Janet Lemke had a sharp idea for how to increase business at her flower shop. “I thought it would be nice,” she said, “to have some brochures made. Brochures can really introduce a company to potential clients, and I liked the idea of having my own. I designed one for each season, showing the various kinds of flowers that flourished in that season.” She thought she would just have to design the brochures, call a printer, and have them show up in the mail in a few weeks. “I had not idea how many options there were,” said Lemke. “The whole thing was so overwhelming that I nearly gave up on it entirely even though I really liked the idea.”

When Lemke called the first printer on her list, she nearly hung up in tears. “He must have thought I was an idiot,” she said. “He kept asking whether I wanted litho or laser, or custom printing services, and I just did not know the differences in these options he was offering.” When she made her second call a few days later, she informed the printer from the start that she needed an education. “I asked him, tell me everything you can about laser printing services,” she said. “He was fantastic and so helpful.”

Lemke learned that printing is usually done by way of offset lithography, a method that has been the industry standard for commercial printing since the 1950s. She also learned that a newer option, laser printing services, offers its own set of positives and negatives. “He told me that digital printing has a higher cost per page than offset, but that cost can be offset by not having the need to make printing plates,” Lemke said. “The biggest advantage in offset printing had something to do with the ability to adjust the amount of ink on the fountain roller. I did not understand everything he was telling me, but I felt it was a good start.”

Since Lemke was only looking to make brochures, she carefully weighed the difference between offset and digital printing. “I ultimately decided to do both options,” she said, laughing. “After all that hullabuloo, I thought it was worth it. I used laser printing services for my mass mailer brochures. The quality on those is not quite as good, but they were a bit less expensive. I went with offset for the brochures in my store. I wanted the better print quality for people who are definitely customers.” After her journey, Lemke would encourage others to wade in to the world of brochures, but with one word of advice, “Get somebody to give you all the information first!”