UCL Communications & Marketing

COMMUNICATIONS TOOLKIT: DESIGNING AND PRODUCING PRINT MATERIALS

Preparing materials for print can be a really daunting experience, especially if there are hundreds of copies being made- these guidelines aim to simplify the process.

Step 1- Planning

Lots of people decide ‘we need a four page A4 brochure’. Step back and ask- do you? What are you communicating and to whom- what is the best way of communicating your message? The last thing to decide is how many pages and what size it should be- form follows function!

It’s essential to start with a clear brief.

Ask:

  • Who is it for
  • Why do we need it
  • Where will it be distributed
  • What will be in it
  • How much can we spend

If there’s more than one person involved, the whole process is much easier to get agreement on content and look before you start. Think about the type of paper you’d like- thick, thin, glossy, uncoated? Printers can make suggestions and send you samples.

Pagination and layout

Once you have decided on what content you want in your document, it’s a good idea to create a pagination guide- this will help you decide what goes on what page and where. Don’t forget to add four sides for covers (four sides - outside front, Inside front, inside back, outside back).

Now you’ve got the brief and pagination guide- work out your schedule.

  • What’s the budget
  • What’s the format (eg A5 portrait)
  • What’s the quantity
  • What’s the page count (extent)
  • What’s the deadline- take off one week to allow for printing

Now ask printers for estimates (check UCL procurement services for a list of approved suppliers)

Jargon busting

Digital vs Litho

  • Digital printing is good for small print runs (less than 1,000 copies) and quick turn around
  • Litho is better quality, takes longer and can be more expensive for small print runs.

Colours: Eg: 2 colour, 4 colour

  • For print, make sure your colours and pictures are in CMYK mode.
  • Litho printing can be cheaper if you only use two colours- full colour is most common.

Binding/folding commonly used terms:

Saddlestitch- stapled, perfect bound- with a spine, roll fold- folded in on itself, z-fold- also called ‘accordion fold’,
perforated – if you need a ‘rippable’ pull-off section.

Step 2 – Preparation

Now gather and/or create your text and images’

Copy

Think about what you are producing and make your copy appropriate – eg. if it’s a leaflet, use short paragraphs to break text into small sections.

Photos/graphics

CMYK or grayscale for print, rgb for web

Highest quality possible to avoid pixelation - minimum 300 dpi resolution.

Step 3- design

Think about:

Headlines, sub-headlines

Columns

Font

Images

Colours

Furniture (text in boxes, lines, pull quotes) to add interest

Remember ‘empty’ space is important

UCL logo and corporate guidelines

UCL logo must be at the top of every front page (unless joint branding)

If it’s on an image, it must be black

The UCL colour palette can be found in the guidelines- use tints of colours too

Fonts- must be Arial or Garamond. Arial is modern, clean. Garamond more traditional and elegant.

Top Tips

Be careful of contrast - make sure you can read the text easily eg blue on blue is hard for older eyes to read

Use guides to make sure everything is aligned

Don’t use too many colours on the same document

Think about your audience when you are picking your colours, fonts and images

Look around for inspiration

STEP 4: Printing

Before you send to the printer, print off a copy and check it thoroughly- it’s easy to miss things on screen- show a few other people as they may spot things you miss.

Create a print-ready pdf

Email to printer

They will return a printed or digital proof

Check alignment, colours, spelling! – Get other people to look at it.

Sign off

Wait!

Resources

UCL Corporate identity:

Photography, printing and design services, as well as UCL image library ‘Imagestore’

UCL-approved printers:

Paper sizes and weights

Printing terminology glossary: