wow creative
Bayside Studios
Churchill Way
Appledore
Bideford
North Devon
EX39 1PA

Directions:
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how to be a good client...

Imagine a bike with two wheels – if both wheels are in perfect alignment you get to your destination more smoothly and efficiently. If, however, one of the wheels is slightly buckled, you may get to where you want to go – but things start to get a little bit bumpy along the way!

And so it is with design. Here at WOW Creative, we pride ourselves on being able to dig clients out of stick situations, turn things around in miracle times and amaze you with jaw-droppingly creative ideas. However it helps the whole process considerably if you and us work smoothly together.

We put together this guide so that you can understand what happens behind the scenes and maybe help you to become a better client and in turn get better results.

Understand the process

Every printed job goes through the following steps, the highlighted areas are those that need your direct input:

Briefing - Design concepts - feedback - design development - design approval - artwork - proof - amends - proof - approval - print preparation - printing/production - delivery - WOW!

Briefing

Wherever possible, try to give the designer a written or strong verbal brief and follow it up with being available to answer questions. What you put into a brief you will get out tenfold in results. Never say 'I don't really know what's needed, just come up with a few creative ideas'. If you haven't considered who the project is aimed at, what you're hoping to achieve or why it's being done in the first place, what you get back will be a complete range of non-specific ideas that may look attractive but won't achieve anything. At least do the groundwork at the beginning and get an understanding of what you are trying to achieve.

Timings part 1

Wherever possible be realistic. We've all responded to a challenge and we will continue to do so forever more but over the years the best results generally come from the projects that have been planned for and time allowed. Creativity isn't a 9 - 5 job, our thoughts, concepts and ideas hit us at some very odd moments (we won't go into details!) and generally it's when we're relaxed and chilled out rather than when we have 2 hours to produce a concept. For best results give us a warning about the project - even an idea about what will be required even if the details aren't finite.

Timings part 2

We are exceptionally amazing at turning round proofs in record breaking speed to ensure you hit a deadline. However our skills at contacting you telepathically are still in development. If you need to meet a deadline, make sure you are available to check the proofs! Work out a timing plan with the designer at the beginning of the project – it doesn't have to be written – verbally is fine. Let us know when you are available for proofing and we can work round that ensuring the job is signed off and sent to print/production when required. (We will in the meantime endeavour to work on the telepathic skills).

Chocolate

Always a good thing in a relationship – feel free to bribe us with chocolate and see what happens to your designs!

Copy

Draft copy is perfectly adequate for a designer to use when creating initial design concepts. It helps us design to specific requirements and the typography can be much more adventurous. However after you have chosen a design and artwork needs to be produced, final copy will be required. Artwork is the stage where we formulate your copy into styles and ensure it is ready to go to print. If we use draft copy and new copy is supplied at a later stage you are likely to incur costs for the change to artwork. We all expect amends – that's why we quote to include one set, however if we have to rework the artwork because you didn't get it signed off by the boss we shall unfortunately have to charge you.

Amends

As mentioned before, amends are expected. If you want your project to be a success we understand that there is an element of fine-tuning. However, the way that amends are provided to us can ensure that the process goes smoothly and accurate proofs are returned to you. Try wherever possible to send amends via email or give them to us as marked up copies. Amends given over the phone although may seem quicker for you can lead to confusion - especially if you haven't given the designer time to get the copy in front of them! Never expect a designer to amend artwork on screen over the phone – the artwork may appear simple when printed in front of you but may involve a number of layers of text and images and this can often lead to errors on artwork at a later stage.

Images

The quality of images supplied is an exact representation of what will be printed. However what looks right on your screen may not print correctly as the screen uses a lower resolution than we would do in printing. If you supply a 72dpi resolution image, it will appear bitmapped and fuzzy when printed at 300dpi. Always get the designer to check the quality of images if you are unsure.

Colour

Every monitor is set up differently. We calibrate our monitors to ensure that they are as closely matched to the printed item as possible. However as most of our proofing is done electronically via PDF files or through colour laser print outs what you see may not be an exact representation of what will be produced. If you have a specific colour you wish us to match to please provide a sample and likewise, if you are unsure of a colour ask the designer to provide you with a swatch. If colour is absolutely key in your line of business, always request a wet proof to be confident of the reproduction.

Pitching

We know we have to earn our stripes. Prove ourselves to be the leaders in the hungry pack of designers. However, we hope that once we have shown our true colours and that we have worked with you a few times that a relationship develops that you can trust. We also understand that you can't allow your suppliers to get complacent and that you need to ensure that you are getting the best quality for the best price. However, we do ask you to be fair. Pitches are an expected part of the game, a bit of competition is actually quite exciting, but if we have to go to battle on nearly every project or for projects that are worth little it gets a little trying. What you are asking a designer to do is give you a lot of hours work for free. Before you do this please ensure the following:

a) The job is an actual job and isn't an idea you might be going ahead with. If it is something in the pipeline please at least be honest at the start.

b) All designers start on a level playing field. Budgets are agreed at the start, deadlines are the same for all parties and that the brief given to each company matches.

c) Be honest with the number of designers involved in the pitch. 3 is the usual, 5 is occasional, more than 5 and you'll find a lot of designers will stand down as this can show a lack of decisiveness from the client at the start.

d) Give feedback. You have asked a designer to give up their time for free. In return the least you can do is give them the chance to understand where they went wrong. We once had a client who stated in the brief that due to budget restrictions they would be unable to notify the unsuccessful candidates! Safe to say we chose not to partake in that pitch!

Communication – the most important rule of them all!

We will always strive to ensure a job goes as smoothly as possible, we fight fires with the best of them, we climb mountains when required and we pull many a rabit out of the hat. All we ask from you is to keep communicating with us. When we know what you need and when you need it we can generally jump through some pretty small hoops!

web top tips: making your website work

The cost of living, the price of eggs, the printers charges, they all seem to be going up these days... so now's the time to start thinking about getting clever with your online approach.

1: Think of the user

First and foremost, your website is not for you. It's for your visitors. Why are they coming to you? What do they want to know? What do they want to see? Make sure your site is simple to navigate, information is easy to find and the layout is clean and clear. Don't put obstacles in the way, unnecessary click-throughs and annoying pop-ups all serve to cheese the visitor off and send them elsewhere.

2: This is not a brochure, but it's not a movie either

A website shouldn't be a replica of your company brochure, it can be so much more. However that doesn't mean you should put some flashy video elements or overuse animation. The site must always serve a purpose but where possible make it a two way interaction with the user. Give them freebies along the way and let them enjoy the experience. There's no law against enjoying work!

3: It's good to Google

Do not underestimate the power of the Google-meisters. They have really good tools and a lot of them are free to use. With them you can analyse the visitors to your site, set up alerts for key words or terms (things that may affect your industry or business) and drive people to your site.

Check out the following links for further information:
http://www.google.com/analytics
http://www.google.com/alerts
You'll need to set up an account with Google but it's well worth it.

4: Analyse and act

Whether you use Google analytics or your own web analysis tool, make sure you discover a benchmark for your site. Look to see which pages are most successful, get rid of or update those that aren't. Visitors won't look through every page of your site but there's no point in having clutter, it gets in the way.

5: Make it easy... show the way

Most people come to your site with a need in mind, they are looking for something, so make it easy to find information. And whilst you're there, don't underestimate how easy it is to get lost in a website, so make it easy for people to see where they are... give them breadcrumb trails to get back to previous pages.

6: Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Google adverts

Unlike many other marketing tools your website isn't ever completed and put to bed, its a living growing thing. The more it's updated the higher ranking it gets on search engines, the content that you include, meta tags and links all count towards raising your site higher on the search engine rankings. Google adverts although not right for every company certainly can be used as a good tool to see what works when running specific marketing campaigns and don't need to cost a lot to give you a good idea of what content your site should refer to.

There is so much that is truly possible for your business by harnessing the web. If you wish to talk further about your online strategy contact us.

paper fact sheet

Paper choices are endless – here are a few pointers when deciding on stock for your next project:

The first choice to be made is one between 'coated' or 'uncoated' stocks.

Uncoated paper is much more absorbent – when printed on, ink sinks into the paper itself and affects the look of the final print project.

Finish choices:

Laid paper – has a textured pattern of parallel lines on its surface – most commonly used for stationery.

• Wove paper – has a smooth surface - most commonly used for stationery.
• Bond paper – cheaper wove paper – most commonly used in photocopiers and office printers.
• Uncoated papers are more bulky and are often more expensive than similar coated stocks – more coated stocks are produced and printers are generally able to command better prices.

Good for forms that need writing on.

Coated papers have a coating, usually of china clay, to give them a smooth finish – sometimes known as ‘art’ papers. This allows ink to ‘sit’ on top of the coating and not sink in to the paper.

Finish choices:

• Gloss – a good quality gloss stock is idea for print projects that include a large amount of imagery – photography or detailed colour illustrations. Used for magazines and holiday brochures. Lower weight gloss stock is also used for high volume projects such as take-away menus – needing no seal, it’s usually more economical.
• Matt - If the design is more text heavy then we would probably choose a matt stock. Matt has the opposite effect of gloss - it diffuses any shine and spreads it across the page. So when reading text the reader’s eyes are less likely to get tired. (Unless of course the copy isn’t very engaging – see wow! for some top class copywriting!). Used for Annual Report & Accounts, Menus, Information leaflets.
• Silk (also known as 'Satin') – Has a slight shimmer and really does sit in between matt and gloss stocks. Holds colour well and is less 'shiny' than gloss stock.

Matt and silk coated stocks generally need a machine sealer applied to them so that inks don’t smudge.

Not good for writing on – ink will usually smudge.

Paper thickness is measured in gsm (grams per square metre). As a guide the following are examples of familiar items and their typical paper weight:

• Standard photocopy paper: 80gsm bond
• Letterhead (good quality): 120gsm uncoated
• Take-away menu: 130gsm gloss
• Business card: 350gsm uncoated
• Brochure: Cover – 350gsm silk coated / text – 170gsm silk coated

Board, as opposed to paper is measured in microns (1000th of a millimetre).

Environmental considerations:

• Think carefully about the size of your project and paper planning for the printer, reducing wastage.
• All paper can be recycled – it's what has happened to the paper before recycling that makes a difference: heavy print coverage / use of laminates and varnishes can mean the difference between recycling or not. Envelopes with windows should be avoided if possible too – they’re usually separated out in the recycling process.
• Recycled papers are great but look out for the amount of recycled fibre in a paper: being recycled does not mean 100% recycled.
• Choose a material that contains a high percentage of post-consumer waste – in that way, less ends up in landfill sites.
• If you do use paper that contains virgin fibre (i.e. first-use, non-recycled stock), ensure that it's an FSC certified material.
• Vegetable-based inks are by far a better choice than petroleum based inks (unfortunately, most metallic inks fall into the later category and cannot always be avoided). We will always talk to our printer about the inks they use as well as the paper stock.

Talk to us when specifying paper and we'll do all we can to ensure that you make the best all round choice to help you stand out, to make the most of your budget and to reflect your company's values.

standard ISO print sizes

B sizes

guide to provision of photography

Here is a quick guide that explains how we measure image resolution and what is required for both print and online/screen images.

Image resolution

In the context of editing photos, resolution is a measurement of the output quality of an image. It's important to explain how image resolution is measured. Within the industry there are several different units that are used to measure this but we will focus on the most common, DPI (dots per inch) and PPI (pixels per inch).

DPI dots per inch): This specifically refers to how many dots of ink will print per inch. The higher the number, the clearer the image will be.

In general, for all printed material the required resolution is 300dpi. The exception to this is for large format printing such as Billboards where the lowest acceptable resolution is 72dpi. It is acceptable in this case as the images will be viewed from afar so the dots will not be visible to the naked eye.

If you are taking images yourself, below is a quick reference list to help you recognise if an image you have is suitable for print:

5 Mega Pixels = 2592 x 1944 pixels

Great Quality: 25.5 x 33cm (10 x 13 inches)
Good Quality: 33 x48cm (13 x 19 inches)

4 Mega Pixels = 2272 x 1704 pixels

Great Quality: 23 x 30.5cm (9 x 12 inches)
Good Quality: 30.5 x 40.5cm (12 x 16 inches)

3 Mega Pixels = 2048 x 1536 pixels

Great Quality: 20 x 25.5cm (8 x 10 inches)
Good Quality: 25.5 x 33cm (10 x 13 inches)

2 Mega Pixels = 1600 x 1200 pixels

Great Quality: 12.5 x 17.5cm (5 x 7 inches)
Good Quality: 20 x 25.5cm (8 x 10 inches)

PPI (pixels per inch): This term is used when referring to online and screen resolutions.

For web imagery images must be at 72ppi. This allows them to be viewed clearly and also helps to keep the file size of the page down which in turn enables the page to load faster.

This is why typically images from the internet are not suitable to print from.

It is important to remember that the resolution of an image can always be reduced but it can't be increased. When you try to enlarge a picture with a low resolution, you are asking for pixels to be added that don't exist; the image will get blurrier.

colour matching across different media

Accurate and reliable colour matching has always been one of the most difficult (and yet highly important) jobs for any printer. The reason for this comes down to the following factors and, indeed, combinations of factors:-

A. Different colour systems

1. The four colour process: Process colours are used to print in full colour. The four colours are CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key/Black). Tiny dots of these inks are printed onto the paper or substrate in varying sizes – the dots make up different colours.
2. The internationally recognised Pantone Matching System is a series of colours that designers and printers use to identify and keep consistency across ink-based printing systems – they are mixed up as needed. Generally, Pantone colours are specified when printing in 2, or possibly 3, colours. Pantone inks also include metallic colours that can’t be achieved using process colours.
3. Colours you see on a computer screen are not the same as those you see on a printed page. Screens make up colours using glowing phosphors in Red Green and Blue varieties (RGB). What you see onscreen is often significantly different to what you’ll see on the printed page.

B. Different Printing Methods

1. Traditional full colour litho printing
2. Web press printing / gravure (similar to litho but printing is on a roll, not single sheets of paper)
3. Digital printing: similar to laser printing
4. Print for packaging: flexography
5. Large format printing (digital printing to banners, posters and display materials)

All of the above methods of printing have their peculiarities: with some, printing is straight onto the substrate; with others, a ‘blanket’ sits in between the substrate and the ink; some use toners and sit on the surface of the substrate (digital printing) – and don’t use printing plates. All of these peculiarities lead to differences in colour – your business cards may be digitally printed (due to the number of kinds that you need) onto coated stock, will not exactly match your letter head which is generally printed onto an uncoated stationery stock.

C. Different Substrates

1. Paper comes in many different varieties: smooth, textured, coated, uncoated, gloss, satin, matt. Uncoated paper (paper without a clay coating) generally absorbs ink and ‘dulls’ it. Coated stock allows ink to sit on the surface – colours appear more vibrant. For this reason, a logo printed on a letterhead will not reproduce the same as a on a glossy leaflet – even though the same Pantone colours or CMYK mix has been used.
2. Printing does not necessarily paper – screen printing, for example, can be used for fabrics, plastics, wood or any manner of substrates.
3. Packaging is created from many different materials – and all have to be printed on. Different surfaces accept ink in different ways.

D. Different screens and viewing media

1. Most monitors, and printers, will display different colours. Although screens display colour in RGB (red, green, blue) phosphors), there are many different reasons why images do not display identically: different brightness or contrast settings; the age of the monitor; the brand of monitor to name but a few.
2. Different software colour matching.
3. Viewing a file in different programmes will also produce differences in colour.

All of the above may seem daunting. However, there are several ‘rules of thumb’ that should be considered in order to get the best colour match across different media:-

1. Understand the limitations of the process being used.
2. Try to avoid large areas of the same colour – the difference will be more noticeable across different media.
3. If you have a large, solid colour that needs to be printed, consider using a spot (Pantone) colour.
4. Think about the proofing process – it may be more expensive to match proof for colour but, if you’re worried about colour matching, it’s money well spent.
5. THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE: Talk to your design team (wow!), your web team (wow!), and your printer (or let wow! manage the process for your) – these are the people with the experience – they will work toward achieving the best results for you. Let everyone know your expectations – give examples of previous materials for colour matching, and with lots of tinkering and that human element, great results can be achieved.

introduction to VAT rating of regular printed items