Tactile, touchy-feely printed delights which are Insta worthy
…to make your customers happy and aren’t very expensive
I’m very lucky! I got a lovely delivery of a book subscription this week. A treat to me from my husband.
The subscription is from Mr B’s Emporium, which is a great independent book shop in Bath, arrived with perfect timing as I’ve found my reading mojo after losing it during 2020*. I was pleased to open a new book by an author I had never read before - Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession. My best friend is also reading it in a spooky turn of events!
It wasn’t just Hession’s book that captured me but the presentation and it lead me to write this blog post. How to get touchy-feely (maybe not a good title…ahem). I called it printed delights because they are and there wasn’t a better word then, or now. Anyway, this is what I got, isn’t it just lush?
From left to right there’s a cardboard envelope which the book arrived in; it’s a sturdy two-colour print on a recycled card which is shown with a two-colour bookmark that uses spot UV and a heavy woven finish for durability; the wrap on the book is single-sided with a foil embossed stamp and full-colour print. The third image is an envelope that contained all this (inside the cardboard) and it is a single colour with a foil emboss quote. Finally, the book cover as we all love a great cover design!
I wanted to share with you for a few reasons:
the packing is all recyclable but if you think I'm doing that well…pfft…. it's too delightful for my bin and I could reuse all of it which is good for the planet
it feels like a luxury. I'm compelled to share it everywhere as it's a treat and they're all things I'd keep along with the book and it's made my day memorable. There was a sense of occasion.
it is branded for Mr B’s shop and very much in keeping with their ethos of quirky
you’d never get this from Amazon so it’s got that lovely indie vibe
I felt looked after and valued, I don’t get that from big chains or supermarket book stands
Clockwise from left: Shakespeare Top Trumps; timeline concertina folded leaflet for a book launch, postcard with affirmations for a counselling service and a leaflet for a village walk to support a history book.
The great thing is that they aren’t very expensive to create. Some of the materials that I have created for authors, for example, are…
bookmarks using images or designs from the book
sample chapters bound up into a nice booklet to help raise pre-publication interest. This is really helpful when one spots an event during the production of a book. It can also be loaded to a website as a digital download too
framed and signed book cover prints
material association with the topic such as a leaflet of a walk around a village based on a map drawn in 1812, featured in the book which I designed and project managed.
When it comes to business and products, it can be an endless list.
boxes
certificates
cards
postcards
top trumps cards
games.
Making use of thick papers and finishes, with digital print techniques (such as Moo’s Printfinity which allows one side to be printed with a different design) is a good way to add a luxury touch. It does cost a little more but printed in volume, it’s more cost-effective than you might think and adds a little something extra for your customer. Designed well, it can be a keepsake.
A great example of a keepsake is Vic Lee’s Corona Diary. I’ve bought both volumes and in each one he’s added an extra print that can be framed. It’s a thank you for buying directly from him. He also donated to charity and that also became a good story as well as a lovely gesture.
Print is amazing for this, it’s not a great deal of effort to great something that gives the feels and there’s always soy ink for extra sniffabilty (yes, I do sniff printed products…)
A few points to remember before you start getting carried away…
be mindful of the carbon. Don't make it disposable but useful and a keepsake if you can otherwise it’s just adding to the recycling bin (and not all finishes can be recycled)
I’m working with a client on the branding for her beauty business and we’re collecting up the behaviour of whether A6 or A5 works better as a package for her clients. Create with the user in mind, not you (or the designer!)
get clear on the quotes first - if you ask me to create, we’ll start with print and work backwards as it’s more cost-effective, there’s no point designing and paying me for something that isn't affordable, but you could make your touchy-feeling thang exclusive and create demand
I am biased but I strongly suggest asking a pro designer like me to help you. This is because special finishes require different types of print files. Getting it wrong can waste any cost savings you make by cutting corners on design apps.
getting the cover designed early on in your print product is useful as this can be used in marketing material
there are a lot of print finishes out there, if you can order a sample pack from a printer to get familiar with them, Moo’s pack is very lovely
print local if you can or at least in your own country to save airmails and try to use FSC paper
make sure that all image have marketing rights. If photos or illustrations are commissioned then they will need permission to be shared in promotional material as well as the product or project. If you use my services for your design then I can do this for you as I’m trained in copyright clearance too.
If you’re looking for tactile, touchy-feely things that are Insta-worthy, then this might be worth exploring. I’d be very happy to chat about this with you and explore print and design options.
Finding my reading mojo
*Was it just me, or did reading in lockdown become a Marmite thing? I fell into the camp of no concentration and slight envy of any characters who didn’t have to go through a pandemic. I wasn’t my usual bookwormy self. I have author Raynor Winn to thank for this. I picked up her book, The Wild Silence during a treasured visit to Toppings in Ely. I had read her first novel, The Salt Path about her experiences of rural homelessness with husband Moth and his terminal illness and it captivated me. The sequel, The Wild Silence got me reading again. I’ve been recording other books and noting them in my newsletter which you can subscribe to here.