Digital Foiling and Traditional Foiling can both leave your printed product with beautiful metallic accents – the difference is in the process and the finish

Digital Foiling.

Works best on smooth uncoated board, although if you want print alongside your foil it will also need to be soft touch laminated. Digital foil adheres to printed toner and leaves a bright, shiny but flat image.

Traditional Foiling

Works best on rough or textured stock. A stamp is created of your design and this is then pressed into the board leaving an embossed foil image.

Digital Foiling: The Pro’s

Size AND Fine Details

Traditional Foiling stamps are costed per inch square, so the larger the area you want to foil the more expensive it gets. It can also be difficult fine details on a metal stamp.
Digital Foiling adheres to printed toner, if you are printing Invitations the cost for a foiled name or a large image would be the same. It will also adhere to small amounts of toner, making intricate designs possible.

Personalisation

Because no stamp is required Digital Foil allows for personalisation in a way that Traditional Foil never could. Suddenly foiling individual names on Invitations, using a range of foiled designs across your Business Cards or restaurant menus is easy and economical. If you were to attempt this with Traditional Foil each design/Name would have to have its own stamp which would cost a small fortune.

Speed

Digital foil files are created directly from the computer. Unlike Traditional Foil where a stamp has to be created which can take 5-10 days.
There is no waiting time, as soon as it is printed it can be Digitally Foiled so items can be produced in days rather than weeks.

Options

There are hundreds of colours available for Digital Foiling. Standard colours like Gold, Silver, Copper as well as Rose Gold, Brights and Pastels. We shouldn’t have any trouble finding a colour to fit with your branding. Digital foil is also available in a glitter and holographic finish, perfect for that extra sparkle or security.

Digital Foiling: The Con’s

Materials

At the moment Digital Foil is at it’s best on smooth, laminated card. Using it on a rough or textured card will not show it at its best and will not enhance your product. If you have your heart set on a textured board then you should definitely consider our Traditional Foiling options.

Higher Quantities

Higher quantities can equal higher costs. Digital Foil costs the same for every sheet printed. Traditional Foil has high set up costs but the running costs are low so if you are going for thousands of prints, traditional is the way to go.

Tolerance

There can be some movement on Digital Print and as each sheet has to be printed twice (see our Digital Foil explanation below) this can mean there is a small amount of variation. Not an issue on most jobs but if something needs to line up exactly it’s best to have a chat with our designers first.

Options

This was in Pro's and we know this doesn’t sound like a bad thing. But with the ability to choose from hundreds of colours it can be difficult not to veer away from your brand guidelines. We know the Red Glitter option is stunning but if your brand colours are Black and Navy you’ll have a hard time convincing the team!

Digital Foiling: How to use it?

The digital foil is supplied on rolls and is heated as it runs through our high pressure machine. To ensure not everything we print ends up foiled we create the product in two parts.
Firstly we print everything that you do not want to be foil. This is then sealed with a soft touch laminate. Then we overprint, in black, any areas that you want foiled. Then it is run through the machine and the foil adheres to anywhere there is toner present.

Want more information? Watch a video from machine suppliers Matrix here

Digital Foiling: Why use it?

Visibility

Consumers are drawn to more appealing products and Digital Foil is incredibly eye-catching.

Perceived Value

With many famous companies using foil you help associate your business with higher quality. This perception is invaluable, people buy from companies they trust.

Stand Out

Today’s marketplace is crowded and creating a memorable product to separate yourself is incredibly important. Foil demands attention and draws customers in.

Tactile

Foil encourages the urge to touch the product. And that high quality Business Card or Brochure is an instant way to engage consumers and give them an insight into the quality of your product.

2020 has been an odd year and trends are showing consumers favour tactile marketing with a focus on personalisation. Digital foil is perfect for this, giving your brand a hit of opulence and quality at an affordable price.