subject: Short Run Colour Printing - Should I Print In-House or Outsource? [print this page] Short Run Colour Printing - Should I Print In-House or Outsource?
Cost, time and quality comparison
The choice between doing something yourself, and having a professional do a job for you, used to be a simple toss-up between paying a little more but getting better quality and spending less time, versus spending less money but more hours. Things aren't always so simple nowadays ... especially when it comes to short run colour printing for corporate materials like business stationery, business cards and flyers. Today we compare the benefits and drawbacks of printing in-house and outsourcing your short run colour printing.
Costs
The cost component of your decision isn't as simple to calculate as just offsetting your materials cost and your hourly wages against what a short run colour printing store would charge you. You'll need to consider things like:
Equipment cost: If you don't have a reasonable quality printer, you'll need to factor in the cost of initial equipment purchase for doing your own business stationery.
Ink cost: Bubblejet printers are much cheaper than laser printers ... but did you know that the ink in those cartridges costs more per ounce than human blood, penicillin, bottled water or crude oil.
Professional printing could be cheaper! It sounds counter-intuitive, but nowadays, it is often cheaper to have your flyer design/printing or stationery printing done at a place where they can make use of economies of scale. Desktop printers are more for convenience and speed of getting something printed - not for cost-effectiveness or quality.
Time taken
If you send your short run colour printing job to a professional, you'll need to make a time investment in prepping the file for printing, and approving the proof in some cases. That's all! Many short run colour printers also do design in-house for common business items - so you could save time arranging your flyer design, business card design or poster design.
If you do your short run colour printing job in house, however, you'll need to reserve time for:
Purchasing suitable equipment and stocking up on supplies
Preparing your file
Adjusting print settings as necessary for quality control
Monitoring the print job to fix paper jams, etc.
Folding a cutting your job as necessary
When you consider that time is money, in-house printing begins to look less attractive!
Quality
The element where you'll see the most difference between in-house short run colour printing and a professional job, however, is in the quality. Consider that:
You'll have much wider choice of paper thicknesses, finishes and colours with a professional place
The colours are very precisely calibrated
They can identify colour management problems and rectify them quite quickly
Professional printing machines can print at far higher resolutions than consumer printers
You can utilise bleeds with professional printers - most ordinary desktop printers will require 6mm margins
On a reasonably-priced desktop printer, you'll be able to print A3 size at most
Any adult in the Western world can tell the difference between professional short run colour printing, and an in-house job ... and that impact on your reputation is probably the most important factor to consider!
