Guidelines For Best Results

Working with branding promotional items can be very complex and confusing. WE have created these best practices to help guide you through the process. At any time you can contact us, and we can help you understand the requirements. This an area where we have tons of expertise and unlike our competitors, our advice is FREE.

We will gladly assist you in preparing your artwork so it is in the appropriate format, or if you prefer, you can provide us with a file where the text is converted to an image and photographs are at least 300 (Dots Per Inch – DPI) at the size the image will be at final print. Please see the following tabs which explain how to create and upload your logos, images and other graphics you would like imprinted on promotional items. We require specific formats to achieve the best results and can offer guidelines on how to convert your text to an acceptable image.

In order to produce a quality imprint we ask that you adhere to these guidelines or let a sales representative from Burnt Toast Productions assist you. In order to meet your needs, we also have the ability to manipulate your image in-house to prepare it for printing, or if a complete redraw is required to save your image in a vector format, we have partnered with a graphic design company that has given us preferred pricing. Depending on the nature of the redraw the cost to reproduce is between $20 and $60. Once this file has been redrawn and saved, you can imprint it on anything from a pen to a highway billboard without losing its crispness and clarity. We hope the guidelines in this section will help in ensuring a quality product in an efficient manner.

Ok so this stuff is going to sound very complex – do be scared! We are here to help and can guide you through the process. If you prefer, we can also help you generate your graphics or even help you create your logos. Here are some guidelines if you choose to do it yourself.

While graphics can be produced using a wide range of tools, we recommend using Adobe Illustrator® CS5 (.eps) or (.ai) – Text converted to outlines or attach a font file (PC only).

Adobe Photoshop® CS5 (.psd) (.jpg) or (.tif) – art to size, resolution to be at least 300 DPI based on actual imprint size or product size. Example: If a customer sends in a photograph or jpeg (flattened art) and wants the image used on a plastic plate then the image must be 12” x 6” at 300 dpi (dots per inch). These tools (Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop can achieve this.

The enclosed templates explains the difference between a correctly formatted image and one that is not formatted correctly. As seen in the illustration, the manner in which text is rendered is extremely important.

[imageeffect image=”7532″ type=”shadowreflection” lightbox=”yes”]

There is no way to change a low resolution image such as one used on the Internet, into a high resolution for printing. Images must either be purchased in high resolution from a stock photography site, or if you are using your digital camera (not a cell phone) to take the photograph, your camera’s settings must be checked to make sure it is set to take less photos, but at a higher quality. This will produce clear photographs that can be used for any kind of printing. Following is an example of a low image vs. a high quality 300 dpi (dots per inch) image when printed.

[imageeffect image=”7533″ type=”shadowreflection” lightbox=”yes”]