How To Use An Online Dtp Company

By Author: Robert Wiley
Total Articles: 4762
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Many people and businesses find the mysteries of producing high quality printed materials a challenge. Large corporations, with significant budgets and in-house or external experts for designing, copywriting and printing materials find the process expensive but valuable. But, how does the small business person manage to compete when it comes to marketing materials and promotional items? There are two primary ways of producing printed materials you may need for perhaps a major trade show or event.

The first way is to do it yourself. This can be cost effective, if you already have the equipment you need to achieve it. To buy everything required to produce professional looking materials is expensive. Items such as very high quality printers, paper or card, inks, laminating materials and equipment can soon add up.

Another way is to use a professional online Desktop Publishing (DTP) company. This has many advantages. There is no need to meet with your supplier in order to discuss your requirements. They have the right equipment to produce your product; they can offer a design service if you lack the expertise; and ...
... they guarantee prompt service and delivery. They can produce very high quality, professional items such as bookmarks, brochures, business cards, calendars, catalogs, door hangers, letterheads, envelopes, forms, notepads, folders, postcards and posters.

Once you have decided to use an online DTP company, what will you need to do?

1.Set up your account with your chosen provider. This is a quick and easy process, giving the online DTP Company the information, such as your billing address, that it requires to add you as a client and undertake your work.

2.A good DTP provider will work with you to ensure that your material is exactly what you need. They will offer advice, and many offer a design service to ensure you get a professional looking product.

3.Provide your DTP with your artwork. This can seem daunting at first but it is quite straightforward in reality. DTP companies provide a facility to upload files directly to them via their websites. This is the best method to use as it is quick, and ensures immediate receipt of your files. Some companies also accept artwork on disc but this process is more time consuming; it is an additional expense and discs can be lost or corrupted before they reach the suppler.

4.To ensure that your work is of the highest quality, they need your files to be uploaded in the right format. This means that you need to take the following steps:

a.Ensure you provide the correct file format. Most companies will need files in one of the following formats:

i.Adobe Acrobat PDF
ii.Adobe Illustrator
iii.Adobe InDesign
iv.Adobe Photoshop
v.QuarkXPress

Any of these software options is easily available and will ensure that you provide your documents in an acceptable quality for your DTP company. Each of the software options provides templates to make designing your product as quick and easy as possible.

5.Ensure you provide your images in a high quality format. In technical terms, images need to be at least 300 dpi resolution. Anything lower will result in a low quality print which will appear fuzzy.

6.Make sure that you set your fonts in the font that you want the finished product to be delivered in.

7.Ensure that you check everything before you upload your files. Check spelling, grammar, and pay particular attention to details such as any contact details that should be included. Ensure that telephone numbers, email addresses and web address are absolutely accurate before uploading.

The major benefit of using an online DTP company is that of cost. It is a very cost effective way of providing top quality promotional items. The only real expense for a business is the purchase of software to facilitate the printing, and the cost of training in its use. For that, an online tutorial is an excellent solution.

To the inexperienced, this all seems confusing and difficult. However, with a quite basic understanding of software such as the various Adobe options, anyone can create very professional looking items.
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