{"id":2606,"date":"2014-04-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-04-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/article\/three-things-look-web-to-print-supplier\/"},"modified":"2015-07-30T10:54:26","modified_gmt":"2015-07-30T10:54:26","slug":"three-things-look-web-to-print-supplier","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/article\/three-things-look-web-to-print-supplier\/","title":{"rendered":"E-commerce Made Easy"},"content":{"rendered":"

The digital print market is expected to grow from $131.5 billion in 2013 to $187.5 billion in 2018, according to dazeinfo.com<\/a>. That’s an annual growth of 7.8 percent, and if U.S. e-commerce keeps trending the way it has—Internet analytics company comScore reported 15 consecutive quarters of positive year-over-year growth for retail e-commerce sales as of Q2 2013—it’s not a stretch to say web-to-print will be at the center of it.<\/p>\n

“For us, business has continued to increase every year,” said Dan Doron, president of Zoo Printing Inc., Bell, Calif. “The industry in general seems to be both growing and consolidating. There are fewer printers and more print brokers than ever before, as print sellers find it more cost-effective to outsource their work and focus on sales.”<\/p>\n

Zarik Megerdichian, CEO of Glendale, California-based 4over Inc.<\/a>, agreed. “This segment of the print industry is reaping the growth rewards of the shift from traditional legacy printers to the ease, speed and quality of standardized print,” he said. “It’s expensive for any printer to invest hard-earned capital in fixed-assets every year in order to keep up with market expectations for speed and quality at competitive rates.”<\/p>\n

In other words, if you’re not already selling online print solutions, now’s the time to start. Here are three things to consider when seeking out a web-to-print supplier.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Product Selection<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

A survey by Continuum, a business consulting group, found that 43 percent of online shoppers do so because it’s convenient, while 29 percent do so because it’s easier to find what they need. Essentially, these numbers tell us what we already know—one of online shopping’s biggest draws is the sheer number of products, all easy to locate and order.<\/span><\/p>\n

Online printers know this, and as such, they’ve made product-line expansion a top priority. “Since we are a trade printer, our focus is to provide a complete line of popular products and offer quick custom estimates if our clients need something unique,” said Doron. “If there is a large demand for any product, we add it to our line as fast as possible.”<\/span><\/p>\n

When demand increased for large format products, for instance, Zoo Printing added VUTEk roll and flatbed presses at each of its locations, and Doron mentioned plans for more product additions. “Looking ahead, we are launching promotional products in our second quarter this year and plan to expand our line of promotional products rapidly through the end of the year,” he explained. “We project to be a top promo seller within three to five years, because of the demand from our large client-base.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Megerdichian noted that 4over offers offset, digital and large-format print, with products ranging from business cards and postcards to flyers and banners. The company has also paid special attention to the short-run paperboard packaging market, augmenting its existing product selection with spot UV and Akuafoil finishes and other upgrades. “We’ve chosen an extraordinarily high brightness of paper, so when used in retail, the customer’s design really pops,” he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Turnaround Time<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, product selection doesn’t matter much if customers don’t receive their orders on time, leading most online printers to seek continual improvements in turnarounds. In an era where two-day shipping is becoming the standard, spurred by industry giants like Amazon, this is especially important. “Production turnaround times continue to get faster and faster due to technological improvements like inline UV paired with automation and an intelligent workflow,” Doron explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

“For example, we offer most of our popular products with a one- to two-day turnaround time at regular price, and an option for next-day turnaround,” he continued. “We are also working on offering same-day turnaround in our second quarter this year. Turnarounds this fast were impossible a few years ago. These innovations make it easier for print resellers to exceed their customers’ expectations.”<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Mobile Support<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

A 2014 Nielsen study found that 87 percent of U.S. mobile-device owners use their smartphone or tablet to shop online, up from 79 percent in 2012. As smartphones and tablet use continues its steady rise, it’s made mobile support a necessity for online printers. Megerdichian explained how 4over is keeping pace. “Specifically, our new packaging website was built using responsive design so that users on mobile devices can access and use the site,” he said. “We’re deploying responsive design like this across all user-experiences in 2014.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“In more general terms, mobile and online technologies are simplifying the demand for instant access to information and relevant content,” he added. “At 4over, we deliver information to our customers, wherever they happen to be, through multiple channels—online, through our mobile app, online chat, e-mail, phone, social media, etc.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Doron described Zoo Printing’s mobile approach. “We are launching a new app in April 2014 that provides information and features for our clients: order tracking, a support ticket system, account information, coupons and specials, and much more,” he said. “This is designed to keep our clients updated while they are on the go. A premium version of the app will launch a month later that includes a live pricing calculator with a custom markup and the option to place orders directly from the app, to help our clients sell on the go.” <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The digital print market is expected to grow from $131.5 billion in 2013 to $187.5 billion in 2018, according to dazeinfo.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":223,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","coauthors":[29499],"class_list":["post-2606","article","type-article","status-publish","hentry","category-web-to-print","tag-digital-print-market","tag-industry-review","tag-information","tag-internet-analytics-company","tag-mobile-support","tag-online","tag-online-print-solutions","tag-online-printers","tag-popular-products","tag-print","tag-printer","tag-product","tag-product-selection","tag-promotional-products","tag-responsive-design","tag-trade-printer","tag-traditional-legacy-printers","tag-turnaround","tag-web-to-print-supplier","company-4over-inc","company-zoo-printing","person-dan-doron","person-zarik-megerdichian","location-bell-calif","location-glendale-california","location-u-s"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/2606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/223"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/network.napco.com\/print-and-promo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=2606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}