Impressions - May 2021 - 16

that helps them with free marketing and getting their brand out
there, " he says.
These days, buyers expect an easy online-ordering process and fast
delivery, like the " Amazon experience. " That means decorators are
tweaking their operations to offer a print-on-demand service that gets
short-run orders out the door almost instantly. During COVID-19,
many shops started sending orders directly to individual buyers, and
that fulfillment-partner role isn't likely to change.
" You need to get really good at e-commerce; inventory; bagging and
tagging; and shipping to different locations, since all this gives you a
bigger margin, " says Bruce Ackerman, founder of Printavo. " We're
seeing 30%-40% of shops doing this, so it's a good sales weapon to
have right now. Even when in-person events happen again, online
stores will still have their place in your sales services since people are
used to ordering this way. "

Closing the Online-Store Gap

Of course, webstores play a central role in facilitating e-commerce
in the wholesale print space. " Webstores and e-commerce align with
what consumers expect, need and want, " Hunt says. " Online ordering
is the simplest, fastest way to purchase products. Making it easier
for consumers to do business with you removes costly friction and
frustration. "
In 2020, lots of decorators started offering fundraising webstores
for existing and new customers. These stores are built and maintained
- and orders are fulfilled - by decorators, who send the customers
a cut of the profits. Generally, you always should pitch and present
the value of online stores to all your customers, regardless of whether
they do fundraising.
Hunt sees decorators struggling with the same technology-adoption challenges. " The implementation gap is the one I see most, where
shop owners just don't carry out their strategy, " he says. " It's hard to

implement and fully execute. "
The second hurdle Hunt sees is that decorators don't assign people
with the right expertise to drive online-store initiatives. " You need
the right people in place to make this a reality, " he says.
Of course, if you partner with an industry-specific, online-store
vendor, such as InkSoft, Printavo, OrderMyGear, DecoNetwork or
Spirit Sale, you'll know what you need to hit your goal. The InkSoft
and Printavo online-store tools also connect to apparel suppliers'
real-time inventory.
" A good technology provider has well-developed resources and
tools to ensure their shop customers can be successful, " Hunt says.
If you're new to running customer stores, Ackerman recommends
creating one for a customer with good engagement via social media
or an email list. Make it simple, with three products: lower-end (tote
for $15), mid-range (T-shirt for $20) and higher-end (hoodie for
$25). " As you go, correct every pain point or bottleneck in the process, " he says. " You have nowhere to go but up. We're seeing shops
do $1 million a year just from [webstores]. "
Ackerman points out that some shops charge $100-$200 to set up
a store or ask for a monthly maintenance fee. " You can use year-round
stores to push through your slower seasons, " he says. " Some shops
change products and designs from season to season. Others offer
limited-run - or cart-open, cart-close - offers to increase FOMO. "

The ERP Advantage

Integrating shopping carts and digital storefronts with shopmanagement software automates and streamlines the transmission of
quotes, orders and purchase orders between suppliers and the software with real-time prices and inventory information, " says Dana
Drinnin, global strategic account manager at Aptean, which offers
Impress enterprise resource planning (ERP) software.
She says nearly 60% of the time she talks to shops, they're struggling

Communication between
an ERP solution and e-commerce
platform gives a shop owner
real-time inventory visibility to
eliminate order delays.
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