Print Design Brief: From Approved Content to Artwork Handover

The practical guidance

Steps, tools and examples

Brief the reader’s task and the distribution

Explain who receives the material and what they should understand or do. A sales brochure left after a meeting, a company profile emailed as a PDF and a small printed handout do not share exactly the same reading context. Define the printed job and any separate digital version.

Supply the order of information and the important action. Tell the designer whether the reader compares services, keeps instructions or needs a route to an enquiry. This makes hierarchy and format decisions purposeful, rather than relying on a request to make the document look professional.

Collect and approve the content

Provide one current copy source with headings, contact details, product/service information and approved claims. Identify the person checking factual accuracy. Keep image filenames connected to their intended use, and confirm that the business may use the photographs, illustrations and other assets.

Review tables, captions, prices and small details as carefully as main paragraphs. A design approval does not automatically confirm all facts. If information changes after layout, record the affected pages and repeat the relevant checks. The company profile design guide helps with that specific document’s structure and brief.

Confirm the physical format with the printer

Agree the finished size, pages, folding or binding, material and finishing with the actual supplier. Record any template and the correct version. Ask what file format, colour workflow, bleed, marks and production proof the printer requires for this job. Keep these inputs attached to the brief.

Bleed allows artwork to extend beyond the trim edge; the amount and export requirements must follow the job. Adobe’s bleed reference explains its purpose. Do not copy an unrelated supplier’s settings or treat a familiar preset as universal approval.

Check the artwork and understand the proof

Review the actual exported pages for missing content, page order, images, typography and contact details. A preflight check can help identify production issues such as missing fonts, changed links or overset text; its checks depend on the configured profile. Adobe documents the preflight workflow.

Ask what the supplier’s proof demonstrates. A screen PDF, folded dummy and production colour proof answer different questions. Record what was checked and who accepts any remaining uncertainty. A desktop printout can help review reading and sequence without proving every final production characteristic.

Copy a print artwork brief and release sheet

Record: document purpose; audience; distribution; finished format; page/fold plan; approved copy source; image rights; printer; specification/template version; output requirements; proof type; content approval; design approval; final filename/version; production-release owner. Keep the release file and decision together.

Fictional example: a service business needs a brochure for appointments and a separate email PDF. The printer confirms the physical format and output requirements. The team approves the copy first, reviews the layout with real service descriptions and checks the final print export separately from the digital version. The business authorises production after the specified proof review.

Make the handover and future editing practical

Agree whether the project includes only production exports or also editable files and update instructions. Distinguish linked assets, masters, previews and final files. Use clear version names so staff and suppliers can identify the approved material without guessing.

Check permissions before sharing font files. Adobe’s font-packaging guidance explains why the relevant licence matters; a software package command does not grant permission by itself. Identify who maintains the document when services or contact details change. The identity-system guide and colour theory guide provide the wider visual context.