Follow 3 Practical Directions to Achieve A Qualified Excel Printing

Imagine you spent two weeks of hard work; after that, you emailed your master-piece report to your boss, the numbers are correct but you forgot that he likes reading information on paper.

Big mistake, after a print preview…

Your boss irritation is apparent: the file is not ready to print: no informative header and footer, page numbering missing, the company logo is not there, hundreds of page breaks, etc.

Believe me; your credibility is affected by such small details. I offer you 3 practical guidelines for a skillful Excel Printing.

A ready-to-print file creates a good impression. You add value to boss or coworkers job because you consider their time valuable; you say them I did the printing configuration so that you can focus on what is important to you.

Excel printing is an art so you must be prepared to do trial and error in every setup. Additionally, you could print a proof page to make the 50 cm acid test.

What does this mean? The readers must be able to read the page 50 cm (19 inches) in front.

Take into account the printing scheme your file fits into; I identify four types:

• Long vertical report Your report fits into one sheet width (Letter, A4, A3, etc) but has many rows. Special considerations: limit the amount of columns per page and repeat heading row at the top.
• Long Horizontal report Your report fits into one sheet width (Letter, A4, A3, etc) but has a considerable number of columns. Special considerations: limit the amount of rows per page and repeat heading column at the left.
• One page report Your report fits into one page: letter, A4 or A3. More rows than columns fit into a portrait arrange; more columns than rows fit into a landscape orientation. Is your page in the middle? It is a matter of tastes.
• Poster report Make trial and error with page breaks and then use scissors and glue. 

Your reports become physical archives; sometimes they are reviewed by persons distant in time or far from your office; provide your readers the information to make them know what the report is about.

1. Company information: logo, address, phone number, URL
2. Informative Title (use headers and footers)
3. Page number (include current and total)
4. Date and Hour
5. Author’s name
6. Watermark when is necessary (Draft, Confidential, etc)

Remember these Excel Printing tips:

• Limit the number of fields Do always the 50 cm acid test.
• Fit the correct amount of rows per sheet Do always the 50 cm acid test.
• Repeat top row heading for vertical schemes
• Repeat left column heading for horizontal schemes
• Turn almost one page into one sheet Do additional trials to fit an almost-one-page into one page.