10 Things to Check Before You Send Your File to Print

Before you hit send on your print requirements, there are a few things worth double-checking. Get these wrong and you'll either face delays while things get fixed, or worse, you'll get a box of printed materials that aren't quite right.

Most issues are easy to avoid if you know what to look for. Here's a straightforward checklist that'll save you time, money, and frustration.

1. Is your image quality high enough?

Images need to be high resolution for printing, much higher than what looks fine on your screen. The standard is 300 DPI (dots per inch) at the actual size you're printing.

A photo that looks sharp on your computer might turn out blurry or pixelated when printed large. If you're scaling an image up to fill a poster, the quality drops. That 1000-pixel wide image from your website won't work well on an A3 poster.

If you're using photos from the web or screenshots, they're almost always too low resolution for print. You need proper high-quality images from a camera, stock photo site (using the print-quality version), or professional photographer.

For large format stuff like posters and banners that people view from a distance, you can get away with slightly lower resolution. But for business cards, flyers, and brochures, you need the full quality.

2. Are your colours set up correctly?

This is probably the most common issue we see. Your screen uses RGB colours (red, green, blue light). Printers use CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black ink). They're different systems, and some colours your screen can show simply can't be printed.

If your file is in RGB, those bright blues and vibrant greens might look duller when printed. The colours will shift when converted to CMYK for printing.

The fix: set your document to CMYK mode from the start if your design software allows it (most proper design programs do). That way, what you see while designing is closer to what you'll get printed.

If you're working in simpler programs that only do RGB, just be aware that colours might shift slightly. For most everyday printing like flyers or business cards, this isn't usually a major issue.

3. Have you included bleed?

Bleed means extending your background colours or images 3mm beyond where the final cut will be. It's boring technical stuff, but it matters.

Without bleed, you risk getting thin white edges on your finished print if the cutting is off by even a millimetre. With bleed, there's always background colour extending past the cut line, so small variations don't show.

Most design software has a bleed setting when you set up your document. For standard printing, 3mm all round is the norm. If you're using simple programs or online design tools, check if there's an option to include bleed when you export your file.

Important: keep your text and logos at least 3-5mm away from the edge where it'll be cut. Otherwise, important stuff might get trimmed off.

4. Is your text big enough to read comfortably?

Text that's readable on screen can be too small when printed. As a general rule, body text shouldn't go below 8 or 9 point. Anything smaller and you're making people squint.

Also, make sure your text isn't sitting right at the edge where it'll be cut. Keep important information like phone numbers and web addresses well inside the safe area.

If you're using light-coloured text on dark backgrounds (reversed text), go a bit bigger and use a heavier font. Thin delicate text can disappear or look spotty when reversed.

5. Are your fonts sorted?

This one causes a lot of delays. When you use a particular font in your design, your computer needs that font installed to display it. If you send your file to a printer and they don't have your font, things can go wrong, text might change position, or get swapped for a different font entirely.

The solution is to either "outline" your fonts (converts text to shapes) or export as a PDF with fonts embedded. Most design programs have these options. If you're not sure, just ask, we can usually spot font issues before printing and let you know.

6. Are you sending a PDF?

PDF is the gold standard for print files. It packages everything up, fonts, images, layout, in one file that prints the same way everywhere.

If you're using Word, Publisher, or Canva, export or download as PDF before sending. Native file formats from these programs can display differently on different computers.

When exporting your PDF, use "High Quality" or "Print Quality" settings, make sure bleed is included, and check that fonts are embedded. Most programs have these as standard options.

7. Have you included crop marks?

Crop marks are the little corner lines that show where the page should be trimmed. They're especially important for anything that needs precise cutting- business cards, postcards, anything with bleed.

Most design programs can add these automatically when you export. They should sit outside your bleed area so they get trimmed off with the excess.

If you're not sure how to add them, don't worry, we can add them at our end if needed. But including them yourself means one less thing that could cause delays.

8. Are your images actually in the file?

If you're using design software like InDesign or similar, your images might be "linked" rather than embedded. That means the image sits in a separate file, and your design just references it.

If you send the design file without the images, we'll get missing image warnings and can't print properly.

The easiest solution: export as PDF. That automatically includes everything. If you're sending native design files, make sure you "package" or "collect" the files first, which gathers everything into one folder.

9. Have you checked for typos?

Obvious one, but worth saying: get someone else to check your text. You'll miss your own mistakes because you know what it's supposed to say.

A typo on a flyer is annoying. A typo on 500 business cards is expensive. Take an extra five minutes to double-check contact details, prices, dates, and anything else that absolutely must be correct.

10. Does everything actually work?

Before you print 1,000 flyers, test the basics:

- Call the phone number you've printed to make sure it connects to the right place - Visit the website address to check it's spelled correctly and goes to the right page - If you've included a QR code, scan it with your phone to make sure it works - Check that any special offers or dates mentioned are still current

These simple checks catch surprisingly common problems. Better to discover them before printing than after.

What if you're not sure?

Look, not everyone is a designer or knows their way around print specifications. That's fine. If you're uncertain about any of this, just ask.

At Print Direct NI, we check files before printing anyway. If we spot issues, we'll let you know what needs fixing. We can often help tidy things up—maybe your Canva file needs bleed added, or your colours need converting, or your images aren't quite the right resolution. It's better to sort it before printing than after.

For common items like flyers, leaflets, or business cards, we can provide templates with all the technical stuff already set up correctly. You just add your content and you're good to go.

The main thing is: don't panic about getting everything perfect. These checks just help avoid the most common issues that cause delays or reprints. Most files that come to us are absolutely fine, or need only minor tweaks.

If you want to chat about your specific project or get some advice before sending files, give us a shout through our contact page.