Book Binding Options Explained

Good quality, professionally bound and printed books instantly look and feel trustworthy. Their thick pages, high resolution images and sturdy binding give a good impression of the company behind them and making it more likely that clients and customers will choose their services.

If you’re creating a high-end company brochure, putting together a pitch for a big client or looking to produce a professional book for your business, here’s a quick guide to your book binding options.

Hardback and Paperback

The ideal choice for top quality brochures and catalogues, hardback books give an instantly professional appearance as well as the impression of permanence.

This good first impression can go a long way to inspiring confidence in a business and if often worth the increased cost of producing a run of hardback books.

More affordable to produce than hardback books, paperbacks have an equally impressive appearance as long as they’re professionally bound and produced.

Both paperbacks and hardbacks come with a variety of options for paper, quality and finish, allowing you to find the perfect combination for your high-end product.

Covers and dust jackets

As many of the people who come into contact with your book will inevitably judge it by its cover, getting the look of the finished product right is a must.

For a classic, timeless look, opt for a fine linen cloth cover, or alternatively create a high impact design with a fully printed cover and durable laminate finish.

If your book will be handled by a lot of people, protect it with a full wrap around laminated dust jacket. Not only will this prevent the cover becoming damaged, it will also give your product a fantastic professional appearance.

Perfect and case binding

Perfect binding is ideal choice for a paperback book, catalogue or prospectus. The pages of the book are bound together uses an adhesive. These pages are glued to the spine, usually with a hot-melt adhesive, to keep them surely in place. Generally they have a thin flexible cover which is trimmed flush with the inside pages.

Case binding is the most popular type of binding for hardback books. The pages of a case bound book are sewn together in sections and then glued to a flexible spine. The cover will be made of thick board which is wrapped in a cover material. A wide range of premium quality materials and finishes are available.

Printed paper case (PPC)

Rather than have a plain or linen cover and separate printed dust jacket we can print directly onto the hard cover of the book. It will have a high durable finish which will protect the book. Ask us for details about the ranges of finishes that we can provide.

Printed or coloured endpapers

These are the first pages you see when you open a hardback book. They are made of one sheet of paper that is stuck to the inside of the front and back cover. They are often referred to as the endsheet and flyleaf. They come in a wide range of coloured materials and add quality to the appearance. Endpapers can also be printed with a pattern or any design that you want.

Plain or coloured head and tail bands

Although small and can go un-noticed these are the pieces of coloured twine found on the top and bottom of the spine of a hardback book. They are mainly decorative but add the finishing touch to any professionally printed book. We offer coloured head and tail bands that will complement the cover and endpapers.

Foil stamping, embossing and blind embossing

A great way to give your book a smart, professional finish is to have the title foil stamped, embossed or blind embossed onto the cover.

The option you choose will depend on the look you’re aiming for. In general, foil stamping is more eye-catching whereas embossed and blind embossed lettering are both ideal for high-end publications and corporate brochures.

As well as these standard options, most good print companies (like Swallowtail of course) should be able to offer you a range of bespoke touches that will help you to create a book that will do your business justice.

As well as looking and feeling fantastic, a professionally bound and printed book will give a good impression of your business to whoever picks it up, giving you a better chance of getting your company noticed and making for a valuable marketing tool.

For more details on book binding and printing or to discuss your requirements just give us a call.