Rapid Prototype Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Business’

Lenticular: A funny word indeed, strange & unfamiliar to most people.

A lenticular is a series of images (minimum of two) that are combined or interlaced into one final file and then printed on a plastic lens. The lens has tiny tactile ridges that refract light in such a way as to create motion or depth effects when the lenticular is turned.

How does a lenticular differ from a hologram?

Lenticulars are currently much more common in the medium of print advertising. But many customers, when searching for a lenticular printer, will use the more familiar term “hologram”. Unfortunately, this is a misnomer. A hologram is typically monochromatic and created with laser light reflected onto an emulsion. The finished product needs to be properly lit to achieve the ideal effect.

On the other hand, lenticular printing reproduces full color, photographic-quality images in a range of effects from morphs to animations to 3D Depth.

So what effects are available?

1. Flip: Perhaps the most basic (and popular) effect, this lens flips from one image to the next with a quick turn of the wrist.Flip lenticulars are also typically the most affordable as the set-up includes only 2 images.

2. Animation: This effect offers up to 12 frames of animation. All frames should be designed with continuity & fluidity. For example, 12 frames consisting of completely different designs would not reproduce accurately.

3. 3D Depth: This effect is the equivalent of creating real 3D Depth on a card without the use of 3D glasses. This is currently very popular with the recent influx of 3D films.

4. Zoom: Zoom images leap out at your audience in stunning 3D.

5. Morph: This effect offers a more detailed flip, where one image literally transforms into the next.

Where have I seen lenticular printing?

Chances are you’ve seen lenticulars hundreds or even thousands of times. Many gift cards use a “flip” or “3D Depth” effect. Visit any major retailer and scan the DVD section, you’ll see a good percentage of these are produced with lenticular covers. Many film releases are now promoted with large lenticular posters and lobby displays. The Guinness Book of World Records® certified a 98-feet long by 13-feet tall lenticular mural in the Mandalay Bay Casino to be the largest lenticular piece ever.

How expensive is lenticular printing?

New advances in technology have brought down the prices of lenticulars tremendously. Most manufacturers, until recently, offered minimum quantity orders of 2500 pieces starting at around – each. Minimum quantities and pricing has dropped significantly over the past decade. Lenticulars are now full color offset or digitally printed in quantities starting as low as 250 pieces. In addition, pricing has dropped to as low as.18 each on larger quantity orders of lenticular business cards.

What other advances have been made?

Years ago, lenticulars were on much thicker lenses and the clarity was substandard. Printers advised against using much text on the lenticular side, as most likely it wouldn’t reproduce accurately. Contact info was generally printed on the reverse side, if required. Today, with new technological advances, the clarity of lenticulars has improved greatly. Text reproduces more accurately and image sequences are clearer. In addition, today’s lenses are thinner and not so awkward or bulky (so they’ll fit better in your wallet).

How long do lenticulars typically take to produce?

Most manufacturers advertise a minimum of 3 weeks to produce professional, offset printed lenticulars. The set-up and interlacing is time-consuming & labor-intensive and typically a full gang run has to be filled before your lenticulars can be produced.

Lenticulars are available in a variety of sizes, from 3D business cards to 3D postcards to full size posters.

Are they worth the price?

Professional marketers are constantly looking for new ways to stand apart from the plain, the mundane and the boring. Nondescript, one-color business cards & flyers are quickly going the way of the Dodo bird. From foils to plastics to metals, printing is moving into the 21st century. Making 3D lenticular printing a part of your overall marketing plan is surely a savvy decision.

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Digitization is all around us these days. One of the most important contributions devised by digitization is the idea of customization. Business cards are a simple selling instrument that have a lengthy story in their typical forms. On the other hand, now market competition is rising in an accelerating speed and so every businessperson wishes to build on an unique identity. Not just this, it needs to be out of the ordinary so that it makes you stand apart from the norm. Business cards are a great marketing source to launch the personality of a business owner to the challenging market. It can truly bolster the standing of your business in the market. Thus, nowadays, the business communities are also drifting towards customization of their greatest source of identity so that they can gain popularity and regard from their customers.

These days, business cards come in countless forms, few of which are stamped business cards, full color, magnetic, photo, shiny, double sided cards, laminated and plastic business cards. Custom business cards have to be sure amplified in visibility in the market nowadays.

Permit us to take a look at a few of the most principal points that require to be taken care of when ordering custom business cards:

1) Shape and size of the card: The whole thing about custom business cards is to be inspired. You want the cards to be appealing and inspire a sense of wonder in all that look on them. So, a lot of people choose to go for customized shapes like circle, square, free form, diamond shape, etc. Be shrewd with what shape you use since it will reflect on you and your business. Size is another aspect to take into consideration. But, even with customization, a normal size is on the whole often the best so that it can be stored in a wallet or business card holder.

2) Texture of the card: One can also alter the surface of the card. For instance, someone might prefer a coarse texture, someone might choose pressed texture, and somebody might go for a soft texture. The texture must be selected to strongly resemble what your business is concerning. For example, if you are a gravel company, you may want to use a coarse, stony texture.

3) Quality of the paper: In order for a business card to keep as long as feasible without fading, a heavier stock paper is generally used. However it is not uncommon for other varieties of paper to be utilized too. Some business cards by nature have to be lighter; such as, the folded business card.

4) Style of write-ups: You can decide among many font and color choices when deciding on your customized business cards. Nonetheless, Times New Roman and Arial are the normal fonts that most follow. The font size is also commonly typical at 10-11 for the wording body and 7-8 for the contact fields. Along with this, you must not use bold scripts to make something prominent; instead they should change the font size and color. Even the choice of color can be an crucial issue. The write-ups can be written on the parallel lines, the upright lines, or some people prefer an sloping version of the same. Some even opt to use their own handwriting on the write-ups or use 3D elements or they may want to give the impression that it is a sticky note or in the structure of a receipt, bill, ticket, etc. As long as you have an imagination, there are choices obtainable.

5) Images: For the most part people fancy customized logos today in order to duck duplicity. Major business organizations get in touch with logo designers to customize their theme and give it a distinctive logo. Hence, the logo is a perfect selling tool for business cards. You may even come to a decision on a 3D image. For people such as Realtors, a personal picture may also be used.

Custom business cards can be designed online and after that sent instantly to a printing company to speed up your order. With growing demand, the custom business cards have also become an critical area of business for the resourceful mass and printing industry. For the less inspired, but still wanting some customization, there are websites to select templates from, key in the information and send for printing.

A new form of art has born, Micro Origamic Architecture, the 3d buildings or objects are now as small as 3×2 inches, one of a kind art
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  If your thinking about Owning a Vending Machine Business the first thing you need to worry about is location and products for that paticular location.

  The key to success is to start small, you wanna get a couple machines  and put them in locations with lots of traffic thats relevant to your products. Alot of school systems are abandoning the traditional vending machines for more healthier ones. So putting these healthy products in fitness centers, gyms and other places like that might be a good idea. with the numerous amounts of different types of vending machines, im sure you can think of tons of ideas soon as you do a search. Try used vending machine sales, that way you can get the best deal on good machine.

  Using this strategy should put you on the right path to make a little money. Take this money and buy more machines once you get comfortable with your first couple. reinvesting your profits builds your business, making even more earnings. Dont think just cause the machines do all the selling that you wont have to do any work. there is work especially if you plan on keeping your customers happy.

  Owning a vending machine business is just like a website no traffic and you wont make a cent. This is definately one of the most important factors that and picking products with a nice profit margin. Chips,drinks and candy bars always give a good return on your investment. Think about how much you spend on the vending machines at your job, what you get maybe two breaks? not to mention if you get something for lunch. now think about all the other people at your job that do the same thing. Now you see how you can make your money  back with the right placement and products. 

Make sure you do background checks and reviews on the companys you plan on dealing with and also make sure that parts are available and the price of some of these parts before you start your journy into Owning  a vending machine business. I will keep on talking about strategies and looking for new ones. Check out the links below for more info.

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Business card printing has evolved from the boring and “square” types that were being produced 20 or 30 years ago. Now, when you print business cards, it is all about style, personality and distinction.

The types of card printing today would have been considered childish in those days, but now it is just a symbol for having a proactive business personality. So in effect, business cards are now in the realm of “coolness”. You have to be cool, fresh and in with the times.

For the new kind of businessperson, this should be their priority. If you want to know how to do this for your own business cards, here are a few tips that you can use.

• Using vibrant colors

For most people who want to try newer fresher methods of business card printing, the color is for most the safest and easiest element to change. Since business cards are usually printed in “boring white”, changing the color is a simple and yet very effective way to make a card stand out. In the seas of white and even black business cards, an apple green, lemon grass or champagne yellow business card will surely catch eyes. You can even match the color of your business card to your favorite color. So try changing the colors of your business card and see how fresh and cool you will look afterwards.

• Images count a lot

In the past, images were not really printed in business cards, unless it was the company’s logo. Today, people are now using other kinds of images in their cards. This can be their own picture, an image of their product or sometimes it is just an eye-catching element that people can react to. Using the correct image can be beneficial to many people as they can market themselves and market their products all with just the use of their business card. It is a nice marriage or art and utility, which can translate to business success.

• High technology additions

In addition, another interesting thing that is happening to business cards these days is the addition of technology into the business card process. This can be in the form of holographic business cards, musical business cards, interactive business cards and many more interesting types. These high technology additions can be fairly impressive and can in fact be a good way to get business contacts since it displays your attention to detail and forward thinking (which are good traits for a business partner).

• Abstract or intricate designs

Finally, for the art lovers, business cards are also turning to very significant works of art. From simple abstract designs to intricately done image collages, business cards have turned into eye candy for a visual society. This is particularly popular with digital graphic artists and developers, which usually use their business cards as a way to showcase their work.

Those are our business cards today. They are transforming into very dynamic, multi-purpose and creative prints that caters to many kinds of personalities and preferences. They are perfect for a modern world that values creativeness and innovation. So do not get left behind. Use the best design ideas that you can get a hold of today.

Katie Marcus writes about print business cards or card printing.

Some times people give me their business cards and the ink seems to pop out a bit giving it a 3D ish look.. What is this called? and can I do this with any printer or a specific printer?