By Kay Wilt

Recent technological advancements have made color inkjet printing the best production option for many direct mail packages. The increased quality and speed of color inkjet offers many benefits for direct marketers including increased ROI.

J&Q’s latest white paper compares the three most often used production methods for direct mail. It provides an overview of each method and indicates which is best for different types of direct mail programs. The production types include –

• Full color inkjet printing systems start with rolls of plain white paper that feed into the press with full color printed and personalized forms output.
  • Color inkjet provides significant benefits for most direct mail programs including –
    • Postal savings by combining versions into one print run
    • Shorter schedules
    • Unlimited versioning, testing and personalization in color
    • Elimination of preprinted forms
  • With increasing quality and more inkjet papers available, many traditionally printed programs are converting to color inkjet.
• Full color digital printers typically use sheets of plain white paper and output full color personalized forms. This method is ideal when –
  • A super high quality image is required
  • An extra heavy paper stock is needed for a special form or postcard
  • The print quantity is small
• Offset printing and monochrome (black only) personalization have been the traditional direct mail production method for years. It may still be cost effective for forms with limited personalization, large and intricate formats, or extremely high ink coverage. However, most traditional direct mail can be printed on a color inkjet press successfully.

Download the complete white paper to learn more about high-speed color inkjet production and how it compares to other production methods.