Blog

CHRISTMAS CARD 2010 CATALOGUE
At Dobson's we can make Christmas a time to create an impression and enhance your relationship with your customers. Choose from our catalogue or take advantage of our individual and unique designs, targeted to your personal audience.

Stocks, gsms, finishes. So many options. Not sure which is the best for you?

Waiting on a new marketing piece, company collateral or book for the first time is always hard. Your choices on stock and finish will effect how substantial the piece is, how the colour will turn out, the texture and durability, as well as the overall effect of the piece. So why not get a dummy made up?

Here are our favourite links for designing printed pieces at the moment:

http://www.idsgn.org/posts/award-winning-print-design-from-cannes-lions-2010/

A snapshot of some winners of the International Advertising Festival recently took place in France, showcasing some of the world’s most innovative advertising and design.

Helping the environment requires dedication from the begining of the design process. Here are a few quick tips for doing your part to save the environment- and a couple of bucks too! (Who said to be environmental was expensive?):

Just like there are different client types, there are a different types of designers. Knowing your key strengths is important. Just as important is recognising your weaknesses. If you see yourself in some (or all) of these, then take notes and enjoy reflecting on how you can become an even better designer!

Have you ever thought that you’re unique? Or felt that you’re just one of thousands out there struggling to get a project?

Most likely, both of these statements are true. Many designers are out there trying to get their next project and most of them have their own processes and styles. Still there are some characteristics that rate high on the scale and others that barely register. So what kind of designer are you?

Dobson’s are your communication specialists. Did you know we do more than just print?

Find some of our favourite tips for a successful e-newsletter. Easy to use and effective- just like us!

Strategy

The first thing you should do for any communication material is create a strategy. What are you trying to achieve? Who is your audience? How will you deliver your message and measure its success?

Typography is a subtle art that is often overlooked. Focusing instead on the graphics and colours in an artwork can be to the detriment of the design. All the design elements need to be consistent in portraying your message and there are many different aspects of typography and many terms. Here is a short list of terminology that you may not know (even the design experts out there).

How the Environment Affects Print

Thinking about how and where your printing is going to be displayed is a key factor in determining how to design it and what materials to use. Think about who will be using your print and where it will be. If you’re business card is going to be in someone’s wallet, should you use a coating so it stays nicer for longer? If so, are you going to use matt, gloss or UV?

Attention!

When developing marketing or collateral, the first thing to consider is your audience. Online viewers seek you out and their attention is captured with a range of images, video and sound. The aim is to engage people for a period of time so that they are receptive to your message. In print, you need to grab attention of your audience from whatever else they are doing and have, on average, a 3 second window to portray your message.

Online businesses can no longer be simply online. More and more, we are seeing web-based businesses invest in print collateral. Their greatest challenge is to figure out how to create effective print design to promote their online business.

Fixing low-res images

Resolution is the detail that an image holds. Poor resolution will give out a poor finished product. Having images that are blurry, grainy or unclear looks unprofessional and distracts from your overall message. We suggest keeping resolution at 300dpi or higher for the best finished product.

But sometimes you need to make the best of what you’ve got. So what do you do when you have poor image resolution?  Here are some of our quick tips when using Adobe Photoshop CS2 or higher.

Why branded notepads work

When you answer a phone call, find an important bit of information or need to remind yourself of something later, what do you do? You write it down. Every day, several times a day, we scribble down our thoughts, messages and to-do lists onto notepads.

Tips for achieving brand consistency

Your brand is your business’ identity. Keeping your brand in mind is vital before designing any collateral including marketing or promotional collateral. Getting a copy of your business’ style guide is the first step. If your company does not have a style guide which defines how to use your branding, then get one! Talk to Dobson’s today to help you put a style guide together. Your guide will ensure consistency in all the collateral released by your business. This in turn creates strength in your brand recognition and longevity within your market.

Troubleshooting with Duotones in Photoshop

Duotone is a file made up of 2 spot (or pantone) colours.

Printed files are generally output as CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black) colours, but ask your Account Manager at Dobson’s if you are unsure.

Computer screens use RGB (Red, Green, Black) colours.

Renewing your image this financial year

The end of the financial year is approaching quickly and things are getting busy as businesses try to wrap up the last year. They generally have their heads down, reviewing performance, gathering data and chasing invoices.

The EOFY also means one thing, the beginning of the next financial year! Budgets will be renewed and people start planning (and spending) for the year ahead, so now is the perfect time to think about your marketing and your brand. Don’t be afraid to revamp your brand and go all out with your marketing. Having a presence in your market is vital to ensure new business and to make sure your customers keep coming back. Standing out from your competitors, for the right reasons, will help drive your business to gain new customers, recapture old customers and gain market share.

Leveraging Soccer To Sell

It’s unavoidable. The FIFA World Cup is in the media- on the TV, in the newspapers and in store promotions and more. World Cup Fever has taken hold of Australia. For those of us that braved the cold at 4 am to watch the first Australian game, you may have noticed the advertising present as you averted your eyes from yet another German goal. Spectators sported printed flags, signs and various merchandise (including the oh-so-annoying horns that they blow the entire match!). You may have a printed wall planner so that you can keep up with the games at home and you probably read about the games you couldn’t stay up all night to watch printed in the paper in the morning.

Tips for conducting a press check

If you are printing a new job that requires perfection, why not conduct a press check? This is done as the print run gets underway in order to make sure the outcome is exactly what you want. While errors should have been corrected during the proofing stage, the main purpose of a press check is to make sure that the colour on press comes as close as possible to the colour proof.

Here are some tips for conducting a successful press check.

First thing is first

Take an overall view of the document. Does it look and feel they way you wanted it to?

CD/DVD duplication, slips and cases

With so much focus on the latest movies- Avatar, Precious, The Road, Sex and the City 2- we forget that Dobson’s does CD and DVD printing, duplication and more.

Do you have an informational or promotional CD or DVD you want people to use? Brand more than just the content! You can send a powerful message on the CD or DVD itself as well as the packaging. There are so many great ideas on how to package a disk from the classic plastic cases with a printed slip, to a printed piece with a slot for the disk that you can mail. For all the suitable mailing requirements, see our Resources page or simply talk to a Dobson’s Account Manager for advice and guidelines.

Dobson’s can even assist in compiling CD and DVDs.  Technological advances mean that you can include several types of resources on the same disk, from links to articles, web pages, videos and more.

Door hangers are making a comeback

Door hangers as a marketing tool seem, well, a little bit outdated. Do they really make a difference? The answer is yes!

Like many traditional marketing tools, with great quality printing and the right application, you can get great results! A little creativity goes a long way. If door hangers seem like a less than legitimate way to promote your business, then take a look at a couple examples of people who are using door hangers and using them successfully.

In the US, the Democratic National Party distributed 750,000 door hangers before a major vote. And for good reason. A study at Harvard University found that door hangers were one of the most effective means of mobilising voter turnout. Even Obama utilised the door hanger:

Adhesives for any purpose

Stickers are versatile. They can go on most surfaces, inside and outside. They can be left at the site of a job, as a promotional tool for customers, on cars of employees. Some of the most creative marketing has come in the form of stickers. Would you get into this elevator?

Either way, this floor graphic has got your attention!