Jacquelynn is a freelance designer working at Domtar. She is a little bit obsessed with journals, handwriting, books and is excited for the opportunity to learn more about the paper that contributes to these things. When she isn’t designing for Domtar or fun, Jacquelynn enjoys cooking, filmmaking, doing weird things to her hair.

By now you’ve probably noticed a trend in my posts – I’m a big advocate of communicating with your printer, especially at the onset of a project! This isn’t something my college program really covered. Instead, a lot of real-life experiences and mistakes led to me realizing the benefits of communicating with your printer right away in a project.

Perspective

Talking to your printer early on gives you an opportunity to look at things from a different point of view. You might be sure about digitally printing a project because that’s what you’re comfortable with, or how you’ve always done things, but your printer may look at your preliminary design and see how crisp and vibrant it would look printed offset. Sharing your plans early on gives the printer time to think about all the ways to help you print the best quality project.

Branching Out

It also gives you the opportunity to learn from the printer, making you a better designer for the future. Maybe your client really wants to incorporate metallics into their design, but you’ve never designed for foil press before. You may choose a metallic pantone, something inside your comfort zone. OR you could call up your printer. By combining your passion for cool designs with their passion for high quality prints, you’ll be able to create something even better for your client, and grow in the process.

Smooth Sailing

Finally, by contacting your printer about a project early on, you are giving them an opportunity to think through potential mistakes and hold-ups before they happen. They will have a clearer understanding and investment in your project because they were involved in the preliminary planning, even if you were just asking about paper options or print sizes, and you can have peace of mind in knowing that everyone is on the same page about the end goal.

So, there you have it. By contacting your printer early on in a project, you gain perspective, give yourself the opportunity to branch out and grow, and increase the chances of your project going smoothly from start to finish. We can’t become better designers without using our resources, and our printers are a great place to start!