A professional web to print software suite has many of the same tools as desktop publishing software, with the added capabilities for print businesses to fill customer orders through an online interface. This type of software allows customers to upload artwork or photos they want to use, design their own templates and specify the print materials they want to order. Web to print software is beneficial to both professional printers and their customers due to its efficiency, ease of use, collaboration possibilities and lower production costs to be passed on to customers.
Streamlined work-flow with web to print software
With a few menu selections, a web to print program can be set to render business cards, brochures, flyers, newsletters, calendars and many other print products. Setting up these jobs is less time-consuming for print business employees than working with the prepress equipment of yesteryear. Changing the font type or size also used to be a cumbersome process when working with typesetting equipment, but these changes now take only a few mouse clicks with a web to print software suite. From an economic standpoint, this software has the potential to strengthen a print business by allowing employees to accomplish much more in a shorter time frame.
Taking a print business to the web
Web to print software paired with an interactive website can open up a potentially global audience for a local print shop. Customers from any town or city can create accounts with this site and order custom print materials to be shipped out after completion. Along with upload pages for images and template pages for fonts and layouts, many web to print software suites include previews of an order for a customer’s final approval before making payments. On the print business owner’s end, some web to print programs also act as convenient databases for keeping track of customer contact information, past orders and designs used.
Considerations for using web to print software
One of the most important features of a good web to print software suite is user friendliness on customers’ ends. Some print shop clients come from non-technical backgrounds and need to be able to quickly find the tools and menus they want to use for their custom print orders. Another essential component is an easy-to-navigate online shopping cart and payment system for each order.
A common concern for print shop owners looking for web to print software is integration with their existing websites. A number of print businesses start out with basic sites showcasing past work, listing the business location and providing contact information. Modern web to print systems now fit seamlessly with many different website platforms, ensuring a print shop will not lose existing traffic or search engine rankings.
Advantages for print shops
Some print business owners want to expand their businesses but may find opening a second brick-and-mortar location impractical. Web to print software provides an excellent ecommerce alternative by providing a design portal for online customers in any possible geographic locations. Compared to the costs of a second commercial location, the expense of the software and website integration are relatively small and earned back fairly quickly with the increased customer orders. With top quality work, online customers are normally happy to pay the shipping costs for their print orders.
Web to print software is designed to improve print shops’ efficiency and provide a user-friendly online store for a potentially global customer base. Adding this technology is a viable and affordable choice for owners who want to expand their print businesses and streamline their employees’ daily work-flow.