Great Uses For Variable Data

• Personalized greetings on cards
• Addressing of postcards, newsletters, etc. for bulk mail
• Tickets to a special event with sequential numbering
• Custom catalogs with a personalized cover
• Customer dictated marketing materials
• Direct mail tracking codes
• Account statements figures
• Personalized ID cards
• Name Tags
• Form Letters

Variable Data File Guidelines

Original Art Files

• Supplied files need to be set one-up on a final trim sized page
• The area where PK Graphics will place the variable data should be blank (unless there is a background to the piece)
• A mock-up must be supplied indicating where the variable data should go, as well as the font and point size of the data

Databases

• Databases can be saved as excel spreadsheets (.xls), comma-delimited files (.csv), or tab-delimited files (.txt)
• Supply a detailed description of your database
• List the name of each column header and the location on the final document
• In addition, if punctuation is to be added at a particular point, please indicate that (for example: insert a comma after city and before state in a mailing)
• The customer is responsible for managing their own database prior to supplying it to PK Graphics
• All type should be spell-checked
• All addresses should be verified
• If the database is to run out sorted (for example by zip code or person's name) the customer needs to indicate that at the time the order is written
• Do not include commas anywhere in the file because it causes type to appear in quotation marks
• For example Laurel, MD 20707 would appear "Laurel, MD 20707"
• The correct way to setup a file is to include each variable in a different column
• For example Columbia, MD 21044 would be translated into a city column, a state column, and a zip code column
• Names are preferred to be supplied in one column, first, middle, last, and suffix would be supplied in one column, however more than one column is acceptable
• Examples of columns: name, title, department, address, address 2, city, state, zip code (NOTE: databases do not have to be set up in this arrangement)
• Please supply all data in one place (one worksheet or one file)
• The customer is asked to supply only those columns with data which will be used in the variable data processing and not extra columns of data which will not be processed
  
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