TL;DR: UCreative embarked on a mission to create a beautiful holiday postcard and find the right printer for the job. UPrinting carried out our vision perfectly — no notes! We found their free proofing services and printing advice invaluable, and our prints top-notch. The foil finish was flawless, too. Our verdict? UPrinting is now our go-to brand for professional prints. Definitely UCreative-approved!
There is never a bad time to send out postcards — at least this is what we think here at UCreative. With little effort and a lot of sincerity, postcards go a long way in strengthening rapport with clients. Plus, they’re great for exercising our creative muscles. The holiday season is a great time to express gratitude and appreciation by sending a little love to our clients. So last year, before the holiday break, we formed a team to create our company’s holiday postcards. My task was to find a reliable printer to ensure that the prints came out perfectly. We didn’t want to leave anything to chance.
I Searched, I Saw, I Signed Up
UPrinting’s website is pretty straightforward — you’ll immediately see a comprehensive list of products you can print including bestsellers like mailer boxes, business cards, and stickers. I knew I was there to print postcards, but I admit I got a little sidetracked when I saw the die-cut stickers on the homepage that I decided to look around first.
UPrinting Homepage
After spending a good 10 minutes window shopping, I created a UPrinting account. One of the nice things about UPrinting is that you can upload your Photoshop or Illustrator file to their website and their Prepress Team is going to take care of the rest. Before attempting to upload my file, I had to get all the necessary details out of the way. Thankfully, UPrinting’s postcard product page is user-friendly and includes a menu with customization options such as paper size, paper type, printed side, and even finer details such as rounded corners and turnaround time. UPrinting was extremely helpful in providing all of these options.
UPrinting – Postcard Product Page
Our holiday postcard was designed to be printed double-sided in the standard 6” x 4” and I chose the 14 pt. cardstock. I opted for the longest available turnaround time, which I believe is three days. This is a decent option if you don’t mind waiting, but if you have a stricter timeline, they can print your cards in as little as one business day. I also noticed they offer design templates, which is a great option for those who are dabbling in design or have yet to find a designer.
UPrinting Online Design Tool with Editable Templates
What really stood out to me as a smart move was that UPrinting offers free proofing services. You see, while our designers are quite good at whipping their magic, it’s always great to get a professional perspective when you’re ready to print. Not long after I placed my order, I got an email with a list of doable recommendations. For instance, my team and I wanted to print our postcards with a UV foil laminate to make it look more festive and premium. UPrinting’s Prepress Team advised against using 10 pt. font size for body text with foil finish as the laminate could potentially spill between gaps in the text. I didn’t even know that was a thing?! They also sent me a digital proof to approve (or reject, which I didn’t, by the way), so I knew exactly how our postcards were going to turn out, glitter and all. I settled the payment after I approved the proof and that’s it! All I had to do next was wait for the package.
The Moment of Truth
When you read about various cardstocks, paper thicknesses seem theoretical until you’re finally holding your prints between your fingertips. My experience with the postcards I ordered was no different — not only was the print quality flawless, but the postcards also felt premium and supple. One of the postcards I ordered was printed on silk cardstock and handwriting on it was smooth like butter, my pen didn’t even smudge. Why does this matter, you ask? While we printed a batch of postcards, we planned on adding handwritten notes to every recipient for a more personal touch. UPrinting got our colors accurately, and the foil finish? Perfection.
First order of business: our holiday postcard with UV foil laminate.
We also ordered another postcard in a different design, just because it was the holidays.
This is the 14 pt. cardstock; thicker than the usual business card with a premium touch.
Our postcards came out with vibrant colors and a flawless foil finish.
We printed coordinating business cards to match the festive season.
The Verdict
I’d be understating if I said that my UPrinting experience wasn’t bad for a first-time customer, mostly because they virtually held my hand every step of the way — from the registration until the proofing stage. It helped that I had a clear picture of what I had in mind and that our team’s designer nailed the artwork prior to printing, but if you’re new to the professional printing space don’t let it discourage you from asking questions or requesting help.
Overall, I’d highly recommend UPrinting for when you need professional printing services, whether you’re printing personal pieces or creating a batch of prints for your company. I can’t wait to come up with another print project — I’ll finally have a reason to try that matte-coated soft touch cardstock next!