WORKING WITH A PRINTER

So, who do you go to? How would you select a printer?

The honest answer is there is no answer. Initially it will depend on what you need printing and how many. This will rule out litho if it isn’t a large print run of a booklet for example. If someone suggests a printer, then follow it up.
Quite often word of mouth is just as good as trawling the internet to find a printer. Look for one near you – or near to where the delivery needs to be. Short run print runs can be outweighed by delivery costs.
Check the printer out – invariably they will have a website, do they have any reviews, case studies, pages of information where you can get a feel for the quality of work they produce.
The variation of work they do will give you an idea of the equipment they have and therefore what their potential may be.
 
The client will be expecting three things – quality, right price and delivered on time. It is fair to say that the printer wants the same thing. A happy customer will come back and advertise the supplier’s name.
Once you have decided on the printer or printers you require a quotation from (RFQ) then it is time to issue an enquiry or print specification.

QUOTE FORM
 
If the above is issued, then there shouldn’t be any issues in the printer sending a quote back.  They may even offer advice – so don’t be upset at this as they are used to working with jobs and know how they print and finish.
A slight change in size may result in more copies on a sheet – therefore a better price. Adding or reducing pages may also save money depending on the imposition and how the job will finish.
Again – listen to the advice given by the printer – they know their machines and capabilities so can become an invaluable partner – not just a supplier.
Assuming all is good, and prices start to come back then decisions need to be made. I am going to assume we all insist on quality, no one would purposely order an inferior product.
Do you then go with the cheapest – not necessarily. Do you go with the quickest – not necessarily.
Compromises sometimes must be taken, if the cheapest job takes 2 weeks longer than this is no good if you have a deadline. If the quickest is the dearest, then this too may be an issue with the timing which is not feasible, and the printer is required to use overtime or out-source part of the job.
Can a slight time delay result in a better price that suits all parties.  The more you engage and work with a printer, the more you will be able to know yourself the timings that would potentially be involved.

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