Many of you responded to my column last week about your marketing issues, "Ask the Insider," with questions about how to buy printing services.

My recommendation is buy online. The #1 reason is low cost.

Online printers have a business model based on high volume, low overhead. The low overhead comes from the fact that it's a do-it-yourself process. And that = low prices.

What's also nice about the low prices online is that you see exactly what every job costs. From the set-up, to printing, to shipping, tax, and anything else. There are no surprises. And you, or your designer, never have to leave the office to do the whole job. You email your design file in.

Now if you can find an online printer with excellent service, you'll be all set. One we've been very happy with is 4Over4.com.

(By the way, "4-over-4" is a printing term that means 4-color printing on the front and back of a sheet of paper.)

Say you want to mail a pre-trade show postcard, or print a handout for the show. Visit the site, see the prices for the quantity you want, design your piece, and email the file to 4Over4.
The same day, or by the next day, they'll email you back a "proof" of your job to approve - a proof is a copy of exactly how the printed piece will look. (If the color of your job is critical, get a hard copy proof; computer monitors aren't always color-accurate.)

What happens next is really nice. 4Over4 sends you automatic emails tracking every step of your job. Like "Your job is now on press," "Your job is ready for finishing," Your job is ready to ship," "Your job has been shipped."

This takes all the anxiety out of waiting for your job - and print jobs always seem to be time critical.

If you do need to talk someone, they also answer the phone the first time!

They print fast, and they ship fast. They use UPS, not the post office, so you can get guaranteed next day if you need it, and they can track the shipment as well.

So for all your basic printing needs, go online and get a good deal.