Direct Mail Marketing UV Coated

You’ve made the leap into Variable Data Printing and your first job is ready to mail. The data has been merged and purged. The design is brilliant. You drop it off at your local USPS in cost saving zip sorted order to be mailed.

As you begin to get feedback from your campaign you begin to hear that your finely produced mailer is arriving in less than fine condition to customers you had so hoped to impress. What's going on?

The answer is simple. Toner on paper is no match for automated mail handling systems. For the most part toner can scratch easily on a good day and the rigors of high speed sorting systems can scuff, scratch and ruin even the finest digital print job.

Fortunately the solution is simple, UV coating. UV or Ultra Violet Coating is an inexpensive means to enhance and protect your digital print output.

Aqueous or water based coating has been common in the offset world for a long time. UV is more generally used with toner based digital printing. It has the ability to

• add luster and shine to a printed sheet creating an almost photographic look and feel

• the relative thickness of the UV coating material provides additional rigidity and protection

• the mailer arrives looking as good as when it was mailed with an offer that jumps off the page

All UV coating materials are liquid when applied to a printed sheet. The UV material is “set” or “cured” through exposure to high intensity UV lighting. While the process is fast and easy the marketer or Print Services Provider needs to be aware that not all UV coating material or processes work with all toner or substrates.

Output imaged on engines using toner with fuser oil will not work well. Polymerized toner (Konica Minolta or Canon for example) need different UV material than output produced with a pulverized toner (Xerox for the most part).

The easiest way to find out what works best for you is to test some of your output with either the UV coating service provider or manufacturer. A visual inspection will tell you if the UV material has been properly applied to your printed sheets. If the sheet passes the visual inspection give it the finger nail test and scrape your finger nail on the sheet. If it can hold up to your finger nail it should hold up to the USPS's automated sorting equipment.

Incorporating Variable Data Printing (VDP) into your service offering or marketing campaign will set you ahead of your competitors. Taking a small step to enhance and protect those marketing pieces with UV coating will create additional value truly differentiating yourself and your product from your competitors.