Simple steps to planning your next promotional event

If you have just started a new business and are thinking of organising your first promotional event, the whole process can be a bit daunting.

At Everything Vibrant we understand all about promotional events and we have lots of transfers and stickers that you can use as free giveaways at your promo. We also find that giving away free promotional t-shirts with feature your logo or slogan is a great way to increase awareness of your brand.

Our t-shirts are digitally printed, which means that they have a high quality finish and small orders are no problem. People sometimes ask us about screen printing t-shirts, but while screen-printed materials have a great handmade appeal, the process is time consuming and the finished product is not photo quality. Screen printing t-shirts is somewhat of an outdated technique.

Anyway – back to promoting your first event. Here are a few steps that will make everything run smoothly for you: 

•  What sort of event do you want to organise? You could sponsor a local sports competition, a reading room for children at the local library, a charity or have stall at a local market or a trade show.

•  What is your message? Decide on the key message you want to get across to your audience. How many people might attend and how can you present your message or your brand to these people?

• Sports events: Make sure the trophies and awards will have your company’s logo engraved on them. Talk to the event organisers to determine the best locations for your promotional signage and discuss the opportunity for distributing free transfers and stickers to the attendees.

• Trade shows: Know the size of your stall and the layout of the building. Make sure you have all your promotional material ready and that your staff know how to approach visitors and the best way to promote your brand.

• Tell the media: Make sure that the local media know that you are sponsoring a particular sports event and ask them if they would like to write a short article on your business and your philanthropic contributions to the community. You can even write a press release yourself and approach the local paper to have it printed.

      If you are attending a trade event then a short press release about your business and the upcoming trade event might be worthwhile as well.

At Everything Vibrant we are more than happy for you to pop in and discuss your promotional needs. Ask us about photo quality digital transfers and stickers, and we can help ensure that your next promo event is one to remember.

What’s the difference between digital fabric printing and screen printing?

With the growth in technology over the past 10 to 20 years and the massive increase in number of computers, it is no surprise that the printing industry has also changed to encompass the digital age.

These changes have meant that many printing businesses now focus solely on digital fabric printing, especially in busy cities like Brisbane. Screen printing techniques have been superseded and can take a while to search out – if you are determined that you want to use this method of printing.

So what are the differences between digital fabric printing and screen printing? Are there circumstances when one is better than the other or is it just a change in technology that has fed the decline in screen printing?

What is screen printing?

This involves creating a stencil and applying layers of ink to the fabric, using a different stencil for each colour. This is a long, drawn out process, because each colour requires a separate stencil.

What are the PROS AND CONS of screen printing?

One of the benefits of screen printing is that it is a handmade process which some people really prefer to more mass produced products. This type of printing produces high quality, professional and durable designs that lend themselves very well to larger designs.

The problem with screen printing is that the setup can take a fair while because of all the stencils, so there is usually a minimum order quantity and it does not produce photo quality finishes – they are clearly handmade.

What is digital fabric printing?

This method involves a computer where the digital design is printed directly onto the fabric using a specialised printer.

What are the PROS AND CONS of digital fabric printing?

The benefits of digital fabric printing are that it does produce photo quality images and designs, there is no minimum order needed (because new designs can be uploaded simply), and the process is fast.

The problem with this type of printing is that you might not have an exact colour match with your design because of the pre-loaded colours used in the printer, and the printable area is limited by the capacity of the printer.

At Everything Vibrant in Brisbane, screen printing is not a method that we use – we focus on creating high quality photo quality digital images. Our digital fabric printing is very popular with Brisbane businesses as it is used as a promotional gift in their branding campaigns.

For more information on our digital printing or our extensive range of promotional gifts, call us on 07 3386 0536 or visit www.everythingvibrant.com.au.

Are Digital Fabric Printing and Screen Printing - the same as IPods and Cassette Players?

So you thought this was a blog about digital fabric printing and transfers and stickers? So what do IPods and cassette players have to do with that? Well, how many cassette players do you see for sale in Dick Smith’s? And how many IPods? My point exactly!

I am sure you can see where I am going with this – cassette players are old hat, defunct, no-one wants them. But they do want IPods. Its new technology, fills a niche and everyone wants one. So my question is this – Is digital fabric printing the new screen printing?

Why would you use screen printing in Brisbane – when you can use digital printing? And we are talking about screen printing t-shirts here (because Everything Vibrant makes awesome digital t-shirt transfers!).

Well let’s take a look at both methods and see if we can decide if we are talking IPods and cassette players here.

Screen printing t-shirts

Screen printing is an old technique – first used by the Chinese around 1000 AD. It uses a stencil to apply layers of ink onto the fabric. And you need a different stencil for each colour in the design. It can be quite time consuming, but for large orders it is very cost-effective.

Digital fabric printing – direct to garment
Your design is created on a PC and then transferred to a printing machine and the design is printed straight onto the fabric. This is called direct to fabric printing and is easier than screen printing as it is a single, fast process.

As a printing method, the problem with direct to fabric printing is that it uses heat to transfer the designs onto the fabric. So you can only use 100% natural fibres or materials with a high mix of cotton – nylons and polyesters just melt under the heat!

Digital fabric printing – transfers

Now using the digital technique to create transfers is a lot more versatile than screen printing or direct to fabric printing. Small orders are no problem and delivery is fast. With digital printing your t-shirts are embellished with photographic quality images, impossible to achieve with screen printing techniques. And the transfers can be applied to any material from neoprene to silk!

In today’s competitive market, when you need promotional t-shirts for your business - digital transfers win hands down against screen printing t-shirts. So, yes digital fabric printing is the new IPod!

For all your digital fabric printing needs - call Everything Vibrant on 07 3386 0536, email us on sales@everythingvibrant.com.au or fill in our online enquiry form.

3 Reasons to Include Transfers and Stickers in your Business Marketing Plan

Marketing is all about gaining the consumer’s attention and then making the sale. If you can’t grab their attention – you will soon be out of business. And a great way to grab people’s attention is with promotional products. And one of the best ways to do this is to use transfers and stickers. 

You might not believe it, but T-shirt transfers and stickers are two of the best ways to advertise your business. Particularly if you have your own logo or tagline. In Brisbane, t-shirt printing and promotional stickers for marketing purposes are on the increase as businesses realise that they can get a ton of free advertising at little cost to their budget.

So here are 3 great reasons why transfers and stickers should be part of your marketing plan:

1.     People are walking billboards: You don’t need to empty out your budget for huge billboards or TV ads. Give people free t-shirts with your logo or tagline printed on the front (and maybe the back) and you have instant FREE advertising! Everywhere they go and everyone who sees them will also see your business information - all of their friends, relatives, colleagues and even total strangers. All are potential customers and all will be exposed to your branding.

2.     Everyone has a car: What about car bumper stickers and car window stickers? Give them away free. People love this stuff! Not everyone will stick it on their car but enough will. And once again, you have instant FREE advertising.

3.     Increase brand exposure: So you have people walking around wearing your logo and taglines on their t-shirts, they are driving around in their cars or trucks with your logo and taglines emblazoned on their bumper or rear window. FREE advertising! You have instantly increased brand awareness and brand exposure. And it has cost you very little in dollar terms.

As you can see, transfers and stickers are a great way to increase people’s awareness of your business or service. And as part of your overall marketing strategy their cost is practically nominal, but the returns can be substantial.