Working with a printer for the first time can be difficult, but like most challenges, it has a nice reward at the end — a beautiful printed piece that will do wonders for your fundraising, advocacy, or outreach efforts.

Big Duck project manager and printing expert Kat Sciolto has written up a few guidelines for printing to help make the process as painless as possible. Here are some of the topics covered:

• Choosing offset or digital printing
• Finding a printer
• Getting and reviewing samples
• Making a spec sheet
• Learning about colors
• Picking out paper and ink options
• Collecting bids from various printers
• Reviewing proofs
• Going on press
• Checking print quality
• Reprinting, if necessary

Fear not the printing process! Kat tells you what’s what. And when you’re done, you’ll have a print piece you can be proud to hand out to participants, donors, advocates, and others.

Kat Sciolot, The Duck Pond, Big Duck