In order to receive a detailed quote for your printing project, it is imperative that you provide as much detail about your project as you can when submitting for an estimate. We understand that as a project moves forward, there could and probably will be changes, and we always work with our clients to provide up to date pricing. Here are a few items to understand when submitting an estimate:
Pages vs Sheets
There is much confusion over understanding the pages of a book vs the sheets of a book. When you are creating a multipage book, you should always focus on the page count of the book. Once you have your book designed and send it in for a quote, we look at the sheet count. A four page layout is printed on one single sheet of paper (two pages on the front, and two pages on the back); a sixteen page book is printed on four sheets of paper. Sometimes, depending on the final size of the book, 5.5” x 8.5” or smaller, you can print eight or sixteen pages on a large sheet of paper.
When your project is sent in to be quoted, our team looks at the final size of the book, the page count and other aspects of the job and determines the proper size sheet to print on. How the book binds and finishing options can also affect the sheet size it needs to run on. In the competitive world of printing, we do our best to efficiently print a job and pass the savings on to the customer.
The page count of a saddle stitched book must be divisible by four
When you begin a multipage saddle stitched book project, keep in mind that the final count of the book has to be divisible by four. An eleven or twenty seven page book is not divisible by four and cannot work. If your content does not fit into a page count divisible by four and you are short a page or two, consider adding a notes page or table of contents.
This does not factor in on perfect bound books as you only need a page count divisible by two.
Flat Size vs Finished Size
On our online estimating form, there are fields for flat size and finished size. The flat size of your project is the final size if the project is laid flat. An 8.5x11 book will have an 11x17 flat size; a 9x12 pocket folder will have an 18x16 flat size; an 8.5x11 three panel brochure with equal size panels has a 25.5x11 flat size (if you have an 8.5x11 three panel brochure with a short fold, then the flat size will be 11x17 plus the size of the short panel).
The finished size of your project is the final size of the piece. If you have a tri-fold brochure printing on 8.5x11, then your final size would be 3.7x8.5; a 9x12 z fold would have a final size of 4x9.
Knowing if a project has a short panel or different size folds helps our estimator understand what you are looking for. Then, he or she can give you a more detailed price on the project.
Understanding the process we go through to produce your project helps you plan your future projects. If there are ever any questions you come across as you plan for your print media project, please do not hesitate to contact us. Your success helps us with our success.
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