What should you expect from your large Format printer: Visual communication is vital, always has been, always will be and in a landscape such as today, brands find themselves needing to be more creative and responsive, whether that be a change to a retail display, event branding or corporate messaging. The large format digital printer you choose has a responsibility of making sure that your brief gets the full impact it deserves.
Colour check, direct printing to aluminium
Not everyone knows the difference between a grey back vinyl and a white back vinyl. Its safe to say that a customer would normally fit in to one of two types. Customer A knows what they want, how it should be printed, laminated and cut. Customer B knows what they want to achieve but doesn’t know the route to get there, a trusted supplier will handle both types of customer with ease and be on hand to advise on materials, application methods if required and options on costs depending on budgets.
There are many companies who offer Large Format Printing, the best ones will always produce their graphics in house by using state of the art machinery and will most certainly sell you the promise of speed, quality and cost as standard, but what else should you consider when choosing your printing partner? The below will give you some more food for thought when fulfilling this vital role.
Communication: From your initial phone call, email or face to face meeting the communication is key. A great supplier will ensure they have captured everything required to cost the work and present this back to you in a clear concise manor which relates back to your enquiry. Once the scope of works is agreed and artwork sent, a regular update at appropriate intervals should also be sent. Most commonly at order confirmation, proofing and dispatch stages. Your account manager should always be on hand to assist with last minute changes or contacting you with any information that will have an impact on your brief, it is not unusual for a small problem to escalate into a much more serious one if not handled straight away and efficiently.
In our printer we trust: A promise is but a string of words, does your supplier back this up with consistent delivery against time scales and quality? Printers will be supplying end user and 3rd parties alike, they are responsible for not just their own reputation but those of the agencies and at times, other printers they supply, often dispatching direct to the end user under plain label. Having a printer that will meet your own high standards from print quality to packaging and delivery is a fundamental part of your own companies success.
Adding a 3D printed element to a project
Specialists: Some Large Format Printers say that they specialise in certain sectors, what this means exactly is something of a mystery to some. A specialist printer will understand the art of large format printing having worked in a variety of sectors, enabling them to pass on the best techniques and knowledge gained to you the client. They should understand the demands or needs of your business type, matching your brief to a solution obtained from working within a variety of different scenarios. A competent printer will service a large mix of clients and have a vast amount of experience that will span across many business types. Testimonial and case studies are key and a supplier should be active in obtaining these to show to any perspective new customer.
Creative: A Large Format Printer should be creative, if you cannot ask for creative assistance from your printer then I would consider looking for someone who can demonstrate this ability and who are in the best position to advise on what will and will not work. Some printers will offer an art creation service, normally from a brief given, some in the industry are known for not entertaining such commitments but as the needs of the market place change you will find a supplier who can do this very well and rival that of some design agencies (as long as the brief is on par). A supplier should also be creative in the solutions it offers, not every solution is an obvious one, if something is not achievable a great supplier will find something that will meet the criteria.
Green: The Large Format Printing industry is not known for its kindness to mother nature but this is changing as material suppliers become accountable for offering alternatives to the likes of PVC and Self Adhesive Vinyl’s. It is important to many business’s now to lower their own carbon footprint and it is OK to ask your suppliers where they stand on such matters and how they are doing their bit to help the environment.
Our home is your home: An honest Large format Printer will have an open door policy for you to come and view the machinery, your work being produced and really importantly meet the people who work there. The printer/client relationship is one built on trust where sight of the printer to the end user (if done correctly) can be beneficial rather than risky, we have all heard the stories of Printer A going direct to End user B, if you trust your suppler this of course should never be an issue and bring a new level of service and understanding to the end user.
Trust in what we do best: At Digital Plus such is our expertise, that we can provide a solution for all visual graphics challenges, whether that’s for architects or agencies or for individuals or businesses within the retail, education, leisure or trade sectors. Get in touch and you can count on our award-winning team of highly-creative-experts to provide the ultimate one stop shop solution.
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