Branding Guide
Pad Printing
A versatile printing method designed to apply detailed branding to small, curved and irregular product surfaces.
What is pad printing?
Pad printing transfers ink from an engraved printing plate onto a product using a flexible silicone pad. Because the silicone pad can conform to different shapes and surfaces, pad printing is particularly useful for branding products that may be difficult to print using a flat printing process.
It is widely used for promotional merchandise with smaller or irregular branding areas.
How pad printing works
The artwork is prepared on a printing plate. Ink fills the engraved image, and a flexible silicone pad picks up the ink before transferring it onto the product surface.
- 1
Artwork prepared
The artwork is prepared for the required branding area.
- 2
Printing plate prepared
The design is reproduced as an engraved image on the printing plate.
- 3
Ink picked up
A silicone pad presses onto the inked image and picks up the artwork.
- 4
Image transferred
The flexible pad presses onto the product and transfers the ink to the surface.
Best for
- Small branding areas — Well suited to logos and artwork applied within compact branding positions.
- Curved & irregular surfaces — The flexible silicone pad can adapt to product shapes that are difficult to print using flat processes.
- Detailed logos — Suitable for reproducing relatively fine artwork within the limits of the individual product and print area.
- Hard promotional products — Commonly used across products such as pens, drinkware components, technology accessories, keyrings and other rigid merchandise.
Benefits
- Works with complex shapes — The flexible pad makes it possible to brand curved, recessed or irregular surfaces.
- Precise branding — Particularly useful where a smaller, controlled print is required.
- Versatile — Available across a large range of promotional products within the Ecosource catalogue.
- Good for logos and text — Works particularly well for clean logos, lettering and relatively simple artwork.
Things to consider
- Pad printing generally offers a smaller branding area than methods such as screen printing or digital transfer.
- The shape and surface of the product can influence the maximum print area, number of colours and level of detail that can be reproduced.
- Multi-colour artwork may require separate print stages depending on the product and branding option.
- Photographic images, complex gradients or artwork requiring a large branding area may be better suited to another branding method.
- Always refer to the individual product's available branding options.
Preparing artwork for pad printing
Clean vector artwork is generally preferred, particularly for logos, text and solid-colour designs.
Very fine lines, small text and intricate details should be considered carefully because the achievable result depends on the product surface and available print area.
Where specific brand colours are required, please provide the appropriate Pantone/PMS references with your artwork.
Exact artwork and colour requirements vary by product and branding option.
Not sure if your artwork is suitable?
Send us your artwork and we'll help determine whether Pad Printing is the right branding method for your product.
Where can my logo go?
Available Pad Printing positions and maximum print areas vary by product.
Explore products available with Pad Printing
Browse promotional products in the Ecosource range that support Pad Printing.