Castle Print & Design

Commercial printing for businesses throughout the UK & Europe.

  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • business-cards-icons-Bonne Maman Logo
  • business-cards-icons-Ecover_logo
  • business-cards-icons-EPC_logo
  • business-cards-icons-FF-logo
  • business-cards-icons-halle-logo
  • business-cards-icons-harley
  • business-cards-icons-Hipp
  • business-cards-icons-HMV
  • business-cards-icons-jet2
  • business-cards-icons-LIB
  • business-cards-icons-Littlewoods
  • business-cards-icons-Marks__and__Spencer
  • business-cards-icons-marley
  • business-cards-icons-Mencap
  • business-cards-icons-NHS
  • business-cards-icons-RD_LOGO
  • business-cards-icons-samsung
  • business-cards-icons-Seat
  • business-cards-icons-Tesco
  • business-cards-icons-The_Open_University
  • business-cards-icons-thyssen-krupp
  • business-cards-icons-vbulletin
  • business-cards-icons-Vodafone
  • Home
  • Select A Product
    • Booklet Printing
    • Brochures & Leaflets
    • BUSINESS CARDS >> select for more options
      • Shaped Business Cards (die cut)
      • Laminated Business Cards
      • Spot Colour Business Cards
      • Spot UV Business Cards
      • Thermo Business Cards
    • Canvas Prints by Migglet
    • Continuous Stationery
    • Digital Printing Service
    • Envelope Printing
    • Folder Printing
    • Forms Printing (NCR)
    • Label / Sticker Printing
    • Letterhead Printing
    • Wedding Stationery
  • Other site info
    • About Us
    • Artwork & Design
    • Copyright Information
    • Envelope Sizes UK
    • FAQ’s
      • Artwork – FAQ’s
      • Business Cards – FAQ’s
      • General – FAQ’s
    • Glossary of Printing Terms UK
    • Legal requirements for your stationery – Page 1
      • Legal requirements for your stationery – page 2
    • Paper Sizes UK
    • Privacy
    • Setting up your office to use continuous forms
    • Sitemap
    • Stock Photos
    • Trade Printing
    • Write For Us
  • Articles & Tutorials
    • PRINT ARTICLES >>
      • 11 Benefits of Online Printing Services
      • Are Your Labels Selling Your Brand?
      • Booklet Printing & Publishing | Booklet Planning
      • Building Business Presence with Digital Printing
      • Business Brochure Printing: Picking The Perfect Paper
      • Choosing The Right Business Card Material
      • Colour Issues | Working in Spot & Process Colour
      • Digital, or Litho – How Do I Choose?
      • Fonts & Typefaces Explained
      • Free Business Cards – a bargain right?
      • How To Apply Printed Vinyl | Wet & Dry Methods
      • How to Design and Print Your Own Business Card Using ‘Pages’
      • How to Design a Photo ID Card that Reduces Card Cloning Attempts
      • How Visual Retail Merchandising Catches Your Attention in 2018
      • Logo Design
      • Print vs Digital Media – The Death of Print?
      • Print Technology
      • Proof That Print Is Not Dead | Most Consumers Still Prefer Print on Paper
      • QR Code Printing
      • Rich Black Explained | Using Rich Blacks In Your Artwork
      • Setting Up Your Office To Use Continuous Forms
      • Spot and Process Colours Explained
      • Thermo Process Explained
      • Understanding The Importance of Business Printing For Brand Promotion
      • Website Design
      • Web Design to Print Design – Making The Transition
      • What Makes A Logo Stand The Test of Time?
    • PRINT TUTORIALS >>
      • How To Design A Ghost Image
      • How To Design An A4 Folded Leaflet
      • How to Design a Business Card
      • How to design a Letterhead
      • Preparing A Print File In Adobe In-Design
      • How To Design A Pull Up Banner In Adobe InDesign
      • Text to Outlines – how to convert text into outlines
    • PHOTOSHOP HOW TO >>
      • How to Design an Alien Head Logo
      • How To Design A Pencil
      • How To Create Metal Text With Bloodstain Effect
      • How To Create Rusty Text with Holes
      • How to create Glossy Buttons
      • How to create a simple, clean content box
      • How To Preserve Spot Colours in Photoshop
      • How to create a Disney Navigation Interface Design
      • How To Design Custom Fitted Logos
      • How to create a Futuristic Logo Design
      • How to Design a Metallic Content Box
      • How to create a Clipboard Design
      • How to create an Industrial Text Effect
      • How to create an iRiver design
      • How to create a Professional Blog Template Design
      • How to create a Robot Head design
    • REVIEWS >>
      • Buying & Selling Art | ArtShowcase Review
      • Top 10 Best All In One Laser Multi-Function Printers
Home Articles & Tutorials QR Code Printing

August 19, 2015 By castle Leave a Comment

QR Code Printing

QR Codes. What Are They?

QR code smartphoneA QR code, (which is short for Quick Response) is a barcode technology developed in Japan, initially to track parts movements by vehicle manufacturers.

However, with QR codes numerous possibilities are now available specifically aimed at the mobile phone user.

A QR code can be used to display text, or add a vCard (contact information) or even just point to an internet address (URL).

Providing your phone has a camera, and is able to utilise ‘apps’, then you are able to generate your own QR code by downloading a free QR code reading app.

The possibilites for using QR codes are endless. The Royal Dutch Mint for instance have even incorporated a QR code on the reverse design of some gold and silver commemorative coins. On scanning the code, further details are given about the coins, which represent the 100th anniversary of the Mint building.

QR code technology is huge in Japan and the Far East but is steadily being taken up here in the West. From Billboards to aeroplane liveries to soft drink packaging, QR codes are being used in business in very creative ways.


I have a smart phone, how do I read a QR code?

Firstly you’ll need the QR code reading app installed on your phone before you can get scanning. There are many free ones on the market, here’s a small selection.

  • Android – QR Droid
  • iPhone – QR Reader for iPhone
  • Blackberry – Scanlife Barcode Reader

How do I generate my own QR code, and is it free?

You can actually do it on your phone, (once you’ve downloaded the app), however, there are many websites that will allow you to do it for free online, which is the best route as you can test the QR code produced before having it printed or posted on your website.

Here’s a link to site that will show you how easy it is to generate your own code: QRStuff.com


Quick Response codes in your marketing

The possibilities are endless, but some obvious uses would be:

Business Cards

All the contact information that’s presently shown on your business card could be stored on a QR code and printed on your card. This means the receiver no longer has to make sure the card isn’t lost, as he/she can instantly grab your details and save them to the contact list on their smartphone.

Website Contact Page

This will help regular visitors to your site to quickly add your contact details to their phone.

Product Packaging

All sorts of uses however, an obvious one would be to have all the installation instructions on the QR code, or a link to the manufacturer’s website that may have a video showing the installation process.

House For Sale Signs

Many estate agents these days are using 360° video tours of a property. A code on a sign could link to a video on the agent’s site. As you drive past the house, you could scan the QR code and see if the interior is what you expect before involving the agent, keys, viewing appointment, etc.

Magazine & Newspaper Advertising

To backup the advert you could have full contact details, or even just your website URL. Doctors & Dentist waiting rooms are always full of magazines so handy to be able to collect some contact details from adverts of interest just by scanning with your phone.

Luggage Tags

Always handy to have extra contact details on your luggage.

T-Shirts / Clothing

You could have your business contact details displayed on the back of a T-Shirt in QR code format, or even just an amusing message. People behind you would definitely be curious as to what your code says!

I’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to ideas for using your QR code however, it follows that adding the code to certain items of stationery is also going to be beneficial. From a print point of view, it’s a very easy process to add your QR code to business cards, printed envelopes, brochures, invoices etc.

If you have any ideas on how to use QR codes creatively, why not share them with us by leaving a message in the comment box below.

Filed Under: Articles & Tutorials Tagged With: printing QR codes, QR code printing, quick response codes

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Useful Site Links

Paper Sizes UK
Envelope Sizes UK
Glossary of Print Terms UK
Spot & Process Colours Explained
Legal Requirements - Stationery
Copyright Information
Trade Printing Service

Search the Site

Copyright © 2021 Castle Print & Design - all rights reserved

Bleeds explained

Basically, a bleed is artwork that goes over the edge of the printed sheet.

If your design needs to have a bleed then it’s important to allow 3mm overlap (see image A below). As the letterhead will be printed on oversize material (SRA4), this gives the guillotine operator a chance to cut into the artwork and produce a good finished letterhead. (see image B below).

A
How to design a letterhead fig. 3
B
How to design a letterhead fig. 4

Why do we need a bleed?

If the artwork ended at the edge of the sheet and the guillotine cut was only 0.5mm out, then we could end up with an unsightly thin white strip down one edge of the sheet, which is not ideal.

Also, if there is a large stack of paper on the press, with the best will in the world there will be the odd sheet that doesn’t get fed through the press 100% accurately so if a bleed hasn’t been put in place this could cause issues.

Extending the artwork over the edge of the sheet allows for a little leeway when it comes to the time for trimming.

If you’ve set your workspace for A4 and intend to use bleeds then, depending on what software package you are using you may need to set the workspace to oversize A4 (SRA4), which measures 225mm x 320mm.