5 reasons why you should not put off the implementation of Web to Print system

Customer service via the Internet is an unavoidable part of the printing industry development.

In this article, we will concentrate on the reasons that make you put off the decision to implement the Web to Print system for later.

You are on the phone with customers constantly, we write and write back dozens of e-mails, and yet somehow you see contracts fleeing, customers moving their business to competition, and it’s all because you do not have time for them and the only thing better you can offer is the lower price. Clearly, you need new channels of communication, web to print/e-commerce system that is programmed to support customers in your printing company. Only then you can find the time to build business strategy and relationships with your customers.

The time has come, and here it is! You got it! Web to print with built-in customer relationship solution. You can now automate and standardize many processes in your printing house, and then focus mostly on the use of key and custom processes. Unfortunately, there is a problem. Permanent lack of time discourages you to begin the implementation of web to print software. After all, this time-consuming commitment will decrease the quality of your current customers' service and you do not have too many customers yet.

1. Time

This brings us to the conclusion that the first element for which we should implement a Web to Print system for is TIME. We present the time in 3 forms:

• Time “missing”, which today we do not have,
• Time “dedicated,” which is necessary to implement the system,
• Time “released”, which we gain when the system starts working.

Online customer service system integrated withe e-commerce is an investment in time-saving. Indeed, the very process of the system implementation may require extra effort from you, but in the future, web to print system will return this time and more. Web to print system through a number of features helps your printing company to manage sales which reduces the time of each order. This translates into time-saving that you can later spend to service the orders. We know numerous examples of printing houses, which have no customer service systems and as a result, their orders have 3 key problems that we call “time eaters”:

1. The inability to evaluate orders quicky and to present the offer.
2. Lack of ability of fast information consolidation (emails) regarding final order content and production monitoring.
3. The inability to effectively manage existing customer segments, one-time and lost.

Investing time in the implementation process of the Web to Print system is, therefore, an investment in the future time-saving. Web to print system takes over most of the operational activities so that the owner of a printing house can have time to do what is really important for their business – strategic activities.

2. Can you afford it today?

According to the experience that we gained working with companies from the printing industry, we recommend that you divide your customers into at least 4 segments:

1. The largest (highest turnover),
2. The most expensive (highest markup),
3. The most faithful (your friends) and
4. Infidels (one-time and lost customers).

The implementation of all customer segments requires different inputs of your commitment and money (on marketing). In shortest time possible you must create a situation in which the marketing and maintenance of the system costs do not exceed 10% of the generated turnover. Combining it with the “released” time you get to increase your printing house to a higher level of effectiveness. This will help to raise the profits of your company. If you approach the matter comprehensively and optimally, plan the system implementation well, and develop an appropriate marketing campaign, it is an investment that will pay for itself very quickly. Therefore, a better question is not how much web to print system will cost, but how much will you lose by operating without it?

3. Internet-infected generation comes to power.

Many times we pointed out that the generation of 30 year olds, which begins to take over the key positions in business world can not imagine any other communication with service providers than via internet and a smartphone. You must decide whether you want to build your business based on this new generation or not.

4. Competition is building their experience now.

Already we can see that large online printshops were formed recently and that they effectively occupied the e-commerce segment of cheap and highly standardized products. At Key2Print we want to show you new opportunities and introduce you to the world of e-business, where the added value of your services will allow you to build the value of your printing business and easily control the ratio of price to quality.

5. The inevitable is inevitable.

As it usually goes in case of new technologies, at the beginning no one wants it and everyone thinks that they will manage without them. The same case was with digital print. At the beginning of the century, the biggest authorities didn’t predict for it to go up, especially in the areas of professional printing occupied mainly by offset printing technology. But it did happen! The printing fair is now dominated by digital technologies.The same story will repeat itself in the case of web 2 print. There is only one question – how long you will be stuck in the conviction that it does not concern you?

As a summary of this post I would like to encourage you to ask yourself one question:

What consequences will the decision not to implement the system have?

We have got two summarizing answers for you:

First: You will have even less time.

Second: Your customers will go where they can order faster and with their laptops or smartphones.