Illustrator CS4 — How to create a business card file for a commercial printer

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This page is a brief description on how to create an Adobe Illustrator CS4 business card file for your printing organisation.

 

If you are using Adobe Illustrator CS3, then we suggest that you visit our create a busiess card file in Illustrator CS3 webpage. Adobe Illustrator CS3 is different to Adobe Illustrator CS4, so it is worth your while viewing our create a busiess card file in Illustrator CS3 webpage.

If you want to ensure that your business card will be exactly what you want, then have a read of our How to Prepare Your Files page — that page has a lot more information on what to do (e.g.: grammar, folding, etc).

This page is set up for customers whom use an Apple-Mac, but those of you using PCs will find the process almost the same.

 

How to set up a business card file in Illustrator CS4

Create a New Document

Illustrator CS4 is a great program upon which to create your business cards file. 

Setting up the file takes only a few easy steps.

 

The first thing to do is to click on "File", then place then choose "New" (File > New).

 

Your screen will change, and you will be presnted with the New Document dialogue box (similar to the below image).

  1. Name your file. It is important that you give the file a 'meaningful' name. Do NOT just name it "Business Cards", as your commercial printer get many business card printing jobs. The file's name should display two important features:
    • The file's name should describe the customer. On this page we are making a business card for "Leslie Miller" of "Printing-Online.com.au Pty Ltd". So the first part of the file's name is going to be "Miller Printing Online".
    • The file's name should also describe the type of job being printed. We are making a business card, so the last part of the file's name will be "Bus Card".
  2. Select the number of Artboards.
    • If the New Document dialogue box does not have the Numner of Artboard box, then you might be using an earlier version of Adobe Illustrator. In such an instance, we suggest you visit our create a busiess card file in Illustrator CS3 webpage.
    • If your business card is single-sided, then there will be "1" art board. If your business card is going to be double-sided, then select "2" Artboards.
  3. Width and Height.
    • If your business card is going to be a traditional landscape business card, then the Width shall be 89mm, and the Height shall be 54mm — the little image at the extreme left of the Width and Height box will automatically default to the landscape format.
    • If you want aIf your business card to be in the portrait format, then the Width shall be 54mm, and the Height shall be 89mm — the little image at the extreme left of the Width and Height box will automatically default to the portrait format.
  4. Bleeds. Each and every box in the bleeds section must be set at 3mm.
  5. Color Mode and Raster Effects.
    • If the Color Mode and Raster Effects options do NOT appear, then click once on the Advanced button.
    • TheOnlinePrinter prints in the CMYK colour gamut. So select CMYK from the drop-down menu.
    • The Raster Effects (the file's resolution) must be set at 300 points per inch — High (300ppi).

You then click the blue "OK" button at the top right of the dialogue box.

Your screen will change to something similar to the image below (however, there will be no aqua coloured lines). If you have a double-sided business card, then there will be two artboards, and if your business card is to be single-sided, then only one artboard shall appear.
There should be a ruler at the top of the screen, and a second ruler on the lefthand side of the screen. If they are not there, then choose "View", then "Show Rulers" — or press "Apple" + "R" on a Mac, or "Windows" + "R" on a PC.

Before you start your design, you must place in the Safety Margin lines.

  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the top of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse down until it is 5mm inside the top of the upper black box, then release the mouse. This is the top Safety Margin line of the top artboard.
  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the top of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse down until it is 5mm inside the bottom of the upper black box, then release the mouse. This is the bottom Safety Margin line of the top artboard.
  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the top of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse down until it is 5mm inside the top of the lower black box, then release the mouse. This is the top Safety Margin line of the bottom artboard.
  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the top of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse down until it is 5mm inside the bottom of the lower black box, then release the mouse. This is the bottom Safety Margin line of the bottom artboard.
  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the extreme left of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse across until it is 5mm inside the lefthand side of the black box, then release the mouse. This is the the lefthand Safety Margin line of both artboards.
  • Place your mouse in the ruler at the extreme left of the page. Hold down the mouse, and drag the mouse across until it is 5mm inside the lefthand side of the black box, then release the mouse. This is the the lefthand Safety Margin line of both artboards.
  • Your screen should almost exactly match the image above.

 

OK. So, there are now lines and boxes all over the screen. what do they mean?

  • The black boxes are the size that your business card will be — they are the trim lines. You can enlarge the boxes on your screen, and you can reduce them, but the black lines will always remain the place where the business card will finish.
  • The outer red boxes are the bleed lines.— click here to find out more about bleeds. Bleed lines are important, and you must ensure that all background colours and images that you want to print to the very edge of your business card file MUST go all the way out to the bleeds lines. The gold and green background colours in the below image of a business card file go all the way out to the red bleed lines.
  • All important text and images MUST stay inside the Safety Margin lines. In the below picture, all the text and the company logo are inside the Safety Margin lines.

 

So, you can go ahead and create your business card file using the Adobe Illustrator CS4 software program.

 

What appears below is more information. It relates to what you should do once your business card file has been designed, and your are ready to send the business card file to your printing company.

 

How to prepare an Illustrator CS4 business card file for a commercial printer

You have now created your business card, and you want to send it to your commercial printing company. If you want, you can simply send your Illustrator file, and your job should proceed through the printing process simply.

However, there are three very good reasons why you should do a little more work on the file — outline the fonts and concovert the file to a PDF.

  1. Illustrator files travel well across the Internet. But they can be large, and can sometimes be unstable. PDF's however, are amazingly stable.
  2. Illustrator files can be quite large, and this can cause troubles when sending them by way of E-mail or uploading them to a server. PDF's, however, are almost always smaller than Illustrator CS4 files, so they are easier to E-mail or upload.
  3. Your commercial printing company might not have the fonts that you use, or might not be licensed to use those fonts. If you outline the text, then your commercial printer will be able to make any necessary adjustments to your file without the need to use your fonts.

 

How to outline text in Adobe Illustrator CS4

It only takes two steps to outline text in Adobe Illustraor CS4.

First, choose Select, then choose All.

 
 
 
 
 		 Second, choose Type, then choose Create Outlines.

All the text should now have a blue mottled outline, similarto the below image. If only one of the two artboards has the mottled appearance, then simply click on the reklevant artboard, and go through the proceedure a second time.

You should now save your file. However, when you save the file, add the word Outlined to the end of the file's name. This will mean that you can keep the old 'non-outlined' file, and alter it at some later date (e.g.: change a telephone number).

 

How to convert an Adobe Illustrator CS4 file into a press-ready PDF

Converting your Illustrator CS4 business card file into a PDF is easy.

First, choose File, then select Save As.

You will be taken to the Save As dialogue box (see image below).

  1. Make sure the file is named correctly. Have the person and company for whom the card is being made form part of the name. Also, please mention the type of product being mage — in this instance, a business card.
  2. Make sure that you select the Adobe PDF format in the drop-down menu.
    Click the blue Save button.

 

You will be taken to the Save Adobe PDF dialogue box (see below), and the General tab should be highlighted (see the blue box at the left of the mage below).

  1. Select Press Quality from the drop-down menu.
  2. Ensure that the Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities box is ticked. Whether the remaining boxes are ticked is not important.
  3. Click once on the compression tab at the left of the Save Adobe PDF dialogue box.

The Compression tab should now be highlighted (see below image).

  1. Ensure that the Color Bitmap Images details are set out as below. The resolution must never be below 300ppi.
  2. Ensure that the Greyscale Bitmap Images details are set out as below. The resolution must never be below 300ppi.
  3. Ensure that the Monochrome Bitmap Images details are set out as below. The resolution must never be below 1200ppi.
  4. Click once on the Marks and Bleeds tab.

The Marks and Bleeds tab should now be highlighted (see below image).

  1. Ensure that the Trim Marks box is the ONLY box that is ticked in the Marks section of the dialogue box.
  2. Ensure that each and every Bleed is set at 3mm.
  3. Click the blue Save PDF button.

Your file is now ready to be sent to your commercial printer.
It should proceed without any problems whatsoever.