Schedules

Whether you’re starting late or early, we’ll build a schedule that works for you, and hits your mail date too. During our 17 years, we’ve learned that much of scheduling is a matter of creative resource allocation. Does your legal department need 3 separate reviews, 1 week each? We’ll arrange resources and the schedule to make that happen for you.

We understand that schedules need to be flexible too. Just learned that half of your new products won’t be ready for the photo shoot? We’ll rearrange workflow and the schedule to get them shot, and in the catalog in time. We’ll start with a realistic schedule. Then, as realities change, we’ll manage your needs and vendor capacities to ensure you hit your mail date every time.

Budgets

Count on us for complete, accurate catalog budgeting. We know all the pieces to include so you’re not hit with surprises (running tests? — be sure to include selective binding setup and run charges). We know what costs to add a buffer to (very few designers build in enough revision time). And we understand how to turn printers’ apples-to-oranges quotes into true apples-to-apples comparisons so you get the best print/bind/mail pricing. We’ll pull together all your quotes and options, and build you a complete catalog marketing budget. And if you send us your invoices, we’ll track and audit them for you.

Proofing and Revisions

It’s in the nature of catalogs to need lots of revisions, and it may surprise you that we’re fi ne with that, it’s part of our service. Suddenly need to reprice all your products? OK, we’ll make it happen. Your marketing manager already changed all the commas in lists to semicolons, and now the president wants them all changed back? No problem. Twenty products got discontinued and need to be replaced with new copy and new images? Bring it on. And when we make those changes we’ll proof, and reproof to make sure they all got made. We know that’s what it takes to get your catalog the way you want. And making you happy is what we want. So we have all the systems in place to make changes happen, happen smoothly, happen on time, and happen right.

Press Checks

We deliver decades of press-side web press (and sheet-fed) press check experience. We understand how to move color. We understand how to work with a variety of press crews. But more than that we also bring the marketing know-how to make the right decisions, when decisions need to be made. Like how to balance in-line confl icts, or just how much to work on skin tones versus screen tints. And we can make moves fast, while those big webs are running, so your catalog has color that will sell.

Traffic

In cataloging, nothing can be overlooked. Receiving and logging photo samples, moving them to the studio and back again to you. Getting draft layouts and copy to you, changes back from you to the creative team, revised layouts back to you again. Getting rental list counts, delivering lists to the merge/purge vendor, then the merged files to the printer for inkjetting. All this and much, much more we carefully track and traffic with every catalog job, including yours.

All or Key Parts

Need help on just certain parts of your production process? Many catalogers feel the same, and we're configured to help. All our services are offered (and priced) cafeteria style - buy only what you need. We'll fit expertly into your existing workflows, and coordinate with whatever vendors, freelancers, and staff you already have and like. Of course, we can scale up and quickly handle entire projects too, even last minute. Very handy for crunch time. It's always your choice.