Produce - Preparing your InDesign document

What is supported in Produce InDesign import?

A full list of what is/is not supported can be found here: Produce - what is/is not supported?

If this is a bit complicated for now, please check out this simple step by step guide for your first InDesign upload and come back here after.

Designer workflow

Indesign document setup

Element and layer visibility

Ensure that all elements required are visible (not hidden) and that the layer they sit on is also visible.

Document Setup

1. Choose the correct Intent for the document: Print (for print templates) or Web (for graphic templates).
2. Set the Bleed value. This ensures that bleed will be available in Produce for Print documents. A value of 0 means that bleed will not be available.

Pages

1. Multiple pages are supported, but spreads are not.
2. All pages must be the same size.
3. Facing pages are not supported
4. Alternate layouts are supported. 
   When a content creator starts a new document in Produce they will first be offered a choice of layout to use for the template. Each alternate layout can contain multiple pages.

Page elements

1. Ensure that all elements are named.
2. Avoid “illegal” characters in element names.
   ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - . / : ; <> ? @ [ \ ] ^  ` {  } ~

Text and Paragraph Styles

1. Define paragraph styles for all text to maintain consistent formatting.
2. [Basic paragraph] and [No paragraph style] must NOT be used.
3. Avoid “illegal” characters in paragraph style names.
   ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - . / : ; < > ? @ [ \ ] ^ ` { } ~
4. Remove any unused paragraph styles but keep those that, even if they are not used, may be required as an option for text elements.

Bullet points

Indesign bullet points are supported in Produce.

1. Define the bullets within the paragraph style
   1. Select Bullets from the List style dropdown
   2. Select the bullet character
   3. Set the Left Indent and First Line Indent values

In Produce, bullets are 15% of the font size by default. This can be changed by assigning a style in the Character Style dropdown.

There are two attributes that can be set for the bullets - size and colour.

1. Create a new character style
   1. Set the font Size. This bullet size is calculated as a percentage of the paragraph style font size. If the font size of the paragraph style is 10pt, a 4pt size for the bullet character style will result in a bullet that is 40% of the font size (4 is 40% of 10).
      
   2. Set the Character Colour. By default the bullet will be the same colour as the paragraph style. You can change this by setting the character colour in the bullet character style.
      

Square bullets and characters

1. Alphanumeric characters can be used instead of a bullet, click the Add button to the right of the Bullet Character panel and choose a character to add.
2. To generate a square bullet in Produce, add and use the "#" character.

Fonts

Font formats supported are:
OpenType (.otf)
TrueType (.ttf)

Formats NOT supported are:
Postscript Type 1
Truetype Collection (.ttc)
Any web fonts (.woff, .eot, .svg)
Variable fonts
Cloud fonts
  - Adobe Creative Cloud fonts (Typekit)
  - Monotype Cloud
  - Google Cloud fonts

Installing fonts
Fonts must be installed on the local workstation. Fonts installed automatically via the ‘Document fonts’ folder in an Indesign package will not always work as expected.

Installed fonts that are used in the Indesign document will be included in the exported package for Produce. Use the ‘Find/replace font’ dialog to see which fonts will be included in the package 

Installed fonts that are used in the Indesign document

Click on a font name to see the font information including the type and the path.

Including other fonts in the export

Users may want to include fonts in the export package that are not listed in the "Find/Replace font" dialog - for example a bold version of a regular font that will be used as a Bold variant.

Create a new layer with a text frame on it. Type one character set in the desired font, which will be included in the "Find/replace font" list. In the Layer dialog uncheck the "Print layer" option. This layer will not be included in the export although the font will.

New layer, with "Print Layer" unchecked

Create a new text frame on this layer and set one character in the desired font.

The font now appears in the "Find/replace font" list

Colors

1. All colors must be defined as swatches in the Swatch panel.
2. Replace default "Black" and "Paper" colours with custom-created "black" and "white" colours. (This will be done automatically during the export but is good practice).
3. Avoid “illegal” characters in color names
   ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - . / : ; < > ? @ [ \ ] ^ ` { } ~
4. Spot colours are not supported. Only CMYK and RGB colours are.
5. For print templates, all colours must be defined in CMYK; for graphic templates, RGB is required.
6. Remove any unnecessary colours from the document.

RGB colors used for a graphic template

The headline color has been created from the color picker and no swatch exists.

Create a swatch by clicking the ‘New Swatch’ icon while the text is selected.

The color swatch is now added to the swatch list

Fill and stroke colours

Text elements

Produce Indesign Import supports fill and stroke colors on text frames. Often these text frames will have an inset value (or padding) or rounded corners which are also supported. Collectively these features are called “Text decorators”.

The text frame MUST have either a fill, stroke, text inset and/or rounded corner defined in Indesign and the text decorators must be explicitly enabled in the plugin.

Image elements

Fill and stroke colours on image elements are not supported.

Shape/path elements

Produce Indesign Import supports fill and stroke colors on shapes and paths.

Rounded corners

Text elements

Rounded corners for text elements are supported by Produce Indesign Import but not Fancy, Bevel,
Inverse Rounded or Inset variants. Rounded corners are included in the "Text decorators" feature, which must be enabled in the plugin.

Image elements

Produce Indesign Import does not support rounded corners directly but will achieve this effect by the creating a clipping path that matches the rounded corners.

Any image loaded into the frame will be clipped by the path.

Only rounded corners are supported (not Fancy, Bevel, Inverse Rounded or Inset).

The corner radius must not be larger than half the width or height of the frame.

If an image has a clipping path set, this will take precedence over the rounded corners. Set the clipping path option to “None” to ensure the rounded corners path will be used.

Check if a clipping path has been set on the image frame.

Set the clipping path type to "None" to ensure the rounded corner can be used in Produce.

Shape elements

Produce Indesign Import supports rounded corners on Rectangle and square shapes. These are set in the “Corner Options” menu.

If any corner radius is larger than half the width or height of the Rectangle, an error will be generated by the plug-in when exporting.

Ensure that the corner radius is less than or equal to half the height or width, whichever is the greater.

In the example below, a corner radius of 40px or less is acceptable.

Use the "Corner Options" menu.

In this case, each corner has a different radius.

The rectangle properties give the height and width.

QR codes

Web URL and Business Card QR codes generated in Indesign will be imported to Produce.

The URL will be editable in Produce.

Web URL QR code generated by Indesign. 

Web URL QR code - editable in Produce

If a color is assigned to the QR code, this will be retained. The QR code must have a background color.
If no background color is set, a white background will be created.

Groups

Grouped items in Indesign will be imported as a group in Produce. Only one level of groups is supported elements grouped inside another group will be ungrouped during export.

Two groups on the Panel layer, named “Main elements” and “Footer”

Groups imported into Produce

Using the Indesign Import plugin

How to use the Indesign Import plugin: Produce - Using the Indesign Import Plugin