Web-to-print order forms and online ordering

Web-to-print is commercial printing using web sites. A customer orders on your website instead of calling or visiting, and the order ends up in your job list. That's the whole idea. The details are where products differ.¹

Two kinds of online ordering

People use the term for different things, so ask which one a maker means.

• A simple order form. The customer picks a product, size, quantity and finishing, and sends it. You get a request.
• A storefront with templates. The customer edits a design in the browser. One reference says sites like this often include a library of templates for items such as postcards, posters and flyers.¹

A small shop may only need the first. The second takes more setup and more testing.

What the customer can upload

It's frequently possible for clients to upload their own content for automated print production.¹ That raises questions about files:

• Which file types are accepted?
• Is there a size limit?
• Does the system check the file before the order is placed? A pre-flight check scans the file for errors using the printer's own profile.²
• What happens if the file fails?

A form that takes any file leaves you to find the problem later, often after the customer thinks the order is done.

Business accounts and approvals

Some web-to-print sites offer an approval step so that managers can approve print requests by their employees.¹ If you serve companies with several staff ordering, ask whether the software supports that, along with saved templates for each customer.

From order to job

This is the part that matters most. An order can come from a customer request or be created inside the organisation.³ The software should make no distinction after that point. Both are jobs.

Ask these questions about the handover:

• Does an online order create a job automatically, or sit in an inbox for someone to convert?
• Are the customer's choices copied into the job's fields, or pasted into a note?
• Does the system check the order against your price list, or does it trust the form?
• Is the customer told that the order was received?

Outside orders are often reviewed and scheduled before work starts.³ You may want a human to review each online order before it goes to production. Check that you can turn the automatic path on or off.

The new job then follows the same path as a counter job. See job tickets and production stages.

Payment

Online ordering often involves taking payment. Payment rules, card fees and consumer law differ by country. Ask the maker which payment services it connects to. Then check what applies to you with your own consumer regulator, such as the ACCC in Australia, the FTC in the United States or the CMA in the UK.

Cost and fit for a small shop

Cost can be a hurdle. One reference says most proprietary web-to-print software developed for the purpose remains prohibitively expensive for small and mid-sized print houses.¹ That description may be dated, since pricing changes. Check each maker's own pricing page, and note the date and currency you saw.

The same reference points to small, simplified options that handle online designing, proofing, quotes, invoicing and order management for a small or medium print shop.¹ Whether a product fits is a matter of reading its documentation against your list.

Before you commit

• Try to place a test order from a phone as a customer would
• Confirm what the customer sees after submitting
• Ask what happens when your price changes
• Ask whether you can export all orders and customer details