CONTENT:



Which is the correct ICC profile?


Install the ICC Profile (ISO Coated v2 300%). This ensures that your colour management is consistent and that your printing materials are displayed correctly on different machines. 


You can install the correct ICC profile here. 



What colour profile should I choose?   


The colour profile has to be CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key, which stands for black) because all RGB (Red, Green, Blue) elements are converted to CMYK and may change in the process. Under “Edit --> colour settings”, choose the relevant CMYK colour mode to work with the correct colour profile in InDesign.


Important: The CMYK profile is required for printing. Using the RGB profile may cause colour distortion and affect print quality.


 

CMYK 

Files in RGB colour mode will be converted to CMYK. During this step, some colour aspects may change, which is why your document needs to be in CMYK. 


1. How do I check if my PDF is in CMYK colour mode?  


Tool: Adobe Acrobat Reader


  1. Open the PDF you want to check in Acrobat Reader.
  2. Click on the ‘Tools’ button, usually in the top navigation bar (could also be on the side).
  3. Scroll down to ‘Protect and Standardize’ and select ‘Print Production’.
  4. On the top of the right-hand top navigation bar, select ‘Output Preview’.
  5. In the ‘Output Preview Box’ about half down there is a ‘Preview’ section. Select ‘Separations’ from the top-down menu, it is typically the default selection.
  6. Above the ‘Previews’ options there is a ‘Show’ section. The default option is all. From this option, select RGB and Acrobat will only show the RGB view of the PDF. If you want to check CMYK, select CMYK and so on. You can do this with any selection from that drop down menu.


Tool: Adobe Acrobat Pro


  1. Open your PDF.
  2. Enable digital proofs > Please also read this article from the Adobe HelpCenter.
  3. Open digital proof tools > “Ausgabevorschau” > the Simulation profile stays as provided, it's often sRGB (but this is not the actual problem) — Image 1.


Image 1: Simulationsprofil



Option 1: > Change “Einblenden” to show CMYK > everything from the preview should be shown.


Image 2: incorrectly created, as nothing is shown in the preview, although CMYK was selected.


Image 3: created the correct way



Option 2: > Change “Einblenden” to RGB > nothing from the preview should be shown.


Image 4: incorrectly created, as the entire design is displayed in RGB, which is not suitable for printing



Image 5: created the correct way


Special case PANTONE: This can also be checked in the same way. To accomplish this, show “Volltonfarbe”. If a PANTONE colour is displayed, it must be converted to CMYK.



Your file (including images) is CMYK? Perfect, now you can upload your visual into the campaign (make sure you also check resolution and fonts). If you need to convert your design to CMYK, please read on. 



2. How do I convert my RGB images to CMYK during the export?


Tool: Adobe InDesign


  1. Open your RGB document in InDesign
  2. Click “File --> Export”
  3. Choose PDF (Print) from the Format pop-up menu
  4. Choose PDF Preset PDF/X-1a.
  5. Set up all the other options in the Export PDF dialogue box (compression, marks and bleeds, etc.)
  6. Finally, in the Output pane of the Export PDF dialogue box, select Convert to Destination (Preserve Numbers) from the Colour Conversion pop-up menu. This setting will ensure that existing CMYK images and colours are left as CMYK. Do not pick “Convert to Destination” (without the “preserve numbers”) part. 
  7. Then, in the Destination pop-up menu, select which CMYK you are targeting. Choose either ISO Coated v2 or PSO Coated v3. 
  8. Click Export

 


Resolution

To ensure your mailings are sent out with the highest possible quality, images, and graphics must have a solution of at least 250 dpi and a maximum of 450 dpi and line drawings must have a minimum of 1,200 dpi. 


1. How do I check if the resolution of my images is high enough? 


Tool: Acrobat Pro


  1. Open your PDF. 
  2. Click on the “Tools” menu and choose “Print Production”, followed by “Preflight” 
  3. Then click “Select Profile” and choose “PDF/X Compliance” 
  4. Run the inspection by clicking “analyse”. The report you receive will include resolution data for your embedded images. 


Tool: Adobe Acrobat Pro (2nd option)


  1. Open your PDF.
  2. Enable digital proofs > Please also read this article from the Adobe HelpCenter.
  3. Open digital proof tools > Preflight > “PDF-Analyse” > search for “Listet Seitenobjekte gruppiert nach Objekttyp” > click “Prüfen” → look for pictures with low resolution around 120-150ppi.
  4. If you click on the result, a little “Zeigen” button appears to the right, which will show you the affected picture in the design.

 


The resolution of your images, graphics  (minimum 250 dpi, maximum 450 dpi) and line drawings (minimum dpi 1,200) is high enough? Perfect, now you can upload your visual into the campaign (make sure you also check CMYK and fonts). If your resolution is too low, please read on. 


2. How do I ensure my print PDF has a high resolution?  


You can set the correct dpi when exporting your PDF from InDesign. Find out more here. 



Embedded Fonts

Embedding fonts is a smart way to ensure your document is viewed as intended, with no unwanted font changes. 


1. How do I check all my fonts are embedded? 


Tool: Adobe Acrobat Reader


  1. Open the PDF you want to check in Acrobat Reader
  2. Click on the ‘File’ button on the top left and chose ‘Documents Properties’.
  3. Select the third tab, ‘Fonts’.
  4. Look through the list of fonts. If you do not see the words (Embedded) and (Embedded Subset) next to the font name, then you know that the font is not embedded.

 

Is everything embedded? Perfect, now you can upload your visual into the campaign (make sure you also checked CMYK and solution). If you need to embed your fonts, simply follow the steps below. 


2. How do I embed fonts? 


Tool: Adobe InDesign


  1. Open your document in InDesign. 
  2. Click on the ‘File’ drop menu and select ‘Adobe PDF Presets’. This allows you to pick the resolution quality and size of your PDF file.
  3. Select ‘High-Quality Print’ (highest quality).
  4. Designate where your file will be exported, and then click ‘Save’. This will open the Export Adobe PDF dialogue box. 
  5. In the dialogue box, click on ‘Advanced’. You can select to embed all of your fonts or just a subset of the fonts. To embed all fonts, you have to enter 0% in ‘Subset Fonts When Percent of Characters Used is Less Than’.
  6. Finally, click ‘Export’. Depending on the resolution quality, the export process may take a few moments. 


Important! Embedding Restrictions 

InDesign only allows embedding of “TrueType” and “OpenType” fonts. “Type-1” fonts cannot be embedded, your document will change during export. If you would like a font besides the default, please let us know by emailing data@optilyz.com. Alternatively, send us the licensed font via support@optilyz.com.


To check your font type, select the ‘Type’ drop menu and choose ‘Find Font’. A window will display the fonts currently being used in the document. Select a font and click the ‘More Info’ button to display additional information. Check under ‘Type’ to make sure you are using a font that can be embedded. 



Step-by-step: how do I prepare my design for printing (InDesign)?  


Step 1. Bleed settings


So that all pages of your document have the correct bleed of 3 mm, and you don’t have to do this page by page later, it’s best to set up your document with the right bleed before you start working on it. 


Go to file --> New --> Document. Then enter 3 mm under “Bleed and Slug” at the bottom of the new document window. 


If you’ve already created your InDesign document, set the bleed under File --> Document Setup. 





Step 2. Export your design 


When you are happy with your design, choose export in the “File” dropdown menu. Give your file a name and select “Adobe PDF (Print) format. 


This will lead you to the PDF settings. Make sure your settings match the below screenshots: 


2.1. General


If you select Adobe preset “PDF/X-3:2002”, “PDF/X-3:3002” as Standard and under Compatibility “PDF 1.3”, the correct colour profile will automatically be set. 



2.2. Compression


Set the bicubic downsampling to at least 300 pixels per inch. 



2.3. Marks and Bleeds


Ensure this is set to 3 mm!



2.4. Output


In this step, you decide whether InDesign should convert colours to CMYK. 


  • Under Colour Conversion, choose “no colour conversion”
  • If (as in the screenshot below), you have RGB images in your file, choose “Convert to destination (Preserve Numbers)”
  • Ensure that the Output Intent Profile Name is “ISO Coated v2 300%” 



2.5. Advanced

You shouldn’t have to change anything here, but ensure that the Transparency Flattener is set as “High Resolution”. 

2.6. Security


You don’t need to change anything here. 


2.7. Summary


Here you find a summary of your settings.



Now, click on “Export” and upload your design to your direct mail campaign!