When it comes to charities or organisations that have multiple departments, sites or franchises, printing can become a hassle; each separate department or site is responsible for ordering their own print, so this often leads to changes in the print collateral that may be off-brand or other costly mistakes being made. As communication between all areas of a charity or business is difficult, especially when quick or last-minute changes have to be made, it would be extremely invaluable to your organisation if you had your entire marketing collateral on one single system. This article looks at the main benefits that it can give your charity.
What is an online print system?
As it says in the name, an online print system is just that: an online system that contains all of your print material. Imagine it as your own online print catalogue if you will.
If you’re a charity or organisation that has multiple departments, sites or franchises, you can manage your print from this one private portal where multiple users can then securely log in to access your marketing material.
As the materials are created by you and saved as templates, you can design the artwork with your brand colours, fonts and images, and you can even specify the print specifications and the type of print that’s available to order. This ensures that all of your marketing materials are always consistent in look and feel across departments and sites, and it also allows your whole organisation to make, alter, and re-order their own print quickly and effectively.
The benefits of using an online print system
1) It allows you to create effective print
When multiple departments or franchises are responsible for ordering their own print marketing materials, off-brand changes can be made which can affect their quality and impact. With an online printing system, this isn’t an issue as everyone will be ordering the same pre-made templates from one central marketing portal either choosing to print as they are or amending them to be specific to them (e.g. contain their event details and contact information).
You can even let your supporters and volunteers can gain access to your library of materials so that they can use your templates to create personalised PDFs to download or add to posters, leaflets or banner stands to use in all aspects of their fundraising.
By having one central portal where you have uploaded the resources and templates that reflect your current marketing message, you are ensuring that every office and site is producing marketing materials that are consistently on brand, of a high-quality, and are making the same impact that you want.
2) It saves you time
“Time means money for charities, so wasting it is a big problem.”
With the traditional process for ordering print, materials can take up to 14 days to actually be in your hands as you have to contact the printer, order the job, wait for a proof, request changes, wait for them to be made, sign the job off and then finally wait 5-7 days for them to be produced and delivered. This is not efficient.
Using a web-to-print system, you can cut out the first half of the traditional print process, creating your print and making changes yourself without having to wait. This means that you can place orders and re-order in minutes rather than days, giving you the time to get back to other essential jobs that need to be done.
3) It saves you money
“Charities already have limited resources, so wasting money unnecessarily can be really detrimental.”
Sometimes, a traditional print process can accumulate costs such as the time it takes to order, paying a designer to make your requested changes, and paying for another round of printing if you’ve noticed a mistake on the first batch. With an online print system, these costs are removed.
As well as creating your own print and making your own edits at the time of ordering, a web-to-print system can also save you money by allowing you to harness your group’s buying power, giving you access to discounted products and special deals.
As the whole process is automated, this means you can obtain high-quality print at very cost- effective prices. Plus, it is so fast! You can order at a click of a button, it is that quick.
4) It keeps your brand consistent
“A diluted brand has an impact on how people perceive you”
With so many people ordering print across departments, somewhere along the line the brand can be interpreted in different ways (just think of Chinese whispers!). This can be extremely detrimental to a charity as a change in the brand can change the overall message that your printing materials communicate.
By using a single online print system with print templates, you can ensure that your printing materials are always consistently on brand, on message and look professional. Your Head Office now has greater control over how your brand can be used, making it easier for people to recognise your brand and helping you make more money for your cause.
Could you benefit from an online printing system?
Buying and re-ordering your print via one platform means no admin burdens, no time wasted and no more off-brand collateral or costly mistakes being made. For charities, these are invaluable benefits.
So what do you think? Do you think investing in an online printing system is worth it to ensure that your print is making the impact that you want? Could you do with more time and money?
What we can do for you:
If you want to know more about PrintingFor and whether it can benefit your charity or business, don’t hesitate to get in contact with us and we can give you a free demo of how the system works.
We also have more great news for you!
We are currently offering:
- FREE set up of the system.
- FREE creation of a Branded central portal with additional log in portals.
- And FREE asset uploads so that all of your existing templates are ready to use.
Just get in touch and we’ll help you and your Charity make an impact with your print!
