What printing services do small businesses need?

It's a question we get asked regularly at Ganda Media, particularly by people starting a new business: what printing do I actually need?

The answer? It depends on your business.

We've worked with hundreds of businesses over the years, from bars and cafés to offices, shops, and professional services. One thing we've learnt is that there's no point spending money on printing just because you think it's something a business should have.

The best printing is the stuff that actually works for you.

What are small businesses printing?

For our hospitality customers, menus, loyalty cards, posters and signage are consistently popular. For other businesses, it's often business cards, leaflets, signage and headed paper.

We also produce an enormous amount of everyday document printing. Everything from letters and bulk mailers to conference handouts and large reports.

For smaller businesses, outsourcing document printing can be far more convenient than buying and maintaining a decent office printer, keeping it stocked and dealing with the inevitable problems.

But even within the same industry, every business has different requirements.

Let’s look at Blossoms in Brighton - who we've worked with since they opened. We regularly produce their menus, loyalty cards, flyers and signage, including waterproof and tearproof signs for outdoor use. They particularly value being able to order smaller quantities, allowing them to change menus and promotions without loads of out of date or superseded print.

Recently, they wanted some super-premium business cards but weren't sure what finish to choose. We talked through the options, showed them samples and helped them settle on soft-touch laminated cards with raised foil blocking. That's the sort of conversation we enjoy. It's not about selling the most expensive product; it's about finding the right one.

Sometimes less printing is better

Digital printing has made short print runs much more practical, and we're big advocates of ordering what you actually need.

If you're running an event at a coffee shop with a capacity of 50, do you really need 5,000 flyers? Probably not. A couple of hundred might do the job perfectly well.

Short runs also let you experiment.

For Penguin Media Solutions, we produced five different versions of a flyer promoting their support packages, with just 50 copies of each. That allowed them to test different designs rather than committing to thousands of one version.

It's better for the budget and reduces unnecessary waste, something we've always cared about at Ganda. We use FSC-certified paper, recycle wherever possible and consider environmental impact when choosing our equipment and suppliers.

Print can be measurable too

One misconception is that you can't measure the effectiveness of printed marketing.

You absolutely can.

Through our development side, Ganda Studio, we can incorporate tracked URLs and QR codes into printed materials.

We've worked with Bok Shop on QR codes for posters, flyers and cups, helping them identify which printed items are generating customer reviews.

And it doesn't always need technology. Different coloured promotional wristbands, redeemed for discounts at a nightclub entrance, can tell you which promoters or distribution locations are bringing in customers. The important thing is thinking about what you want your printing to achieve before ordering it.

Don't choose print on price alone

One of the biggest mistakes we see is customers choosing a paper stock because it's cheap, without understanding whether it's suitable.

Kraft paper, for instance, can look fantastic for the right project, but brown, rough paper isn't appropriate for everything!

We also regularly spot artwork that isn't going to reproduce particularly well.

When that happens, we'll pick up the phone or send an email to discuss it. We'd much rather have that conversation than simply print something we suspect you'll be disappointed with.

Sometimes a small adjustment makes all the difference.

Bring back the physical!

Here's something I feel quite strongly about. We're bombarded with online advertising. Social media, sponsored posts, emails. There's so much of it that we've become remarkably good at ignoring it.

Meanwhile, we're seeing fewer physical promotional materials than we used to.

That creates an opportunity.

A well-designed, beautifully printed flyer, invitation or card can genuinely catch someone's attention. It's something tangible, something they can keep rather than scroll past.

I'm not suggesting businesses abandon digital marketing. Quite the opposite. Combining physical printing with digital tracking can be incredibly effective.

But don't underestimate the power of putting something properly printed into somebody's hands.

So what should you order first?

We could give you a list of ten products every small business supposedly needs, but that wouldn't be particularly honest.

A café needs different things from an accountant. A new shop has different priorities from an established business launching a promotion.

We'd rather understand what you're trying to achieve, what your budget looks like and how we can help you get the best return from it.

Sometimes that means recommending something you hadn't considered. Sometimes it means suggesting you don't spend money on something at all.

Our advice? Come in for a coffee.

Let's sit down, have a chat about your business and work out what will really benefit you, both now and in the future.

That's what we're here for … and we have biscuits!