Postcard printing can easily be done in 30 minutes. Whether you need to send an "emergency greeting" to Mom, or you need several marketing postcards produced for some chance customers, there are ways to print postcards in a hurry.
It will only involve some creative thinking in your part, an image, and a postcard template and of course your printer. So, if you want to know how to do postcard printing in 30 minutes, follow the five steps below.
1. Get your image - The first step to creating any postcard is to get or create the main postcard image. If you are creating a marketing postcard, hopefully you already have a few stock photos of your products in their most awe-inspiring states.
If not, they you may need to take a couple of quick shots using your digital camera. If you are creating a personal custom postcard, then you might need to take a few artful photos of the place or subject that you want to emphasize. You may even want to take a photo of yourself along with them for that more personal effect. It is best to do all this using a digital camera so that you can immediately see how your images look, and edit or retake shots if necessary. (10 minutes)
2. Get a postcard template - Once you have your primary image secure, it is time to get that postcard template. Postcard templates make the whole postcard printing process easier and faster. All you need to do once you get a postcard template is to just insert all the other custom details that you may need in the postcard. This includes the images, text and other supporting details that will turn the postcard template into your own unique design.
There are many ways to get a postcard template. The simplest and easiest way is to download a few free custom postcard templates over the Internet. Many online postcard printing companies offer free template downloads for postcards. These can be in the form of a few common file formats that you should be able to open and edit. Make sure you choose a postcard template that is perfect for your chosen image so that you will not have discrepancies in the layout and design. (8 minutes)
3. Add your custom image - Once you get your template, open it up and enter some pertinent details. If your template is a simple image file or a more complicated graphics file format, the best software for this job may be a graphics editing program like Adobe Photoshop, Indesign or CorelDraw.
Of course, this all depends on what kind of template you downloaded, but in most cases those software can be all that you need. As a backup, you can try opening them in Microsoft Paint, or Open Office's Draw software. Now, Of course the most important thing you need to enter is your postcard image. Most templates mark where you need to add your image. Simply insert or copy-paste your image into the template itself. Resize your image if needed so that it fits the dimensions of the template. (2 minutes)
4. Add your personal message - After that, you may want to add a personal or custom message in the form of text. If you were making a marketing postcard, this would probably be your sales message or company tag line. If it is a personal postcard on the other hand then you can write your personal message to Mom, or of course to any other loved one. Depending on the software you are using, you might be able to enter these texts with a variety of different font styles. Just mix and match the fonts so that they compliment your postcard image. (5 minutes)
5. Print them out - Once everything is done, all that is left is to print them out. If you have those picture papers in stock with the glossy, coat then that will be a perfect medium for your postcards. If not, then any kind of thick paper that will fit into your printer should do. Once printed then you are done! Congratulations! (5 minutes)
If you have a day or so before you need to give them out however, you can also have an online postcard printing company to deliver your postcards overnight. You can simply send them your full color postcard design to have it printed. Typically, the websites you visited with postcard templates will have this kind of service too. Having your postcard prints outsourced to printing companies makes your postcard look nicer and of course more professional.
Those are the five simple steps in making a postcard design in 30 minutes. If you include the optional "6th" step, you might need to wait overnight, but you will have a more professional finish to the postcards. Of course, it is your decision if you want to go through with that or not. The important thing is that you can now print postcards with relative ease and quickness.
Kaye Z. Marks is an avid writer and follower of the developments in the postcard printing industry and updates about postcard templates ideas.