It’s so complicated to remember EVERYTHING you put into a file so I discovered this cool trick you can use in InDesign to help package up all of your information for you! That way you don’t have to worry about missing anything. The function is called packaging. Here is how to package a file and what it does exactly.

*Note that this refers to InDesign CS4; CS3 refers to the “Packaging” feature as “Preflight”. Preflight has been expanded upon in CS4.

To get the process started go to File > Package. Or if you love the keyboard shortcuts its: Alt + Shift + Ctrl + F (Mac: Option+Shift+Command+P). This will bring up a dialog box that gives you all the information about what is going to be packaged. What packaging does is put all your resources (links, fonts, Pantone colors, as well as a copy of the InDesign file) into one folder for the printer to easily access the files and information quickly.

You can go through the other sections below “Summary” to make sure everything is good to go. These tabs show everything that is going to be packaged into the document. Once you have reviewed this information click “Package”. This will take you to a Printing Instructions window.

After clicking “Continue”, a “Package Publication” window will pop up. Here you will choose a location on your computer to save a folder with all the InDesign file information and fonts and files used within the layout. Navigate to where you want the press ready folder saved and click “Package”. This will start the packaging process.

Once the computer has finished saving your file, go ahead and navigate to the folder. If you look in the folder you’ll see your file is there with a separate folder for fonts and links.

Don’t forget to right click and zip/compress your main folder before uploading to the FTP site.

Can’t get much easier than that! Next time let your computer do all the heavy lifting.

Sources: http://www.gomediazine.com/tutorials/preparing-indesign-files-for-your-print-service/#.UKEBuIUvDpp

How often have you heard or even thought about the phrase “Using paper kills trees?” This phrase has plagued the printing industry for ages, and there’s no shortage of the phrase floating around today. You’d be surprised however, to know that today, the U.S. has 20% more trees than it did on the 1st Earth Day (AF&PA), which took place in the spring of 1970.

The primary raw material for paper is trees, yes. But trees are a renewable resource. The trees in North America used for paper production come from well-managed forests or farms. (Print Grows Trees) It’s true. Private landowners plant almost 4 million trees every day. 

That’s 3-4 times more than they harvest. According to International Paper, Go Paper, and Grow Trees website, this gives them the income needed to maintain, renew and manage this valuable forest resource sustainably. Without that income, landowners face economic pressures to convert forest land to other uses, including growing other crops that are more profitable or selling the land for development. In both cases, the forest is removed forever.

Furthermore, according to the Down to Earth Series, “Is it worth Printing?”/Choose Print,  just 11% of the world’s forests are used for paper? The other 89% is used for lumber (28%) and fuel (53%).

By providing a market for responsibly grown wood fiber, the U.S. paper industry encourages forest landowners to continue managing their lands rather than selling them for development or other non-forest uses. Two Sides claims this is an especially important consideration in facing economic pressure to convert forest land to non-forest uses.

So next time, before jumping to conclusions based on preconceived misconceptions, snap judgements and media hype, consider the facts. Because as we all know, knowledge is power. Equip yourself with the truth. For more information on common print misconceptions and other print-related factoids, visit www.printing.org/valueofprint.

Have you noticed it yet? It’s different. It’s edgy. It’s evolved. It’s Capital Printing’s new brand. As cool as cucumber, clean as a whistle and as fun as a barrel of monkeys… just like us.

This evolution has been taking place for quite some time.  Our new outward expression derives from 84 years of inward reflection. We realize that while our 80+ years of experience drives our knowledge and ability to successfully deliver you top-notch, Grade A printed products, it’s also critically important to stay keen on today’s technologies and relevant to your ever-changing needs.

We know who we are and what we’ve always aimed to be for our clients. Imagine our new brand not just as a face lift, but as a visual extension of how we have evolved as a team. Undivided. Unified. Communicative. Working just for you to produce powerfully perfected print.

So what’s the reason behind the logo update? Why did we change the color? The short answer?  It was time. The long answer? As mentioned above, we aimed for the new logo to represent unity and cohesiveness.  In the past few years, we’ve worked together as a team to streamline workflows and increase communication both internally and externally.  To signify that, we took the fragmented pieces of the old mark above the name and married them together.

The left side of the logo represents internal communication and workflow. For those of you who haven’t noticed, it also makes a “C” which stands for “Capital”. The right side represents our outgoing communications and workflow to produce and distribute what we like to call powerfully perfected print. Notice, the right side of the mark creates a “P” which stands for “Printing.”

Together, the two sides of the logo create a registration mark. Registration marks in CMYK printing, traditionally help printers guide print projects though to perfection, ensuring all colors: cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K), line up perfectly. While true perfection is impossible to attain, we aim to be accurate and strive to achieve the highest level of quality to make our clients happy. To us, perfection is ensuring our clients receive the highest levels of satisfaction in our services.

As for the Green, we recognize the need and importance of eco-friendly printing processes. So much so, that it’s a part of our culture.  Everyday Capital Printing uses eco-friendly paper and printing processes so that you may trust that it will have a minor impact on the environment. Part and parcel of our culture, when partnering us, you are partnering with an environmentally responsible team. To learn more about our eco-friendly practices, visit our Sustainability page.

So there you have it! Today, tomorrow and into the future, Capital Printing will continue to take it up a notch through transforming our client’s vision into effective and economical marketing solutions that knows no equal.

Peruse the rest of our website www.capitalprintingco.com.  See what we’re doing completely different but just the same; printing with our whole heart and soul.

Overall Changes

The chart below shows the proposed increases for the various classes of mail in the Mailing Services category.

First-Class Mail

First-Class retail stamp increases by one penny, with remaining products increasing around 2.5 percent. The exceptions are Parcels, which increase by almost 5 percent and International, which increases by almost 8 percent.

Standard Mail

Standard Mail increases overall by 2.57 percent, with higher percentage increases for Parcels and Carrier Route mail. Non-profit Standard Mail rate discounts remain consistent with current discounts off of the regular rates.

Periodicals Mail

Periodicals Mail will see an overall increase of 2.56 percent. Non-profit and Classroom Periodicals will continue to receive a 5 percent discount from regular rate postage, with the exception of the advertising pounds.

Package Services Mail

Package Services price increases are proposed at an overall 2.569 increase, with Parcels and Media and Library Mail seeing increases around 3.4 percent.

Shipping Services

Express Mail will increase overall by 5.8 percent, with the existing structure of zoned Retail, Commercial Base and Commercial Plus price categories maintained. Retail prices will increase an average of 6.5 percent, with Commercial Base prices increasing by 2 percent and Commercial Plus increasing by 1 percent.

Priority Mail increases overall by 6.3 percent, with the existing structure of Retail, Commercial Base and Commercial Plus price categories maintained. Retail prices increase an average of 9 percent, while the Commercial Base prices increase an average of 3.7 percent and Commercial Plus prices by 3.8 percent.

Parcel Select prices increase on average by 9 percent, with destination entered parcels at 8 percent for DDU entry, 4.9 percent for SCF entry, and 4.8 percent for NDC entry. Non-destination entered parcels see an average increase of 5.7 percent. Lightweight Parcel Select sees an increase of 9.8 percent; these were formerly known as Standard Mail commercial parcels. The Regional Ground category will be eliminated due to insufficient volume.

Parcel Return Service prices will increase overall by 4.8 percent.

First-Class Package Service prices will increase overall by 3 percent.

Parcel Post will be renamed Standard Post, and will increase an average of 21 percent.

Additional Resources

You can also check out the new price charts on Postal Explorer or review the filing document on the Postal Regulatory Commission web site.

Given that Newsweek plans to stop printing its magazine by year end, and rely on digital distribution to carry the load, one might be tempted to surmise that the sky is falling on print.

But from the look of things, the sky is in the same place it was last time we checked.

According to Simon Dumenco, the “Media Guy” at Ad Age, there are plenty of counter examples to Newsweek, where magazines are not only embracing print, but boosting revenue in the process.

The truth is, all ad-supported media — including magazines and digital-native companies — are operating in what continues to be a challenging environment. The difference with magazines is that they generally have to function as real companies with real revenues and real plans for how to survive and thrive.

No, Dumenco won’t be taking meetings with VCs anytime soon.

Instead, he will continue to take note of, and admire the progress being made titles like Marie Claire, which was recognized by Ad Age as its Magazine of the Year.

Dumenco reports that Marie Claire is up more than 15% in ad pages so far this year, and has published two editions of its career-focused spin-off title, Marie Claire@Work. “All of the A-List winners are innovating in digital — with websites and tablet/mobile editions that are driving real revenue — at the same time that they’re continuing to convince readers and advertisers of the value of print,” Dumenco contends.

I was on a short flight from NY back to DC yesterday and opened a copy of the NY Times to find a full page ad with the simple declaration “Marketing is BS.” Beneath that attention-grabbing headline, Adobe called this “Myth #1″ as part of their campaign to speak to marketers and business people about how to measure results more effectively. The ad was targeted to marketers, but it has an unintended side effect … a lot of people agree with the so-called myth. Despite working in marketing for more than 10 years, let me first share this rare point of view among people in my industry: a lot of marketing actually IS complete BS.

The ad was mocked on Saturday Night Live and widely attacked for being an example of the worst kind of marketing excess (Chanel reportedly paid more than $7 million to get Pitt). But they are not the only offender. Anytime we hear an ad for an “all-natural” product that still uses high fructose corn syrup as a main ingredient, or see fashion ads with unnaturally skinny supermodels offering an impossible ideal of beauty, trust in business and marketing dies just a little bit more.

And then you have the nonstop stream of political advertising, which isn’t just reducing the credibility of business in general, but also leading to apathy and distrust of the entire role of government.  A running joke now on late night television is to remind people that unless they live in Ohio (or perhaps another swing state), their votes really don’t matter anyway.

Welcome to the modern believability crisis, where it is harder for anyone selling or talking about anything to build trust than ever before. Survey after survey proves this out every week, as we are now seeing proof of record lows in public trust for everything from media to areas of life that were once thought to be unshakeable, like religion.

So in this BS-filled world where people are less and less inclined to trust anything … how can any of us become more believable? That is the biggest question facing marketing, business, politics, religion and just about any other institution struggling to connect with people. And here are my thoughts on five priorities we need to collectively embrace in order to be more believable in anything we do:

1. Share the truth, not the facts.

There is a stunning bias right now towards hoping that “facts” will tell the story, both for a product or a candidate. The problem is, facts don’t move us for two reasons: first they are not emotional, and secondly, they can always be manipulated. As further proof, a cover story in the Washington Post this past weekend pointed out that though neither candidate may be lying about the facts, they are both manipulating them to tell a convenient story. People know this, and have stopped paying attention.

2. Let actions speak louder than words.

When Domino’s stood up in their advertising, showed focus groups criticizing their Pizza and then promised to fix it, they had a brand defining moment. It was real and it was true. The next quarter they had record sales. Both political candidates talk about wanting to connect with real people. President Obama and the White House have spent the past four years deftly releasing images like the President fist bumping a janitor or bending down so a young boy could feel his hair. Those are the moments that speak much louder than any “facts” memorized and retold at a debate.

3. Use real people.

It is easy to hide behind podiums and spokespeople. The greatest brand marketing campaigns right now all have one fundamental principle in common – they are putting people front and center. IBM’s award winning “Smarter Planet” series features real employees. Ally Bank shows real people behaving honestly and promises to do the same. Even unexpected industries like oil and gas are turning to this principle, as Chevron’s entire “We Agree” campaign shows by featuring real employees in their ads. People are what make corporations and organizations real.

4. Go off script.

Anyone can memorize some bullet points and be taught how to deliver them. The real moments that build trust are the ones that are off script. When people interact in real time, build personal connections and act like real people instead of corporate robots, they are more believable. So find a way to ditch the corporate business tone in everything you say and write, and embrace human language instead. Not only will you sound more credible, but people may actually even understand what you are talking about – which is a nice side benefit.

5. Be legendary.

When something or someone is legendary, we can’t help talking about them. In part, that was the factor that has led to Bill Clinton’s soaring popularity, as well as why Apple products have succeeded for so many years. When we have an experience that is above and beyond our expectations, we can’t help but talk about it. This is the essence of word of mouth marketing, and it is also what leads to believability. After all, the more people who proactively sing your praises without your request or even without your knowledge, the more powerfully your reputation will grow – and you will be more believable and trusted as a result.

Your brand’s essence— just one word that sums up how your brand connects emotionally with your customers. Identifying it sounds simple enough, right?

After all, you know your business. You know your audience. But articulating how they feel about your brand in an authentic and meaningful way is often challenging. Few get it right.

The reason: essence is an intangible.

The features of a brand, e.g. lightweight, fast or blue, are tangibles. Easy to sense, describe, measure and compare.

The essence, on the other hand, is felt.

Lacing up a new pair of Nike running shoes feels inspirational. Riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle feels liberating. Experiencing Walt Disney World with your children feels magical. Strong brands have well-defined, easily grasped, simply obvious essences.

It should be easy to figure out, but getting there takes soul searching. To get it right, one must know how your consumers experience your brand.

To help those who participate in determining a brand’s essence, here are the primary criteria. Test your essence against them.

1. single-minded One word is ideal. Maybe two. More than two words indicates that the brand has no focus. As a brand (by design) delivers a unique experience, having no focus makes for a weak brand.

2. intangible One is no more independent on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle than another brand, but somehow one feels like it. Tap into what the consumer feels.

3. unique The essence of a brand is how it is different from competitors in the same category. E.g., if Apple (and its products) are friendly and approachable, then it is claiming that its competitors are not.

4. experiential The essence captures what the consumer feels during an experience with the brand. E.g., “Driving a Volvo makes me feel that my family is safe.”

5. consistently delivered If the proposed essence is not consistently experienced (e.g, if a trip to Walt Disney World isn’t magical), then it isn’t the essence. Can your organization deliver?

6. authentic The essence must be credible or the brand will be rejected. To find out what consumers believe about your brand, ask them. It’s okay for the brand essence to be aspirational, but only if your customers believe you can deliver on the promise.

7. sustainable A brand’s essence is baked in. It doesn’t change. Ever.

8. meaningful There is no point in identifying an essence that is irrelevant to consumers. Essences that don’t connect are the reason behind many failed brands. Again, research.

9. scalable Will the essence work for brand extensions? Will it work as the brand’s opportunity grows?

How does your brand essence measure up to these criteria? What other criteria do you use?

What if Usain Bolt charged per hour to watch him race? It’s a ridiculous thought, of course. Yet we all know that the only reason he is able to run 100 meters in less than ten seconds is because of years of preparation. He has spent a lifetime training to be able to do what he is best at faster than anyone else. How many of us are the same way? I spend hours every week just reading about new marketing ideas and campaigns. I study new reports and studies of human behaviour. Why do I do all this? Because I believe (and have seen over and over) that my ability to think on my feet and deliver good strategy and creativity for clients depends on all the work I do before I ever walk into that meeting room.

The irony is, I have spent most of my working career in roles where I have billed clients per hour. It is the most commonplace method of estimating and billing for work in most forms of professional service. I set my hourly rate, multiply that by how long I think I will spend on your project, and I have my budget. But what if I come up with the perfect idea in a moment? Legendary Ad man Phil Dusenberry from BBDO tells the story of bouncing through the streets of New York in a cab the night before a big pitch to GE – and finally landing on the perfect theme line for their advertising: “GE … we bring good things to life.”

This happens a lot. Creative people have a million ideas, and often they share them quickly. Having insights as opposed to ideas is more challenging, and often takes more time … but time isn’t a necessity, it is a side effect. And sometimes the most brilliant ideas come without side effects. In other words, they happen in an instant. Which leads to one of the oldest questions in the advertising business and perhaps many other service based businesses as well: should we charge less if we take less time to come up with the perfect solution?

The notorious law firm solution to this problem is to hire many junior lawyers and clerks to do busy work that burns hours (and is billed back to a client). Some marketing agencies have their own way of doing the same thing. If we want to move any of our industries forward, this model needs to crack. It is one of the things I am most excited about now that I am on my own. Hours matter less than results and creativity doesn’t always happen on the clock.

So the next time you think about being creative, or inspiring someone else to be creative on your behalf, think about what you’re really giving them an incentive to do. Hopefully it is delivering you the best insights, ideas and executions … no matter how long they take to develop.