Businesses may be able to print some of these marketing materials in-house, using desktop equipment. Choosing a commercial printer starts with the fact that different shops have different types of equipment and specialize in different types of work. You'll get the best results if you work with a printer that specializes in the kind of printing you'll need. At the start, you'll need to make ink and paper choices. With ink, the key decision is whether you'll use black or one or more colors.
Spot color is ink of a specific, pre-mixed color.
Process color and spot color might both be used on the same document, with the process color being used to produce, say, a color photograph, and the spot color being used for a corporate logo. Papers vary in composition, weight and finish. Paper may also have a gloss or matte finish, and it may be coated or uncoated, with uncoated papers being less expensive but also less elegant-looking. Ink won't show through opaque papers, which can be especially important in two-sided printing. Finally, there are post-printing processes.