How to Implement Web-to-Print Ecommerce Solutions For Your Clients

Here’s how print used to work: the client’s product/marketing department developed the brand look, product development and campaign content. They managed the back and forth of design sign-off. Eventually, the approved content arrived at your print shop.

You don’t need us to tell you how much things have changed. First that change was driven by the rise of web to print (or Web2Print or W2P). Then the capability of web to print solutions was transformed by AI.

On the face of it, the rise of web to print eCommerce platforms risks undercutting or entirely bypassing print shops. The reality is that many printers have seized on W2P as a powerful sales opportunity.

What is web to print?

Web to print enables a client to compose the material they want to print online via a website/app ‘store front’. Once the design is complete, the project is printed and dispatched by the printer. 

Web to print eCommerce solutions are suitable for B2B and B2C organisations. Using them, they could, for example, enable a customer to design their own set of template marketing materials so their staff/customer communications are always on brand. Then, as campaigns and communications are required, staff can use the tools to create quick, simple fliers, brochures, business cards, newsletters and more.

Web to print isn’t just suitable for marketing collateral. From promotional merchandise to garment design, with the right setup, your print business can deliver web to print solutions across a wide range of applications.

Benefits of web to print solutions for clients and printers

For printers

Automate the tedious, repetitive and time consuming: Because clients design and layout their own print projects, you can devote more time to responding to specialist or niche client queries

Streamline order fulfilment: Because the client effectively leads the process, and with payments managed by a third party provider, your involvement in every project is limited. That enables you to cover more ground and complete more work with fewer demands on your time.

Enables every printer to work on projects anywhere: As a web to print solutions provider, your catchment area is the globe. You aren’t limited to print clients within a few miles of your physical base.

Improve margin while remaining competitive: The improved process efficiency of less printer involvement and more automation means you can afford to keep costs competitive while protecting your margins.  

For clients

Simplicity and control: It’s not just the creative that stays in the client’s control when they choose web to print with you. It’s management of everything from budgeting to brand.  

Huge customisation options: Most web to print platforms offer a huge range of customisable templates that make the design process quick and simple while still giving clients flexibility to change colours, fonts, logos and more.

Then, bespoke design tools enable them to customise things further to create brand-specific products or marketing collateral.

Increasingly, that bespoke design capability is achievable even without an in-house design team, because as more platforms incorporate AI, it’s never been easier to achieve impressive results without a background in graphic design.

Brand consistency: Brand management is always a challenge for organisations. Either they need to invest in a team that can ensure branding remains consistent. Or they need to accept that not everything they publish will be entirely on brand. But with web to print solutions, clients can set up templates that ensure everything they print with you is consistent. 

Cost savings: One of the key advantages in running a web to print eCommerce business is that you can drive more business without a corresponding increase in costs. That should enable you to pass on cost savings to customers, a big incentive to keep choosing you.

How to set up a web to print business

We’re assuming you already run a print shop and that you’ll already have a website. To turn your print business into a web-to-print business you’ll need to integrate a print on demand platform with your existing website.

1.     As long as your website wasn’t built in the dark ages and was created on a widely used platform (WordPress, Woo Commerce, Shopify etc), there shouldn’t be any technical issue with adding a web to print solution. 
2.     Choose a platform tailored to your niche. Not every platform is equally as suited to every type of print. Some are great for garments. Others are better suited to large format print banners, posters or direct mail. Choosing a platform with a track record in your print specialism will save you lots of hassle, because the design tools and customisation options will be tailored to the product. That means you’ll spend less time handling customer queries. 
3.     Choose a platform that lets you manage the printing. Some print to web eCommerce solutions are designed to ensure the client uses the platform host’s own print services. Clearly, you’ll want to manage that part of the process, so choose a provider that gives you that flexibility.

Talk to Soyang

The final step in setting up your web to print ecommerce business? You’ll need a print materials supplier able to offer the breadth and responsiveness to keep up with your growing order book.

For that, talk to Soyang.