How print on demand business can support the needs of personalized marketing

The urge for innovative marketing has resulted in the use of personalized products in marketing. It gives a shot in the arm to marketers for creating an instant emotional connection with the targeted audience of customers. Companies that believe in the power of marketing personalization would be ready to buy personalized mugs Canada for a brand promotion that can boost their marketing efforts by building a long-lasting relationship with customers. Personalization has completely changed the face of marketing as it leads to enhanced customer experience that benefits businesses in the long run. 

The idea of personalized marketing stems from interacting with customers at a personal level that creates better understanding and bonding. It comprises communicating with customers in some non-conventional ways like gifting them some items like coffee mugs printed with the company logo or some brand message that resonates with customers and brings them closer to the brand. The approach is radically different from traditional marketing that usually invests a lot and casts a wide net to gain a few customers. The vast spending on advertisements by using billboards, mailings, cold calls, and more often lack relevance as the focus is on the quantity of messages.  On the other hand, personalized marketing emphasizes delivering the most relevant message to the prospects at the least cost.

New business opportunities

The change in the marketing strategies with a growing emphasis on using personalized products for business promotion has led to the opening of new business opportunities for retailers who can supply personalized products with custom printing. Companies keen on personalized marketing can visit the e-commerce stores of some companies that sell white label products and offer various options in custom printing to create unique products useful for business promotion. And this is where the print-on-demand services make their presence felt.

Print on demand is not a new concept

Although there is a lot of buzz nowadays about the print on demand business model, those aware of the printing and publishing business would know that the concept has been as old as the hills. Book publishers adopted the flexible print on demand model long ago to meet the fluctuating demand for books and kept the risks low by minimizing the print runs of each edition. Then, depending on the off-take of the current edition, they would decide the print run size for the next edition. 

Similarly, the online retailer engaged in print on demand business maintains a flexible inventory of white label products ready for printing any chosen design and can cater to a single customer and a few hundred customers based on the demand. 

Complete flexibility lowers the risks and investment

The main attraction of the print on demand business is that it involves low investment as there is no need to maintain a large inventory of the products. The retailer can procure additional items based on the demand, thereby avoiding locking up money in unused inventory. It also lowers the risk of losing money because the retailer will only print the products after the sales happen and the payment is made. The high safety of the business model allows retailers to experiment with different types of products and designs, which increases the chances of growing the business faster. They can quickly switch over to some new product as soon as they discover that some products are not performing as expected.

Hiring the retail infrastructure lowers the cost of start-up.

Setting up an online store does not mean that you must start from scratch like the bigger e-commerce companies. The business model for print on demand clarifies that the retailer’s task is to sell some white label products online with the prime focus on showcasing the products and driving traffic to the store. To fulfill the goal, small businesses and individuals with limited funds can subscribe to some online selling platform like Shopify or Etsy to set up the store and display the products and sell the items.  Having achieved the sales, the retailer passes on the baton to the printing company, a vital cog in the wheel of print on demand business, and does most of the heavy lifting. 

The printing company plays a critical role

The role of the printing company is central to the print on demand business because it prints the products with custom designs and arranges for order fulfillment by packing the products for safe delivery and handling the logistics to ensure timely delivery. Moreover, the printing company maintains a team of artists and designers to offer services in choosing unique designs if the retailer does not have good access to some creative resources.