90 email: news@printmonthly.co.uk September / October 2024 - Issue 350 “The Advanced Storefront allows print providers to manage B2C, B2B, reseller, franchisee, in-store, and supplier dropship orders from a centralised backend,” Patel adds, continuing: “Recently, OnPrintShop’s v11 was recognised with the prestigious Pinnacle Technology Award 2024 by the Printing United Alliance.” What the Customer Expects Also offering advice to those printers seeking improvements with web-to-print is VB Media, which offers a range of solutions from print e-commerce and private storefronts to web-to-print sites and trade e-commerce. Director Wayne Bodimeade says with e-commerce already built in to so much of the way people research and buy products and services today, it is only natural that this has extended into the print industry too, even for purely business-to-business service providers. “Web-to-print functionality has already become an essential part of most large print businesses, to the extent that many customers expect it,” he explains, adding: “While smaller businesses that quote on each print job may not see the value in a web-to-print solution, we believe that having the ability to sell print online is essential for any print business operating today. While not all of your orders may come through your website, having that capability can decrease ‘sales friction’ by making the process easier for your customers.” Bodimeade goes on to say when you consider the efficiency and convenience of purchasing online, it is easy to understand why an online buying option is now expected by many. As such, PSPs need to ensure they are offering the best service possible, and this may mean upgrading their current offering. “When we talk to print businesses, we find that there is something of a perception that web-to-print is only for fixed price products, but even per-quote orders can be processed online and this can really streamline the purchase-to-production process, as well as open up the potential for cross-selling and up-selling during the order process.” “A potential customer may not know, for example, that you have the capability to let them personalise the batch of leaflets they’re about to order or that you offer banners too, but if they order via your website they are far more likely to find out.” While Bodimeade acknowledges that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ in web-toprint, versatility is vital. He explains that the different types of products print providers sell are hugely diverse, so unless you are only selling a handful of products, your system needs to offer you flexibility to cater for not just different variants of products but also attribute-based products. “Depending on the extent of attribute customisation you want to make available to customers and the extent to which this affects cost, it may also be beneficial to have an option to offer customers an online calculator for more bespoke products,”says Bodimeade, adding: “It is also a good idea to try more cost-effective solutions first before investing heavily in a solution that you’re not absolutely certain will work for your business. In addition, many suppliers now have APIs that enable you to seamlessly increase your offering with very little risk or upfront investment.” As to how VB Media can support PSPs, Bodimeade says the company is able to offer e-commerce websites that enable printers to provide web-to-print services to their own customers. These websites, he continues, are flexible enough to operate as stand-alone e-commerce sites or private storefronts, allowing many printers to ‘dip their toe’ into web-to-print waters without needing to wade into large investments. “We also offer integration with PitchPrint, which makes it possible for VB Media clients to allow their customers to customise designs online, create products using pre-built templates, and more.” From speaking to experts in this field, it seems the message is rather clear: ignore web-to-print at your peril. Furthermore, for those that already have a system in place, and have done for a number of years, it may be a good time to take a look at the options out there that will allow you to offer an improved service to your customers. Technology in this area is constantly evolving and it is important you keep track of these developments to ensure you can make use of the latest advancements with your own web-to-print offering. Web-to-print functionality has already become an essential part of most large print businesses, to the extent that many customers expect it ▲VB Media says versatility is vital for web-to-print WEB-TO-PRINT
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