The Self-Promoting Musician
Chapter 7: Impressive Promo Kits
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SPECIAL REPORT
Working with Printers. Find a good print shop and stick with it. You’ll be seeing a lot of your printer. Printing costs can vary greatly. I recently priced a print job with four different printing companies and these are the four prices I received for the exact same print job: $89, $175, $234, and $441! The lesson: ask around and compare prices. When I say "printing" I mean not only the traditional offset printing to which most of us are accustomed, but also desktop publishing (DTP) or computer-aided design and printing. A virtual revolution in the world of document creation, printing and distribution is occurring and the sooner you become acquainted with the potential of DTP for your project the better. For now, most of the following is written with more traditional print shops in mind.
The economies and technicalities of the printing process must be factored in at the earliest stages. By first understanding the issues involved in getting ink on paper, you can determine whether or not a project is economically viable. It will also help you determine what designs can save you time, money and hassles. To discuss these issues realistically with a commercial printer, you'll have to provide certain information about your project and know the right questions to ask.
1. What's the unit cost? The lion's share of cost goes to setting-up your project on the press. The higher the quantity printed, the cheaper the cost per unit.
2. Which paper is best? A mind-boggling variety of papers are available. The best procedure is to determine the effect you are trying to achieve and ask the printer to show you samples (don't forget Paper Direct mentioned earlier). Also, ask the printer if the weight and finish of the paper are appropriate for the kind of text and illustrations you'll be printing. This is especially important if you are planning to use photographs or fine-line drawings in your printed materials.
3. How much does color cost? The colors you use for type and illustrations are a major expense in any printing job. A more economical way to add color is to add a single spot color with colored inks. You may be able to "piggyback" your additional color on another printing job that is using the same color, thus eliminating a separate set-up charge. Talk to your printer about these opportunities.
4. What about photo and illustrations? Images with areas of gray or color require several steps from the print shop. Compare prices.
5. Are there other design elements to consider? For example, you may want to run a photograph right out to the edge of a page. This is called a "bleed" and can be an effective graphic device. However, if you don't place your bleeds carefully they may interfere with printing. Similarly you may want a design element to "cross the gutter" and span two consecutive pages. Precisely aligning pages to make this work properly can be tricky. Definitely discuss it with your print shop.
7. What about folding, collating and binding costs? These are additional costs. For your own peace of mind, get bids from several print shops on any given project.
Now that you know what questions to ask, you can do all this (or most of it) over the phone. Let your fingers do the walking and your mind do the talking.
Working with Artists. Professionally designed printed materials create a successful image, but it doesn’t come cheap. One way to make this more affordable is to seek out an art student whose style you like and see if you can work out a mutually profitable exchange. Some tips:
1. Know your budget. Request written estimates from designers you interview for a particular project (allowing a plus or minus 10% variation). Printing can be complicated and mistakes expensive. If you are unfamiliar with the process, have the artist check bluelines (the equivalent of photo proofs) and handle the press check (verification of colors and alignment as the piece comes off the press).
2. Screen artists carefully. Ask around for referrals and check the Yellow Pages under "Graphic Designers." Meet with three artists to review their portfolios, but discuss your budget with them on the phone beforehand. Though perhaps awkward, it will save both of you time and frustration if your financial expectations are worlds apart. Ask to see samples relevant to your planned project and make sure the artist was responsible for these samples from concept to execution.
3. Give the artist creative freedom. Carefully describe the audience you want to reach and the message you want to impart. Show your artist design samples you like then let him create. Establish checkpoints along the way so no one is running off in the wrong direction.
4. Perfect means professional. Proofread! One proofreading tip that works: Hold a ruler under each line as you read. The ruler focuses your eyes on one line at a time and greatly improves your chances of catching errors.
5. Approve the design in the early stages. Be sure to ask your designer for "comps" before a job is done. Comps are true-to-life renderings of a finished piece. They're usually not cheap, but they are well worth the cost.
6. Observe deadlines. Give you and your designer enough lead-time. Never assign a job without a deadline.
7. Pay as you go. Never pay an artist the entire amount up front. It's fair to pay one third at the start, one-third midway through a job, and one third upon completion and delivery. Your contract with an artist is a business agreement. Let mutual respect and fairness prevail.
FURTHER RESOURCES
BOOKS
Morgenstern, Steve. Grow Your Business with Desktop Marketing. New York: Random House, 1996.
Gibson, James. Getting Noticed: A Musician’s Guide to Publicity and Self-Promotion. Writer’s Digest Books, 1987.
Christensen, Glen, ed. Compact Disc Packaging & Graphics. Cincinnati: Rockport Publishers, 1994.
Baron, Cynthia. Creating a Digital Portfolio: A Guide to Marketing and Self-Promotion. Hayden Books, 1996.
PAPERS, FOLDERS AND NOVELTIES
Best Impressions: 800-635-2378
The Business Book: 800-558-0220
Paper Access: 800-PAPER-01
Paper Direct: 800-A-PAPERS
Quill Corporation: 800-789-1331
Author Peter Spellman is the Director of the Career Development Center at Berklee College of Music. The Self-Promoting Musician is published by Berklee Press.