Even for traditional print products such as business cards, flyers or posters, your customers now expect to be able to quickly place orders online. Web to print eCommerce websites combine the convenience of online ordering with the flexibility of custom printing to allow print businesses to efficiently sell custom print products.
A full web to print solution (such as ours) streamlines the whole ordering process from design to delivery. Allowing print businesses to offer a user friendly experience that builds customer loyalty.
The aim of this article is to give you an initial roadmap to launching your own eCommerce website specifically built to sell print products.
Define your web to print goals
Before you even begin to think technically you should establish what you’re looking to achieve. Your goals should be part of every decision – from the products you want to sell through to how you will market your business.
1. Target Audience
Who is your web to print offering going to target? Are you wanting to attract local small businesses or large event organisers? This step will assist in creating your branding and your product catalogue.
Consider the following questions:
- What industries or types of customer will benefit most from your services?
- Are your customers likely to order in bulk, or will they require smaller, more frequent orders?
- How tech-savvy is your audience? Will they need a simple, intuitive design interface?
2. Determine your product range
Once you have a good idea of who your target audience is, you should think about the types of products they’ll want. A print eCommerce website could include a wide range of customisable products such as:
Business essentials – business cards, letterheads and envelopes
Marketing materials – flyers, brochures and posters
Large format – Banners, signage and exhibition graphics
Promo items – pens, calendars and notepads
A sensible approach could be to start out with a core product selection that allows you to get started, and ensure the offering is on point from content, imagery and pricing. Then you can expand as you gather data on which type of products are performing best.
3. Set some objectives
What do you actually want to achieve? Your goals could include improving customer experience, increasing sales and automating your own business operations. These objectives will keep you focused and assist in choosing what are the right features for your website.
4. Evaluate your competitors
Take a look at what other businesses in your area are doing. What products and services do they offer? How do they present their websites?
Understanding your marketplace can help you identify gaps in the market and position your business more effectively.
Develop a product catalogue
Your product catalogue is central to any web-to-print ecommerce website. It should not only showcase the print products you offer, but also assist customers in finding what they need. An effective product catalogue plays a big role in converting potential customers into confirmed orders.
It’s important to organise your products in a way that makes sense. Creating a structure to your catalogue that users can understand will ensure they can easily navigate around it. If you serve specific industries you could also consider creating tailored categories that will present relevant products upfront.
Each product listing should provide detailed information, helping customers make informed choices. This includes specifying dimensions, materials, finishes, and other relevant details. Alongside these, pricing must be clearly laid out. Customers should understand not only the base cost of each item but also how additional features, like premium finishes or bulk orders, may affect the final price.
Customisation is a critical feature of web-to-print services. Many users will expect to be able to upload their own designs, modify templates, or tweak elements such as text, colours, and layouts. High-quality images of your products, including close-ups of material finishes or special effects like embossing, help customers better understand what they’re buying.
A strong product catalogue also opens opportunities for cross-selling and upselling. For instance, customers purchasing business cards may also be encouraged to order letterheads or envelopes, while those ordering event banners might be interested in related products like signs or posters.
Configure integrations with payment and shipping providers
Once your initial website is setup with your product catalogue the next step is to make your ordering process as smooth as possible with a range of integrations.
Payment Options
Offering online payment is essential now a days. Ensuring that payments can be processed online in a secure environment builds trust and customer loyalty. There are a range of payment gateways available with each providing differing options and fees, it’s important to choose the right one for your business.
Shipping Configuration
Once an order is paid for, the speed of delivery is crucial to providing a positive customer experience.
At this stage its worth considering the different shipping options you wish to provide. A standard shipping service is a must but you may always want to provide an express delivery service or local pickup / click and collect style alternative.
Depending on the print products your producing, many shipping providers will charge based on the size and weight. So it’s vital your integration reflects the latest pricing. You may also want to offer flat rate shipping (same cost for any order) or even free delivery to encourage larger orders.
Fulfilment Process
Depending on the product and your in-house print infrastructure you will be either fulfilling the order in house, or outsourcing to larger trade printers. Either way you want your workflows to operate efficiently, from receiving artwork through to packaging and fulfilment.
Outsourcing fulfilment can reduce overhead costs and simplify operations, especially for new or expanding businesses. It also allows you to focus more on providing great customer service and targeted marketing.
Web to print from Flex4
With over 15 years of experience, helping print businesses streamline and automate their processes and creating seamless customer experiences, we are the experts to come to for Web to Print solutions. We create bespoke, scalable packages to suit any business so talk to us today and find a solution that suits yours.