Branding Terms

Deboss

Machine presses a die into the surface of the material, that indents a figure or design, resulting in a depressed imprint.

Deboss with Colourfill

As above, the material is debossed and then filled with and colour.

Decal

Artwork is produced on a specially prepared transparent paper decal, then applied to the product.

Emboss

Machine presses a die into the surface of the material, resulting in a depressed area around the imprint desired, therefore the imprint itself appears to be raised.

Embroidery

Logo is digitized into a "tape". Machine reads tape to stitch logo onto surface of product. Pricing is based on stitch count. Embroidery cannot be PMS Matched.

Etch and Engraving

Methods for transferring a design to hard, smooth material such as glass.

Four Color Process

A printing process that produces photo-quality full colour images, by laying 4 colours (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) on top of each other. All colours can be represented as a combination of these four.

Halftone

A process that involves the graduation of tone throughout an image. This is produced by breaking the subject into small dots of varying intensities of grey ranging from white to black.

Hotstamp with Foil

Heat is used to leave a foil imprint of the design on the surface. Available in a variety of colours but can only be implemented in a single colour for the entire design.

Laser Engraving

Logo is digitized then lasered into hard surfaces such as wood, metal or glass.

Offset Printing

Is a process of transferring ink from a metal printing plate to a rubber-covered cylinder. Used on more complex artwork and for higher quantity runs.

Pad Print

Used on oddly shaped products and surfaces. Only one colour can be imprinted.

Silkscreen

Ink is pressed through a fine screen leaving a flat, painted imprint on the surface of the material.

Spot Colour

A single consistent colour used throughout an area.

Sublimation

Is a heat transfer method of imprint using heat-activated dyes that "sublimate" into the fabric; becoming part of the fabric, not an imprint sitting on top of the fabric.

Industry Terms

Bleed

When an illustration runs all the way to the edges of the page or sheet after it's trimmed.

Boldface

Type or print that has thick, heavy lines, used for emphasis, headings, etc.

Camera-ready Art

Any drawing, photo, illustration or lettering suitable for photographic reproduction.

Collectibles

Premiums designed to have inherent value based upon their perceived "collectibility."

Colour Separations

The separation of multi-coloured original art by camera or laser-scan techniques to produce individual separated colours. There are four common separations: yellow, magenta, cyan and black.

Commemorative

A merchandise keepsake used to mark a ceremony, anniversary, event or milestone.

DPI

Dots per inch, sometimes expressed as pixels per inch.

EPS File

EPS stands for "Encapsulated Postscript", which is a sophisticated file format for capturing precise image and text information. Because of the mathematical basis for building the format, EPS files are the most reliable method for communicating artwork.

Giveaway (GWP)

Direct premium given free of charge or obligation with a purchase, to generate awareness and/or goodwill.

Incentive

Reward for a purchase or performance.

Line Art

Black and white illustration of reproduction quality.

Overrun

The number of products in excess of the number originally ordered.

Pantone Matching System (PMS)

A colour scale used to precisely match colours for printing. Each colour has a coded number indicating instructions for mixing inks to achieve it.

Perceived Value

What someone believes merchandise to be worth. To successfully sell premiums, the consumer must be convinced the proposed premium is worth putting forth the extra effort required to earn the item.

Traffic Builder

A promotional product or premium designed to get consumers to come to a store or a tradeshow.

Typeface

A general term used to describe the styles of lettering available in typesetting.

Under Run

The number of products less than what was originally ordered.