Changes Make Way for Improved Service in 2012

Happy Holidays!

As we enter into the throes of the holiday season, we're not only looking forward to increasing daylight in the new year but also the realization of some projects we've had underway to improve how we support your business with quality print and media services.

Over the past six months you may have seen some of our physical transformations. Our Airport Boulevard shop's front office moved over, making way for our new neighbor Faulkner Banfield. Our Seward Street office got a facelift, tying it more directly to Alaska LItho both visually --with a remodel-- and in function. It now acts as a downtown base for placing and picking up print orders and houses Media Services, plus you can stop in for quick copy services. We also have a third location, Copy Works in the Jordan Creek Mall, where you can get quality copy services.

Introducing Our Newest Press

Just this month we installed a new press that combines the quick, personalized capabilities of digital printing with the precise, quality output of an offset press. Training and setup are complete, and we're up and running with the HP Indigo 5500 Digital Press. One of the highlights of this new press is its ability to use custom ink, including Pantone colors, on a wide range of materials. The Indigo can even print white ink on black paper.

The press quality and digital flexibility open up a whole new line of possibilities for personalized promotions. If your creative gears are turning, or you want to explore some examples of custom projects, schedule an appointment (email Travis/call 586.3170) to see how the Indigo can transform your communications.

At Alaska Litho we strive to continually make small transformations that will improve how we support you and your business goals. Sometimes it's an obvious change, like adding a downtown satellite office to cut down on your travel time. Sometimes it's behind the scenes, like installing a new press.

As the new year approaches, we begin thinking about resolutions. Will your New Year's Resolution include any transformations, big or small?

Prepress Tip: Designing for the Indigo Digital Press

Our new HP 5500 Indigo Digital Press once again puts Alaska Litho at the digital forefront. We're proud to be the first print shop in Alaska (so we're told by Hewlett Packard) to offer this cutting-edge digital print technology.

To avoid design problems down the road, it is important that designers understand a few aspects of the Indigo. The maximum paper sheet size that this press can work with is 13" wide by 19" tall. Each sheet is held by the short end, essentially removing this "gripper" space from the imageable area.

On the 13"x19" sheet both a simplex (1-sided) or duplex (2-sided) job have a maximum image area of 12.48" wide by 17.7" tall. With the more commonly used paper size of 12"x18", the maximum image area is different depending on whether the job is one- or two-sided. For a simplex job the maximum image area is 11.7" x 17.5". For a duplex 12" x 18" job, the maximum image area is 11.7" x 17.2". If there are items outside of this area, cropping will occur.

With an understanding of the way the Indigo works, a designer can create projects that will be stunning printed on this machine. As the most advanced digital print technology available, the Indigo offers remarkable color reproduction, consistency, and flexibility. Colors are vivid, crisp, and consistent from print run to print run. In addition, the Indigo is able to print on a wide array of materials, from very heavy card stock to gloss to clear transparency.

If accurate, vivid, consistent color is your goal and you have a project with 1000 prints or less, the HP Indigo is the print solution for you.

Project Feature: When Sarah Palin Came to Town

Local cartoonist turned self publisher Tony Newman, aka TOE, had a collection of Sarah Palin cartoons and stories about how she influenced Juneau that he wanted to share with the world. After exploring traditional publishing paths, he decided to go local. Working with a Juneau designer to set up the book, he came to Alaska Litho with a print-ready PDF. From there we worked with him to get the first run of 750 books printed, perfect-bound, and delivered in time for the Juneau Public Market.

Hot off the presses in November, When Sarah Palin Came to Town became an instant hit. After selling hundreds of books at Public Market, his initial print run is already nearly sold out. Check sarahpalincartoons.com or Hearthside Books if you want one for yourself or as a holiday gift.

If you're interested in bringing your own dream to life it's a straight-forward process after the hard work of writing is done. The first step is to proofread your book to cut down on any delays once the printing process is started. With the content finalized, build it into a print-ready file or work with one of our designers on layout and cover design. Once we get that file to prepress it will only take a day or two to get a proof in your hands. After approving the proof, a print run of around 750 books takes about two weeks to print, finish, bind, and deliver.

Media Services Buzz:
What is the role of a business website in the age of social media?

You don’t have to throw out the old to make room for the new, just look at our old Heidelberg making waves in the art world as our Indigo digital press is moving in.

Websites and email are the dinosaurs of the Internet, but even though mobile marketing and social media are all the rage there is still a place for the traditional digital presence. While email newsletters have been holding steady in their marketing impact, websites have transitioned from static, brochure-style pages to interactive social hubs offering and taking in content. Now with the move toward cloud computing and common use of free social media platforms, interactions are moving away from individual sites and into fast-paced, conversation-centered spaces. However, your website still plays an important role in representing your brand and solidifying your consistent cross-media message.

You can tailor your website to be your media hub. Use it as a space for longer videos than what you include on YouTube, PDFs of the print materials you mail out, and an archive of expert insight that you shared across other platforms. Don't lose direct contact with your audience, make your site useful and keep it current. Provide a directory that points them to all of your shorter, more interactive profiles like Facebook and Twitter from your home base. Make sure your audience knows where to find your products or services if a certain social media service loses favor.

If you’re curious about how well your website fulfills its role, or you want to develop a plan to revitalize your site to meet new goals, Alaska Litho Media Services can help. We offer digital and cross-media evaluations, develop strategies, help with SEO planning and site architecture, and are even offering a seminar on How To Maintain Your Own Website With WordPress if you want to DIY this winter as you prepare for the summer season.