Offset vs. Digital Printing
Can They Coexist?

Ink on paper (offset) vs. toner (digital).  In some circles this spawns debate, but many business people just want a quality printed piece at a good price.

Traditionally, offset lithography has been the technology of choice for producing high quality, color print jobs.  However, with advances in digital color printing, it is now appropriate for an increasing number of customer communications.

How do you know when to use which and when you might want to integrate both printing methods?  First, if you don’t buy printing on a regular basis, you might consider hiring an expert, someone who knows the benefits and drawbacks of each. 

You might even consider outsourcing the purchase of all your printing to provide a single point of accountability for the expense and related document processes.  Let the expert handle your print sourcing, negotiating and vendor management.  That subject matter expert can offer you strategic direction and practical advice on paper, printing, postage, freight, warehousing and distribution.

But let’s say you want to know some fundamentals and you desire to have a basic comprehension of the differences between digital and offset printing.

Quality of Printing   For many years, digital color quality paled along side offset lithography.  Early digital color printers and copiers simply couldn’t meet professional image quality standards.  Quality was adequate for internal documents, but not appropriate for brochures.  Today’s digital color presses are in a different class.  They’ve steadily improved color depth and quality, now rivaling offset presses.  Quality is optimized using high resolution art.  Sophisticated software fine tunes different visual components -- text, drawings, colors -- to enhance quality. 

Options for Creativity   One big objection that designers and creative directors have had to digital color is stock selection.  Early digital printers were limited to a few, uncoated white paper stocks. So there was little room for creativity and the applications were severely limited.  

Advances in press technology and paper have opened the door to a wide range of printing substrates and a new world of creativity.  Today’s digital color printers can provide both coated and uncoated paper stocks, gloss and matte finishes in varying weights.  Plus, digital printers now have access to a variety of innovative media, including:

• Polyester and cotton stocks for unique textures
• Magnetic stocks for advertising specialties
• Synthetic substrates for labels and decals that are water- and tear-resistant
• Durable, integrated card stocks for membership cards and customer loyalty programs

Paper size is one of the few remaining limitations of digital color printing. Today’s digital color presses accommodate stocks up to 14” x 20” sheets.  Offset is still the way to go if you need nearly limitless possibilities in size and shape.

Printing Cost    For mass marketing, offset printing has always been viewed as less costly.  Though offset setup costs are high, large quantity runs drive down the cost per piece.  Digital printing, on the other hand, requires limited setup, so the cost per piece remains flat and less attractive when compared to offset for longer runs. 

However, the cost of printing represents only a fraction of the total cost of marketing materials.  Offset’s large production runs may reduce the cost per piece, but they also result in added costs for warehousing and out-of-date materials. 

By printing color documents on demand, in quantities as needed for immediate use, companies reduce their costs while gaining the flexibility to update content regularly.  And printing “just in time” is expected to increase—according to the Printing Industries of America (PIA) organization, 30 percent of all printing will be turned around in one day or less.

There’s also the value of creating more personalized communications for specific market segments.  With the variable print capability of digital, one-to-one pieces cut through the barrage of communications customers receive and improve results.  The cost per piece is then less relevant and the result is a dramatic improvement to ROI.   A study of direct mail use by printing experts Frank Romano and David Broudy showed that by adding color and leveraging database information to personalize communications, response rates increased 500 percent.

Each printing method has its own advantages and disadvantages:

	Digital	Offset
Advantages	Variable data printing (text and or graphics change from one printed piece to the next) allows for one to one personalization Quick turnaround Allows for just-in-time printing Cost effective for short runs Excellent when frequent changes and updates are expected	Nearly limitless creativity with shapes and sizes Much wider range of paper choices Extremely accurate color matching and more control of color Most cost effective for long runs (large quantities) Varnishes and other special coatings can be applied to add richness and dimension to print pieces
Disadvantages	Not as cost effective for large quantities Smoother, special paper required Special toner required, more expensive than offset inks	Costly at low quantities Requires storage of large quantities not yet used Cost increases as number of colors used increases Set up and drying time Separate proofing process

 

The choice really depends on the specification of each print job and the two methods can even be used in conjunction, for example, when an offset-printed piece is then overprinted digitally with personalized content for each recipient. 

Offset and digital printing will continue to coexist for some time to come due to the unique capabilities of each.  One rule of thumb some print buyers use is:  quantities greater than 1,500 consider offset; quantities less than 1,500 consider digital.  Are you interested in drawing on the expertise of our PrintConcierge® Team to help you achieve your goals?  Contact us now. Let’s talk about your current business challenge.