Why I Always Start with Printer Research First
An important first step in designing your Catholic product
Whether I am working on a book, a t-shirt, or any other product that needs to be printed, I always start with researching printers first.
Why research printers up front?
The last thing you want to do is design a journal, bandana, tote bag, or photobook around a certain dimension, only to find the printer you want to use doesn’t print in that size!
Budgeting. I don’t want to spend hours designing a product only to find that it can’t be printed within my budget.
Availability. I once designed the coolest blouse, and then the tariff situation happened and the supplier stopped shipping to the US. Make sure what you want to produce is actually feasible.
Material. What you design will look different on various materials. I’m currently designing a scarf that looks amazing on chiffon and not so great on polyester. Colors may need to be changed depending on the material you use.
For books especially, you may find significant cost differences in trim sizes (the size of your book), color versus black-and-white printing, and page counts. Design with your printing budget in mind. If your printer has an online quote calculator, play around with it. For example, when I printed my book at 4.9” x 6.9” instead of the standard 5” x 7”, I saved hundreds of dollars! I only figured it out by trial and error.
Certain book bindings create larger gutters or margins you’ll need to design around. For example, if you are creating a book with a 3-ring binder, you’ll need to design around where the 3 holes will be punched.
Some printers have global operations where some of their products can be printed in the US and other options must be sent overseas. If, for example, you know you want your product to be printed in the US, you’ll want to design around the types of products your printer can produce.
Where can I get online quotes?
SmartPress is one of my favorite places for printing paper-based products. (This is my affiliate link. You'll get 15% off your order and I'll get points applied to a future order of mine.)
Printful is awesome for other print on demand products.
For Print on Demand books, you can get quotes here:
IngramSpark Printing and Shipping and Publisher's Compensation Calculator
Amazon KDP Print and Royalty Calculator
⭐A full list of printers is available for paid members in the Directory.