Typical Direct Mail Process with DesignMerge Pro [Overview]
This document provides an overview of the typical steps required for a direct mail process that will produce a set of postcards that have been created and personalized using DesignMerge Pro software for Adobe InDesign. The steps cover all aspects of the process, including initial data collection, data pre-sorting and certification, postcard design, DesignMerge Pro preparation, PDF production, and multi-up imposition.
The example here assumes a typical two-sided postcard that will be printed 4 to a sheet. The target audience for the postcard will be prospective college students.
Workflow Chart Available
Please see the related link Typical Direct Mail Process with DesignMerge Pro [Flowchart] to view a visual flowchart that serves to supplement the details provided in this article.
1) Collection of Data
The process starts with the collection of data. The data for the project will consist of the mailing addresses for all of the postcard recipients, typically collected and stored in a spreadsheet. Each row of the spreadsheet will hold all of the information for a single recipient. In addition to mailing information, the data may include other fields that provide additional details about each recipient, such as their general Area of Interest or specific Activity information. Here is an example of typical sample data with name, address and other information related to each recipient:
2) Data Pre-Sort and CASS Certification
Once the data has been assembled, if the postcards are to be mailed first class, then you may proceed directly to Step 3 at this point because no specific data sorting is required for first class mail.
However, if the desire is to bulk mail the postcards at a reduced mailing rate, then the mailing data must be pre-sorted and CASS Certified. This process verifies the mailing addresses provided in the data, and also generates a unique field of data that holds a string of characters required to produce the USPS Intelligent Mail Barcode for the mailing pieces.
There are a number of third-party software packages that can pre-sort and CASS certify your mailing data. Here are just a few of the available options:
Please note that data pre-sorting and certification is not provided by DesignMerge software and must be handled using a third-part application or service. The CSV data provided to DesignMerge software must already be pre-sorted, and must include appropriate bar code information. Here is an example of typical sample data that also includes the USPS IM Bar Code field:
3) Export Data in CSV Format
DesignMerge Pro processes delimited text files, the most common format being CSV (comma-separate values). Most pre-sorting and CASS Certification software can easily process CSV files as well. CSV is a very simple text file format where each field of data is separated by a comma. Another variant of this is a TSV file (tab-separated values). DesignMerge Pro can support either CSV or TSV data formats.
If the data is being maintained in Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, or some other spreadsheet or database format, the data must be exported to CSV format in order to be used with DesignMerge Pro software. This is very easy to accomplish using the export features provided by the spreadsheet software. Please see the following article link for details about how to export spreadsheet data in CSV format for use with DesignMerge software:
How to Export CSV Data from a Spreadsheet
4) Deliver CSV Data to the Design Department
Once the data has been prepared and exported in CSV format, the CSV file will be delivered to the Design Department for use with DesignMerge software.
5) Design the Postcard and Prepare Using DesignMerge Pro Software
A postcard layout with associated graphics is designed in Adobe InDesign using the standard tools provided by the software. There are no restrictions or limitations regarding the design, and all of the design tools and features provided by Adobe InDesign are fully supported by DesignMerge Pro software.
The address information (including bar coding) is then placed onto the postcard directly in Adobe InDesign using the tools provided by the DesignMerge Pro Software. If additional field data has been provided as previously described, the user can also create DesignMerge Pro Rules that will serve to modify and enhance the postcard design based on the Rules defined by the user.
For example, you may create a number of different postcard designs (with different layouts, colors, text and graphics) and use the Rules feature to automatically swap these layouts as the variable file is being processed by DesignMerge Pro. In this fashion every mailing recipient can receive a postcard design that is unique and caters to their specific interests. See below for an example of a postcard that uses Rules to change colors and imagery based on the particular Area of Interest of the recipient:
6) Create the Variable PDF File using DesignMerge Pro
When DesignMerge Pro preparation is complete, the designer will use the software to produce a variable PDF/VT file. A PDF/VT file is a PDF file that has been optimized for variable data printing.
Each page of the PDF will contain a single postcard**, which has been personalized for the mailing recipient, and which includes the mailing address and bar code information in the PDF as well. If an indicia is required for the postcard, this can be placed manually in the InDesign document, or potentially swapped in as a variable graphic using DesignMerge Pro.
Here is an example of a few pages from the Variable PDF file produced using DesignMerge Pro software:
7) Impose the Variable PDF File
The Variable PDF File is now ready to be printed. However, keep in mind that each page of the PDF contains a single postcard, which is likely to be much smaller than the sheet onto which it will be printed.
For efficiency in the printing process, it is desired to print multiple postcards onto each piece of paper in order to maximize the paper usage and minimize paper waste. The process of combining multiple printed items onto a single printed sheet is commonly referred to as Multi-up Imposition.
The original variable PDF is a 1-up file, meaning that each page contains a single postcard in this example. If this file is then imposed to place 4 postcards on a sheet (which is a very typical scenario), then the file is said to have been imposed as a 4-up job. Here is an example of an imposed, 4-up postcard job:
Where to Impose the Variable PDF File?
There are two options for imposing the Variable, 1-up PDF file. Each option is described below:
Option A) Use DesignMerge PDF Imposer
DesignMerge Pro offers an add-on imposition module called PDF Imposer. This product is very easy to use, and allows the designer to convert the 1-up PDF file into a print-ready 4-up PDF file in a matter of seconds. If this approach is implemented, then the designer would impose the file and deliver to the Print Shop the 4-up PDF file ready to be sent to the press with no further processing required. Please click here for more details about DesignMerge PDF Imposer software.
Option B) Use EFI Fiery Impose (or another imposition tool)
Many clients already have one or more imposition tools, and one common imposition tool is Fiery Impose, which typically resides on the DFE (Digital Front End) of the printing press. If the desire is to use Fiery Impose software for the imposition, at this point the designer will send the 1-up Variable PDF file to the Print Shop for processing. At the Print Shop, the operators would submit the 1-up PDF file to the Fiery Impose system, and use that system to convert the 1-up file into a 4-up imposed version of the file. Once the conversion has been completed, the 4-up file is then printed on the press.
8) Cut/Trim the 4-up Printed Output
The final step is of course to cut and trim the 4-up printed sheets to produce individual postcards ready for mailing. As a part of Step 7 (the imposition process), when the 4-up layout is created, the postcards will have been organized into what is termed Cut and Stack ordering. Without going into a lot of detail on this, basically the 1-up postcards need to be split up into 4 separate stacks of postcards. Each stack is then cut and trimmed separately. The reason for this is to ensure that, after cutting, the stacks of postcards remain in the exact pre-sort order as in the original data. This ensures that the bulk mailing discounts can be achieved without issue.
Both of the imposition methods described here (DesignMerge PDF Imposer at the Design Department, or Fiery Impose at the Print Shop) fully support automatic Cut and Stack ordering of the imposed items, so this should not present any particular challenges. Once the postcards have been trimmed, they are ready to be mailed.
Tray Break Support (Optional)
For bulk mailing, sometimes the mailing address are grouped together by a specific geographic location. The idea is to sort the mailing addresses such that all of the postcards for a specific area (such as a series of adjacent zip codes) will be printed and bundled together to allow for easier delivery by the postal service.
The bundled postcards destined for a specific geographic area are often organized by placing them into a single container, commonly referred to as a Tray. In the sorted data file, you may see a field named Tray, or some other similar name. This field will commonly hold a number value indicating which Tray Number a specific record belongs to. The data will typically be sorted by the Tray Number such that all of the tray numbers are grouped together (e.g. all Tray Number 1's go together, followed by the Tray Number 2's, etc.) When the tray number changes in the data file from one record to the next, this is commonly referred to as a Tray Break.
DesignMerge Pro provides a specialized utility for handling these Tray Break conditions. If it becomes necessary to process the data and separate the output for different trays as described here, you may wish to consider the DesignMerge Tray Break Utility, which is available as a part of the Pro Pack Module for DesignMerge software. More details about the Tray Break Utility can be viewed by clicking the following video link:
Click to View the Tray Break Utility Video
FOOTNOTES
**For simplicity, this document refers to each page of the Variable PDF file produced by DesignMerge Pro software as containing a single postcard. Technically, it is every 2 pages of the PDF that compose a single postcard (page 1 is the front of the postcard, page 2 is the back of the postcard, and so on).
