Print medium even today is a very sought after mode of disseminating information to a wide range of people. The present form of the printing services industry is an outcome of years of change and development in printing styles and techniques. Today it can address almost any requirement of the clients related to printing and its supplementary requirements.

Bulk printing services first originated somewhere around the 1400's when Gutenberg invented the world's first printing press and the whole idea of relief printing came into being. In this style of printing the printed matter appears raised from the base of the material, like in a rubber stamp. Relief printing is scarcely in use nowadays, though there are still some situations where it is used.

Technology has always been a motivating factor behind changes in printing techniques that have been embraced down the years. Modern printing methods are quite varied and come to a variety of uses. Most clients are in fact bewildered by the abundance of printing choices before them.

One of the most popular printing methods in the industry today is offset printing. In this method, limited ink is used to print the matter, which is first put on metal plates and is then transferred onto paper. This cheap and quick method of printing is highly favoured and used when mass printing is required.

Other well known forms of printing that have evolved over time are electrostatic printing, which can be compared to photocopying, and thermal printing, which creates the print impression by heating coated thermal paper selectively.

However, the newest innovation in printing industry is digital printing. As the name suggests it makes use of a computer to create an image, which is then previewed and if found to be faultless, printed onto paper. But this quick and reliable technique works best in situations where only a small number of prints is required. As the printer can customize each print in this method, it can be employed for computer form printing, where documents such as receipts or bills can be printed for different clients, with each having an identical format but different contents.

Printing services took another leap when the internet started becoming popular. There are many companies in the market now, who permit you to order and modify prints straight through their websites, which is providing great convenience to the clients.

Technological advancements have always brought about important positive changes in printing methods and the quality of the prints. The best thing about this trend is that it will stay on track well into the future and keep enhancing the performance and cost effectiveness of printing services.