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1. How to choose the right platform
First and foremost, you have to pick an ecommerce platform to run your print on demand online store on. If you are aware of the mechanism of POD, you will understand that what you choose will take over the entire process of confirming orders, manufacturing and shipping products. Therefore, the right or wrong platform is the critical factor to your business’s outcome.
Answer the questions below to come up with a list of criteria for your platform:
- Do you want to leverage the platform’s audiences to create your own audience base? Does the platform have large audiences?
- What kinds of goods do you want to sell? Are they available on that platform? And how diverse are the product offers?
- Can you earn high margins from your business on that platform? How much is the base price for products?
- Do you use professional design tools or the provided app from the platform? Does the app have a comprehensible and attractive layout? Is it functional?
Also, make sure to do thorough research until you are confident enough to finally decide on a platform. There are hundreds of websites that offer POD, so take your time and consider carefully.
2. Decide how you want to sell your design
The two most common ways to merchandise your POD products are:
- Sell your products on the platform’s marketplace:
For this option, the platform’s users will be your customers. You will be one of thousands of store owners that advertise their products, just like a market. What you need to do is register and your online store will be up and running. The platform has already established a large marketing network, which you can utilize to get your products to many consumers. It is also more convenient to upload and manage your inventory on only one channel.
While it seems effortless, it comes with a catch. You can use free traffic to your advantage, but there will be tough competition. Your store will not be unique as well and will fall into the enormous pool of other competitors. If your goal is to build brand identity, this method will not be ideal.
- Sell your products on your own store:
You have to create your print on demand websites and choose a POD platform as a partner. This means inventory management, online marketing, and transferring orders to the POD website are your responsibilities. The chosen platform when received an order from your store will then assemble and ship the final product to your client.
As can be seen, there are pros and cons of both selling methods. It is up to you to decide which is more suitable for your business.
