Banner Printing Glossary | Proof, Grommets, Pole Pockets, Bleed

A

Approve all: On an order with several banners, one button that approves every proof on the page at once. Read: Approve the proof, or request changes
Approved proof: The picture of your banner you said yes to. It is what we print, and what we compare the finished banner against. Read: Approve the proof, or request changes
Arrival date: The day the banner reaches your door if you approve the proof by the cutoff. Shown on the product page before you pay. Read: Place your order: size, price, file

B

Bleed: Extra background that runs past the finished edge of a print so that trimming never leaves a white sliver. On a banner we handle the bleed for you: the proof shows the finished size, and any background colour or picture is carried into the hem. Read: We prepare your banner proof and email it
Blockout: A dark core inside the heaviest banner vinyl that stops light passing through, so nothing behind the banner shows in sun or backlight. It is also what makes a double-sided print possible: one face does not ghost through the other. Read: Production: a person sends it to print

C

Cutoff: The time of day by which an approval keeps the promised date. Approve by 9 PM ET and the banner prints the next business day; approve after it and the date moves by a business day, which the proof page shows before you confirm. Read: Approve the proof, or request changes

D

Design for me: Free design, included with every order: you describe the banner in words, add any logo or photos, a designer makes it and you approve a proof before it prints. There is no design fee and no limit on the words you give us. Read: Place your order: size, price, file
Double-sided: A banner printed on both faces, on blockout vinyl, with a white welding border along the edges where the two prints meet. Read from both sides of a pole, a fence or a hall. Read: Production: a person sends it to print
DPI: Dots per inch: how much detail a picture has at the size it prints. A photo that looks sharp on a phone can be soft at six feet wide; our file check measures the detail at your banner size and warns you before you pay. Read: Place your order: size, price, file

E

Express lane: Our own banner line, the one this guide describes: approve by the cutoff, printed the next business day, shipped overnight, free. Products marked Standard Delivery come from a partner line with their own dates. Read: Delivery: free overnight shipping and tracking

F

File check: The automatic look at your file the moment you upload it: the size against the banner you chose, the resolution, the format. A pass means it will print well at that size; a warning tells you what is wrong and what we can fix. Read: Place your order: size, price, file

G

Grommets: Metal rings set into the hem of the banner so rope, zip ties or hooks can hold it. Every corner gets one, with more along the edges on a longer banner, and they are included in the price. Read: Production: a person sends it to print
Guarantee: Our promises in writing and what we do when one is missed: proof before print, on time or reprinted, a banner that matches its proof. The Guarantee page lists each promise and its remedy. Read: If something is wrong with your banner

H

Hem: The folded and welded edge that makes a banner strong enough to be pulled tight and hung outdoors. The hem is inside the size you ordered, which is why the proof keeps text away from the very edge. Read: We prepare your banner proof and email it

M

Material level: The materials a product family is printed on, named by what they are, never by a price word. Each level states the same four facts: what it is, where it is used, what you pay more for, who should pick it. The price difference between levels is the material difference. Read: Production: a person sends it to print

O

Order number: The code on every email about your order. One checkout is one number; several banners in it are that number with a suffix. Read: Place your order: size, price, file
Ounce weight: How banner vinyl is graded: the weight of one square yard, in ounces. A heavier weight is a thicker scrim and a higher price per square foot at the printer. Every product page names its weight, and the family picker shows the price difference at your size. Read: Production: a person sends it to print

P

Pole pocket: A sleeve sewn along an edge of the banner so a pole or rod slides through it, the way a backdrop hangs on a stand. You choose which edges on the product page; the price shows the extra, and the proof shows the pocket so you can see what it covers. Read: Production: a person sends it to print
Print queue: Our list of approved banners waiting for a person to send them to press. An order enters it the moment you approve the proof and leaves it when one of us presses Mark sent, by hand. Read: Production: a person sends it to print
Print-ready file: A file that passes the file check at the size you ordered. If you tick that you want it printed exactly as it is, it skips the proof step and goes to the print queue at payment; a person still checks it before pressing send. Read: Place your order: size, price, file
Proof: A picture of your banner at its real proportions, made from the file that will print and sent to you before anything prints. You approve it or ask for changes; the banner is printed from the approved version. Read: We prepare your banner proof and email it
Proof page: The page the link in your proof email opens, on any phone, with no login. It shows the proof, the arrival date if you approve now, the revisions you have left, and the buttons to approve or request changes. Read: Approve the proof, or request changes

R

Reorder: Ordering an approved design again, from your account or from the order email. The same file is set up again and you confirm a quick proof of it before it prints; new artwork on the same size gets a full proof. Read: Reorder a banner you already approved
Report window: The 48 hours after delivery in which to tell us about a problem, with a photo, so we can reprint or refund. Nothing is shipped back. Read: If something is wrong with your banner
Revision round: One request for changes and the new proof that answers it. Every order includes 3 free rounds, counted on the proof page; a reply from us in words, without a new proof, does not use one. Read: Approve the proof, or request changes

S

Safe area: The part of the banner where text and logos are kept, away from the hem and the grommets, so nothing is folded under or covered by a ring. The proof keeps your artwork inside it. Read: We prepare your banner proof and email it
Same-Day: Printed and shipped the day you order, when the order and the approval are in by 2 PM ET on a business day, and delivered the next business day. The product page shows the exact extra before you choose it. Read: Delivery: free overnight shipping and tracking
Scrim: The woven polyester mesh inside banner vinyl that gives it its strength. The vinyl is coated onto the scrim; a heavier scrim makes a thicker, stiffer banner that hangs flatter and takes more handling. Read: Production: a person sends it to print
Send later: Order now and upload the file afterwards from the link in your order email, for example while a designer finishes it. The proof follows once the file arrives. Read: Place your order: size, price, file
Standard Delivery: Products from a partner line rather than our own banner press. They are dated from proof approval and ship by ground, free; the product page and checkout show their own arrival date. Read: Delivery: free overnight shipping and tracking

T

Tracking number: The carrier code that follows your box. We email it the moment it exists, and the track page on this site shows the carrier and status for your order number. Read: Delivery: free overnight shipping and tracking

V

Vector file: PDF, AI or EPS artwork made of shapes and type rather than pixels, so it stays sharp at any size. The best kind of file for a logo or lettering on a large banner. Read: Place your order: size, price, file
Vinyl: Our vinyl banners print on 13oz Vinyl: outdoor grade, printed in full colour, hemmed and grommeted. Every product page names its own material in the specs. Read: Production: a person sends it to print