In order to have a print-on-demand (POD) business, you need to have resources. Canva and Printify are the resources I have chosen to use. And as with anything, there is a learning curve, and there are rules to follow. I'll have to say it is work just like anything else you do to earn money. But POD is very interesting work.
With Canva, you can combine 2 or more designs to create a whole new design. It's against their policy to use a stand-alone design, so you have to use a combination of designs or add text to a design to create something totally new.
Printify collaborates with Shutterstock to use their images for a small fee if you would like. You don't have to, but you can find those images in Printify's design mode. And you don't pay until you sell an item with a Shutterstock image on it. You can also use Printify's design selection and add text to any item. They charge for the t-shirt, Shutterstock image (if used), and shipping all at once. They then send the info to the printer who will print the design and ship the item for you. Your only involvement is designing and selling the item.
Each site requires certain steps, of course, to get through the process. But with practice, all the steps get easier over time. First, you need to know the size of the print area of the item you want to sell. Just select an item on Printify and the print area size will be provided to you. You can then either use stock images on Printify, Shutterstock via Printify, or Canva. Or use other design resources you prefer, making sure to design a size that fits inside the print area. All print designs should be high resolution (around 300 DPIs). You can also generate an image using AI on both sites as well.
Finally, you need a place to sell your products. Printify is extremely Etsy friendly. But they also integrate with other platforms, such as Amazon, TikTok, and Shopify as well. However, that isn't to say you can't use other platforms not found at the integration link. You'll just need to, most likely, create custom orders instead of having the system automated as it is with Etsy and a few other sites. And of course, you can offer personalization, which will require a little more work anyway. So, POD isn't quite as passive as it sounds, but I'm very hopeful it will eventually become a good, steady income.
So, if you have ever wanted a POD business, but don't have time to learn how to make t-shirts, mugs, etc. yourself, and you don't have room to store the supplies even if you did learn how, I think having a print partner like Printify can be very rewarding over time. And overall, the start-up fee is about $200, because Printify does charge you as soon as you make sell. And new Etsy sellers have a pay-out delay for the first 3 months. I'm not sure about the other integrated platforms. I have also read that Etsy is charging a $15 one-time-fee to open an Etsy store now so that only serious sellers will register. With that said, though, just so you know, Canva, Printify, and Etsy allow you to upgrade for monthly fees. Many of the other platforms are strictly monthly fee-based.
There are lots of YouTube video tutorials to help with all the sites I mentioned in this blog post. Is this something you think is worth your time and focus?
Happy printing!
Austin
No comments:
Post a Comment