You run your e-commerce business based on the Print on Demand business model. It seems like you’re doing everything right, but you still do not achieve the expected sales results. Take a look at our list of the most common mistakes in the industry and check if you’re not making one of them!
Print on demand: mistake #1:
You pay too little attention to research the print on demand market.
As in any other business – thorough market research is essential. You work in the fashion industry. It’s not runway fashion, but there are also some seasonal trends in Print on Demand and graphic design. You should know them so as not to lag behind the competition. You should know what colors, fonts, and types of graphics are currently the most popular. Be aware, of what types of products your competition offers. Perhaps thanks to the analysis you will be able to find a niche – an idea for a product that is scarce on the market.
If you see that a certain type of product is gaining popularity, and it is not in the offer of your Print on Demand service provider like Snapwear – you can always ask for a trending product to be added to the catalog. It is also worth knowing the prices that your competitors are offering. Don’t try to be the cheapest and don’t outsell your prices. It’s best to be somewhere in the middle to maintain credibility, make a profit and stay competitive.
Without this work – you are operating in the dark. You are relying on your own beliefs, not facts. You need to feel the pulse of the market and synchronize your actions with it. Otherwise, it will be much harder for you to conquer the print-on-demand market.
Print on demand: mistake #2:
You are not using the full potential of social media
We have already written about the role of social media in this article. A few basic rules that you should follow when running social media of your online store with print on demand are:
1. Be regular and consistent
Did you know that your unpromoted posts only reach about 10% of your page followers? Facebook and Instagram algorithms are brutal. To increase the organic reach of your posts, you need to conduct your activities regularly, but you can’t neglect quality. It’s better to add one thoughtful post per day than several that do not represent any value to your audience. It is worth to plan your communication strategy in advance. Create a post template that will increase your recognition while scrolling, and use one language of communication consistently. That will help you to build your brand identity, which is of great importance in marketing.
2. Find your target audience
To run profiles on all popular social media, you would need a team that would only have this one job. If you don’t have such tool, you should focus on the media that are most popular among your target group. If you sell print-on-demand products aimed at young people – a profile on Snapchat, Tik Tok and Instagram will probably be a better idea than on Facebook. If you create graphics for musicians – you should remember the existence of MySpace. Creative people – architects, and designers – most often use Pinterest. The possibilities are many, so take the time to find out which medium works best for your niche.
3. Publish engaging content – not just ads
You don’t even know how many advertisements reach your eyes every day. But how many of them reach your consciousness? Definitely less. The human brain has developed a defense mechanism against the excessive amount of advertising stimuli that attack it every day. This is called ‘banner blindness’. If your posts are just ads, you won’t be able to generate much interest from the community. To maintain interest – you need to create posts that bring more value. Show how you create your graphics, present the background of your work, introduce your team – make a story. These types of posts get a lot more attention and will help you to stand out.
4. Build a community
It’s not enough to put a post on the wall and forget about it. You should encourage your fans to interact, and comment. Create polls, and contests, take part in discussions, respond to every comment, and be an active participant in thematic groups. It sounds like a lot of work, but if you manage to build an engaged community around your brand – you will certainly notice the effects on your sales bars.
Print on demand: mistake #3:
You don’t follow the designing guidelines
We hope you already know it well, but we will repeat it every chance we get. You must use the appropriate color modes, sizes, and resolutions of graphics to achieve the intended print result. Each product has different graphics requirements. If you are not sure how to prepare a given graphic – ask!
Remember that if the file resolution is too low, the printout will not be sharp enough. Colors on the monitor screen are displayed in RGB mode, while printouts are created in the CMYK palette. It is worth remembering when designing so that the finished products look exactly as you plan. If you use gradient transparency, ask if your Print on Demand provider has access to technology that can reproduce such an effect. At Snapwear, we use advanced Kornit Digital printing technology, which will provide great opportunities in the field of almost photographic reproduction of graphics. However, if the graphics are more advanced – it is worth making sure that we have the technological capabilities to reproduce it on the selected product before you add it to the store.
Print on demand: mistake #4
You don’t know what you offer
A good practice is to order samples of each product offered in your e-commerce store. Of course, this involves additional costs, but treat it as an investment in your Print on Demand business. Thanks to this, you will know the quality of the product and graphics that will reach your client. It may turn out that the graphics have been prepared in poor quality or the material is different than you thought. Compare the quality of different models of the products and choose the one you would like to use or wear yourself. Adjust the quality to the expectations of your niche. You must know what you’re selling. After all, you sign it with your brand name.
Print on demand: mistake #5
You use the duplicate content
Do you copy product descriptions from the manufacturer’s website? This is a huge mistake that has a very negative impact on the position of your Print on Demand store in search results. Google recognizes duplicate content and rewards those sellers who put effort into creating their own original descriptions.
While many stores offer the same products for a similar price, you need to find your way to stand out. Extensive descriptions will help you with this, in which you will include not only technical information about a given product but also focus on its intangible features, application, and the so-called language of benefits. Remember to use keywords that will help Google to recognize, what you are writing about. However, your description should be not only Google-friendly but also nice and easy to read for your customers. Keep this balance to achieve the desired effects.
Print on demand: mistake #6
You don’t have a professional e-commerce platform
These days, people are used to certain shopping standards and if your store does not meet them, a huge number of people will run away from you to the competition. Your store’s website must be clear and have intuitive navigation. It must display well on both desktop and mobile devices. You should have access to secure, fast payments that don’t require you to enter your card details. It is also worth enabling the option of shopping without registration because many people resign from the purchase at the stage when they are forced to create an account. To build your mailing list, you should encourage customers to create an account by offering them special offers and discounts – not forcing them to do so. Attractive, professional, modern website design also significantly affects your sales results. Remember that you don’t have to be a programmer to create a good online store. You have many platforms at your disposal, such as Shopify, with which it is extremely easy to build a professional sales platform with all important functionalities.
Follow our tips and be a successful print on demand entrepreneur. Do you have any questions? Write to us at support@snapwear.pro and don’t be afraid to ask for any help with your store.
