Full Color Brochure Printing: 5 Questions to Ask Your Vendor

After you've written and designed your brochure you'll want to find a full-color brochure printer to produce your marketing piece. There's an abundance of choices out there for printers. After reading this article you should have a framework for helping you find the right vendor for your full color brochure printing needs. Here are 5 questions to ask your vendor.

1. Do they offer quality customer service?

Depending on which printer you choose, whether online or local, you want to make sure they are responsive to your inquiries, helpful, and easy to reach by phone or email. A good printer will try to educate you when you need advice. Before you do business with any printer, check their terms of service for any unexpected red flags or hidden fees.

2. Do they offer free printed samples?

The best printers will always offer a free sample of their work. If they do not offer free samples, ask if they'll send you some samples so you can check their quality. A good printer will be happy to show you samples to earn your business. Besides, would you want to work with a printer, or anyone for that matter, who isn't proud of their work?

3. What printing or finishing equipment do they use?

Though technology in the printing world advances rapidly, your printer should stay up to date with state-of-the-art printers and digital presses to ensure the highest quality in their work. Simply ask about the presses they use, then later research them to make sure they aren't dinosaurs. The leading printing equipment manufacturers are Komori, Heidelberg and Hewlett Packard.

4. What's their price and turnaround time like?

While price and staying within your budget is always a crucial component of your decision, keep in mind you get what you pay for. The previous three questions should weigh more heavily than price. If you find several printers who meet these criteria, then you can make a discerning choice based on price and turnaround time. Don't forget to include shipping costs in your calculation.

Some printers will be able to offer same-day turnaround times in many instances. Often these are the bigger more established printers who have a large full-time staff. These companies, however may not offer the same kind of flexibility of terms or have the same incentive to really work hard for your business than the little guys will.

5. Do they offer a satisfaction guarantee?

Any printer should offer some form of customer satisfaction guarantee. Any smart printing business will include this as a vital component in their ability to generate new business and build trust with customers. The fact of the matter is, no printer is perfect, and mistakes do sometimes happen. Any printer worth their weight will offer a 100% money-back guarantee or free re-print.

If you ask these questions you are guaranteed to find a full color brochure printer who will serve your needs quickly, accurately, and with the highest level of professionalism and quality.