A
Acetate - Transparent1 plastic sheet available in a number of trade names, such as Mylar of Cronar. Used primarily for copy overlays.
Advertising2 - A non-personal, paid sales presentation directed to a mass of potential customers by an identified sponsor.
Agate3 Line - unit of measurement used in newspapers to calculate column space. 14 agate lines + 1 column inch. Agate was originally the name of a 5-1/2 point type.
Airbrush - An instrument used primarily for retouching continuous tone art. Small droplets4 of paint of dyes are sprayed through a gun to create tones on half tone art.
B
Blanket Ghosting - Occurs during offset5 and results during a previously6 used blanket having a swollen7 or depressed8 image area caused by use on another printing job.
Bleed - Area of plate or print that extends ("bleeds" off) beyond the edge of the actual size of the advertisement or trimmed sheet. When a design involves a bleed image, the designer allows an additional 1/8" or 1/4" beyond the trim page size for trimming.
Body Copy
Main copy of the advertisement which provides the details and benefits of the product/service.
C
Chemical Ghosting
Occurs as a result of the chemical property of inks as they go through normal drying phases. Ghosts appear because of differentials in ink-drying times. These differentials cause ink films to level to various degrees of gloss9.
Chromalin
A reproduction of a printed piece which is used as a standard to compare colours with the actual ad. Chromalins are approximately 95% accurate in colour.
CNU's (Canadian Newspaper Units)
A standardized10 newspaper format11 which divides a 13" wide broadsheet into 6 columns and 10 1/4" tabloid12 into 5 columns. Each unit is measured 1 column wide by 30 MAL's (modular agate lines) deep (2-1/8"). A full page broadsheet consists of 60 DNU's while a full page tabloid consists of 30 CNU's.
Colour Key
Consists of four overlaid pieces of acetate (one of each colour separation) which is used as a standard to compare colour in a printed ad or printed piece. Colour keys are approximately 75% accurate in colour reproduction.
Colour-Matching System
A system of matching a colour to a specific printing ink formula. Numbers are assigned to colours and keyed to colour swatches and ink formulas in order for the printer to match the colour in final reproduction. The most common system is the "Pantone Matching System" - PMS
Column Inch
A unit of publication space one column wide and 1" deep. Space in a newspaper equal to an area one column wide and one inch deep. (14 agate line = 1 column inch).
CMP (cost-per-thousand)
The cost incurred13 in delivering a message to 100 individuals. It facilitates the comparison of different print media's cost effectiveness. Calculation is based on the cost of a one-page, black and white advertisement-multiplied by 1000 and divided by the average circulation. Ideally CPM's should be converted into relevant CPM's-the calculation using the circulation which reaches your target audience.
Crop Marks
The short rules marked on border or overlays to indicate where the art should be cropped.
D
Donut
The silent space (usually lasting14 4 to 12 seconds) within a corporate15 radio of television
commercial which allows dealers16 or retailers17 to include details such as their location and store hours.
Duotone
A two-colour halftone made from a black and white of colour photograph.
F
Film
Sheet coated with light-sensitive material used for making photographs.
Fighting
Periodic waves of advertising, separated by periods of inactivity (as opposed to continuous
advertising). Normally referred to in broadcast media plans.
Four-Colour Process
Method of reproducing by separating the colour image into red (magenta), yellow, blue (cyan)
and black to create four printing plates, which - when combined - produce the full-colours of
the original.
Frequency
The average number of times the same audience will be exposed to the same message. Frequency
figures are generally stated in terms of a one-week period.
G
Galley18 Proof
An impression of type, usually not presented as it will appear when fully19 assembled, that allows the typographer or client to see if the copy has been properly set. Used to check spelling, editing, layout size and fit, etc.
Ghosting
An unplanned and unwanted image resulting in the printing process. See Mechanical Ghosting and
Chemical Ghosting.
Gripper
A mechanism20 which grips the paper to feed it into the press. The image area cannot be
extended into the gripper area. Only sheetfed presses use a gripper.
GRP's (Gross Rating Point)
A measure used to evaluate media. GRP's are an aggregate21 of the total ratings of a given
schedule, usually in a weekly period, against a predetermined target group. G R P's = Reach X
Frequency.
H
Halftone
A continuous tone image which must be photographed through a screen in order to be
reproduced. Through this screen the tones are translated into a series of small dots for
printing. These dots are densely22 or sparsely23 placed depending on the quality desired so that
when seen from the illustration or stopper to the copy or message.
I
Illustration
A drawing, graphic24 element of photograph used to clarify or explain a specific concept, point or to capture attention.
J
Jingle
Verse or words with simple catchy25 rhymes or repetitive sounds used in producing radio or
television commercials.
L
Layout
Preliminary drawing made by the designer to indicate the proposed plan for the final design.
Layouts may range from thumbnails, to roughs, to comprehensives, each made with increasing
attention to detail and accuracy as a guide to the client, studio and/or film house.
M
Market Segmentation
Dividing the heterogeneous26 marketplace of a product into subgroups which are homogeneous in
regards to select variables.
Marketing27 Concept
All company plans are based on analysis of the consumer and the profitable satisfaction of
their needs.
Mechanicals (Paste-up)
The pasting of copy, including type and design elements, on an artboard in an accurate position
to make it camera-ready, Instructions for the printer are hand written either in the margins28
of on a tissue overlay. Often clear plastic overlays will be used to separate colours or for
common elements.
Mechanical Ghosting
Caused by starvation ghost, plate ghost or blanket ghost. See definitions of each.
N
Niche29
An area within the marketplace that you can carve out wherein you are perceived by the
consumers to offer the best combination of product, distribution and price. To be effective
your niche must be large enough to financially warrant the effort.
Nonreproducing Pencil
A blue pencil or pen which does not register on film house or printer on the mechanical board.
O
Overlay
A transparent of translucent30 sheet place over a mechanical. A tissue overlay is used to indicate simple instructions for the printer while a copy overlay-generally on acetate sheet carries camera-ready copy to be photographed by the printer.
P
Personal Selling
A person-to-person presentation whereby the sales person and the potential buyer can benefit
from two-way communication.
Photomechanical
Complete assembly or type, line art, and halftone art in the form of film positives onto
a transparent film base.
Photostat
Commonly referred to as a "stat", this is an inexpensive photoprint made by a camera capable
of generating images with or without a paper negative. Stats are used by the studio to
indicate size and position of the original art in the layout or sometimes for line art as
original art. Sats may be reversed or flopped31, matte or glossy32, depending on the specific
requirements of the studio.
Pica
Typographic unit of measurement: 12 points = 1 pica.
Six picas = 1 inch. Also used to designate typewriter type spacing.
Plate Ghosting
Occurs on multicolor presses where the form on one of the colour units sensitizes the plate of
the following colour unit.
PMS (Pantone Matching System)
Most widely used colour matching systems.
Point
Smallest typographical unit of measurement: 12 point-pica, and 1 point = approximately 1/72 of
an inch. Type is measured in terms of points, the standard sizes being , 6,7,8,9,10,11,12,14, 18,24,30,36,42,48,60, and 72 points.
Process Colour - see four-colour process.
Public Relations
A firm's communications and relationships with its various publics, including customers,
suppliers, stockholders, employees, the government, and the society in which it
operates.Media space is neither paid for, nor guaranteed.
Publicity
Non-personal stimulation33 of demand by placing commercially significant news in a published
medium of by having this news favorably presented on radio, television, or stage by
means that are not paid for by the sponsor.
Pull Strategy
A promotional effort by the manufacturer to stimulate34 demand for a specific product by the
end user. This demand then focuses on channel members to request the product. The theory being
that retailers are much more likely to give "pre-sold" products shelf space.
Push Strategy
A promotional effort made towards channel members. These strategies are designed to sell
each member on the product offering. A sold member is more apt to focus on sell your product
over competing products.
R
Reach
The number of different homes, people, or prospects35 reached by one or more-commercial
advertisements. In broadcasting 'reach" is a synonym36 for cumulative37 net audience. Reach is
also a measurement of the total unduplicated target audience potentially exposed to you
message at laser once during a given time frame. Reach is usually expressed as a percentage of
the target population in a geographically38 defined area.
Registration39 Marks
Marks, generally crosses or circles, placed on paste-ups and overlays so that two or more
images may be positioned accurately40 for alignment41 purposes.
S
Sales Promotion
All short-term incentives43 designed to encourage the purchase or sale of a product or service
except advertising, public relations or personal selling. Includes direct mail, sampling,
coupons44, catalogues and price lists, contests, incentive42 programs, exhibits, special events,
open houses, packaging, signs, displays, point-of-purchase merchandise displays, premiums45, gifts, sales aids and presentations.
San Serifs
Type-face designed without serifs.
Screen
A finely cross-ruled sheet of glass that is placed in a process camera. Art is photographed
with a screen in order to translate tones into dots for the reproduction process.
Serifs
Short cross-strokes in the letter-forms of some type-faces which appear at the tops and bottoms
of letters. These curls are designed to lead the reader's eye from letter to letter.
Starvation Ghosting
Caused by the form combined with the overtaxing of the press's inking capability46.
Subcaption
Subheadings which are short yet informative47, leading into of through the body copy. An
effective subcaption means one does not need to read the body copy to obtain the overall meaning of the ad.
T
Target Audience
A specific segment of the total potential market for which a specific marketing campaign is
catered48 to.
Thumbnails
Small, rough sketches49 used to show conceptual layouts.
Tissue Overlay
An overlay, generally of visualizer paper, on which simple instructions are written to the
printer.
Trim Size
Final size of a printed piece after it has been trimmed.
Typography
The art and process of working with printed type.
U
USP (Unique Selling Proposition)
A characteristic/feature of a company or its product/service which differentiates50 it from its
competition, thereby51 creating a competitive advantage. To be effective the USP must present
a benefit which is perceived as a relevant by the target audience.
V
Van Dyke
A photocopy52 of a negative prepared by the film house or printer as a proof. The chemical
process employed renders the image in a blue or brown tone. Also called "blue sheets" or "brown
prints".
Varnish
A sealer that overprints ink and paper; protecting paper from scratches and scuffing53, making a sheet appear smooth and satiny.
Voice-Over
Narration by a voice not accompanied by a picture or speaker.
W
Working Film
Pieces and elements required to create final film, which is then used to produce the final
printed item. Working film is the raw stage of preparing the material. It is not suitable for
sending to a printer or publication.