by Diana L. Martin

Stickers vs. labels - what's the difference?  

Is there one?

Why yes, there is.  Both labels and stickers are a piece of material (usually paper, vinyl or polypropylene) that have an adhesive backing.  However, they have different purposes and designs.

Labels are used primarily for informational purposes. They can be on sheets or rolls and are a designed to fit a specific space (rectangle and circle are the most common shapes).  Labels normally contain text that provides information about a product. For instance:

by Alex Plachta

Knowing where to start or look for ideas for promotional products can be tricky because there are so many out there.  Our promotional products website has thousands and thousands of options from a multitude of manufacturers. Today we’ll look at one that I trust and has many excellent, high-quality products - Koozie Group.  This manufacturer is working hard to stay on top of current trends and acquire products from big brands like Coleman, BIC, Orca. They also make the Koozie brand can coolers!

by Alex Plachta

Have you ever needed an extra copy of a form but only want to write the information down once? Have you been tasked with ordering forms but also have been told not to spend all your companies’ money? Have you ever thought to yourself that blog articles were too interesting and picked too important of topics? (LOL) If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then this blog is the perfect one for you.

by Sean Beaupre

Having graphic design work done for a custom printing project is a process in which both the designer and the client are involved. Today we’re offering two tips to help make this process go more smoothly and ensure that you as the client are satisfied with the final product.

by Diana L. Martin

Every business needs printed materials -  brochures that advertise the company's services, envelopes, stationery, business cards, invoices, work orders, etc.  All of these items are a type of marketing for your business.  Every letter you send out on letterhead, every work order that you leave with a client, every piece of paper that has your company information on it gets your company name out in front of people and it is important that the impression left behind is positive and professional.

by Alex Plachta

Not everything is easy to draw! In fact, I’d argue that almost everything is hard to draw! Illustrator and Photoshop can be challenging for the novice creator and photographing items is not always the simplest process. There are plenty of sites where you can purchase images, but on some jobs (like this blog) you might be able to find something totally acceptable - and high quality - without having to pay for the rights to the image. Here are two sites where you can find free images for whatever you’re designing. 

by Alex Plachta

The Office Express printing division handles a lot of mailings for non-profit organizations.  We primarily work with schools and Catholic organizations but have quite a variety of non-profits in our clientele.  I recently read some interesting statistics and thought they’d be a good topic to discuss.

by Alex Plachta, Print Department Manager

A few years ago there was a thought that everyone would go to exclusively digital invitations and advertisements, but that has proven not to be the case - at least not yet. Maybe in another 15 years it will be, but even the younger crowd likes getting some physical material and research shows that people are more likely to remember information when there is a physical piece to touch and feel.

by Alex Plachta, Print Department Manager

Ordering a promotional product for an event or as a company giveaway is one of those tasks that seems like it should be easy but can be a little intimidating to start. Included below is a step-by-step guide for ordering a promotional item from Office Express (as well as giving some under-the-hood understanding of our process).

Magnets are underrated. Companies tend to bypass them as an option when looking for swag. The next time you’re planning a big event, consider purchasing some customized magnets - they’re small, inexpensive (good for the budget), yet can be a powerful tool because they can be used in so many places. Plus, they’re cool! Not convinced yet… well then continue reading!

by Alex Plachta

Customized shirts and jackets are a fun way to give your employees something practical to represent their company. Personally, I feel more professional wearing my Office Express gear and it gives me some zero thought outfits to wear to work, which is always good! Not every promotional item gets good use and I think apparel has as good a chance as any to be used and appreciated.

by Alex Plachta

This week we are going to cover paper weights! There are many articles out there that will explain exactly how paper weights are determined but for now, we won’t deep dive into that. It is more relevant to a paper mill’s production process than it is to real life uses. So here we go!

by Alex Plachta

I’m taking a break from the “Custom Printing for Newbies” series I have been publishing to give a breakdown and my thoughts on managing the current delays in the print industry. This is surface level as there are thousands of articles out there on supply chain and labor shortages going on around the world currently.

First, I want to list the reasons why there are currently slowdowns:

by Alex Plachta

This sounds like a more complicated topic than it really is - I promise! This article is intended to give a functional understanding to a casual person who needs to order print but does not have a graphic design background. It will not provide any ground-breaking information to someone with design experience!

Basically, file type is important because certain files may not translate well to physical printed products even if they look alright on your computer screen. These files (known as raster images) and their images are made up of many individual color pixels

by Alex Plachta

In this “For Newbies” blog I want to cover the basic options for ordering booklets. Booklets are not too complicated, so I am going to jump right into three main options:

The most basic option is the stapled booklet - also called “Saddle-Stitched.” This is the least expensive type of booklet and is a great option for most situations. The only special condition to be aware of is that the page count must be in multiples of four. This is required because the process involves stapling sheets that are folded in half (for example 11”x17” sheets if your booklet is going to be 8.5”x11”). Here are a few pictures:

by Alex Plachta

Does anyone clean their house or apartment during the pandemic? Or just regular old-fashioned spring cleaning? I have and it inspired me to write this blog about the kind of promotional items that had staying power as I cleaned my apartment. While cleaning it seems natural that cheap promotional products would get tossed but that was not always the case for me. Now, just because a plastic cup with a logo on it was tossed does not mean it didn’t serve its purpose, but I wanted to touch on a few items that had me leaving them in the keep pile.

by Alex Plachta

Hi! I have decided to start a new series of “For Newbies” blogs from the print department here at OEX. Most of these topics have been covered in the past but I thought I would put my own spin on these them as well as covering their real-life implications. I started in the industry only a few years ago so I have some perspective and hopefully explain these topics at a nice basic level. If you have any questions, feel free to email Alex at print@oexusa.com.

by Sarah Izzo

In the world of messaging, the design is critical to the delivery and getting the action you want out of the audience, let alone getting their attention—everything starts here. What do you want to achieve and how do you reach the right people? Thankfully, we have an experienced team at OEX that is ready to be part of those first conversations to come up with the best solutions and work with you to create success.

No matter what industry, you need to understand a little bit to be an informed consumer. However, there is a level where it becomes too much for many of us, and you just want someone else to handle it. Let OEX be a member of your team with our experienced designers. If you are undaunted or a designer yourself than press forward for these next two blogs are for you.

by Alex Plachta

As with everyone else this year, I have had to wear a lot of face masks. I would imagine most people have a sizable collection of masks at this point with a few favorites. All my favorites are 100% cotton. I find that they are less irritating and more breathable than polyester or the disposable masks. I have also tried all sorts of cotton/polyester blends (50/50, 70/30, etc.) and they are simply not as good as 100% cotton.

by Alex Plachta

Excuse the pun! Let’s talk about kitting, which is traditionally combining multiple related SKU’s into one new SKU. Large warehouses will do this to help organize related items, save space, help reduce shipping costs and take advantage of bulk manufacturing savings. Kitting does not have to be that rigid though; think of a gift basket, a goodie bag or welcome package.