In the last issue, I promised we'd dive deeper into how print shops are really implementing AI in their design workflows. After talking to many printers and spending way too much time testing different tools, here's what I've learned.
First off, let's be honest – most printers aren't replacing designers with robots anytime soon. What they are doing is giving creative teams some incredible superpowers. Think of it like upgrading from a basic toolbox to a full workshop.
Making Images Out of Thin Air Here's an example. Last week, a client needed custom illustrations for a restaurant menu but had zero budget for a photographer. The printer literally typed "rustic pasta dish with herbs on weathered wood table" into Stable Diffusion and got exactly what we needed in about three minutes. The client was thrilled, the printer saved hours, and everyone won.
The background removal thing? Game changer. No more painstaking Photoshop work for product shots – the AI handles it instantly, and designers can focus on the creative stuff that matters.
Layout Magic (When It Works) Here's where things get interesting. AI layout tools are getting scary good at creating template variations. Printers have been experimenting with letting AI generate 5-6 different poster layouts from the same content, then having their designers pick the best one and polish it up.
But here's the kicker; you still need human eyes on everything. AI sometimes makes choices that look good on screen but would be a nightmare to print. Like choosing colors that work great in RGB but turn muddy in CMYK.
The Typography Surprise I wasn't expecting much from AI font recommendations, but honestly? Sometimes it suggests combinations I never would have thought of. It's like having a design intern who's read every typography book ever written but occasionally suggests Comic Sans for legal documents.
Start Small, Think Big Don't try to revolutionize everything at once. Start with simple stuff like image cleanup and basic template tweaks. Once everyone got comfortable, I gradually introduced more complex applications.
Keep Humans in the Driver's Seat Designers are still making all the big creative decisions. AI suggests, humans decide. It's working well because the team doesn't feel threatened – they feel empowered.
Quality Control Is Everything You don't want to learn this the hard way when an AI-generated design makes it to a client with text that was technically correct but contextually weird. Now there is a simple checklist: Does this make sense? Would a human say this? Does it print well?
How to talk to clients
Most clients don't care how the package was constructed. They just want great results faster and cheaper. Focus on showing them the amazing outcomes rather than getting into the technical weeds about which AI tool we used.
In our observation clients are genuinely curious about the process, and we're happy to explain. But the key is emphasizing that skilled designers are still driving the creative vision.
What's next
Honestly, we've just scratched the surface. The tools are getting better every month, and finding new ways to integrate them into a workflow is the goal. Next month, I'll share what we're seeing on the production side.
The future isn't human vs. AI in print design. It's humans with AI creating stuff that neither could do alone.