The Role of the Printer

"If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed." Ben Franklin

In Ben Franklin's time, the printer was usually the publisher and often the writer of what he printed. It would be only natural to have some concern for the reception his printed material would receive. Today's printers would rarely share that concern. There is a lot more distance between the creator of the document and the pressman who puts it on paper. Business or political leaders may come up with a message, but it goes through several stages of the creative process, like marketing people, ad writers, and designers, before it reaches the person we call the printer. And even then, the first stop within the print shop is a graphic technician, not the "printer." Franklin was intimately involved with every step of many of the documents his shop produced. Today's printer does not even read what he is producing.

This is not entirely a bad thing; productivity is certainly far greater today than in the 1700's. But something can be lost when the printer is kept out of the loop. The printer knows the capabilities and limitations of his equipment. He knows how different inks will perform on different kinds of paper. And he knows how different processes, like foil stamping, laminating, coating, die cutting, folding, etc. will effect the final product. If his shop includes mailing services like many do today, he can probably also advise on postal requirements and reduce costs if the printed piece is designed to be mailed. There is something else: An experienced printer has seen a lot of great marketing ideas and programs. He is a wealth of information and ideas about what has worked and why. A good printer should be brought in early in the process as part of the creative team.