell number on your business cards, be prepared to receive
calls at all hours.
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