Print On Demand Services
Not sure how many here are using these services such as Cafepress and Zazzle to sell products, but I figured I'd give a heads up to those who are. I'm getting ready to move my shop over to Spreadshirt for the following reasons:
1. Better marketing. Spreadshirt, in comparison to Zazzle and Cafepress, is more likely to get your product on the front page. Whether this is due to a better rotation of new items or to the fact that Spreadshirt isn't as well-known as the other two, I have no idea. What I do know is that I'm seeing more newly created products from basic sellers hit the front page at Spreadshirt than I am at the other 2 companies. Zazzle and Cafepress both tend to focus on featured sellers and pre-paying premium members than they do on the newer shops and those that pay as they go.
2. Cost to customers. The base price of the most basic t-shirt on Cafepress is $18.99, and that shirt comes in exactly one color: white. Unfortunately (for them) we like to place our designs on other colors as well. The base price of a basic t-shirt at Spreadshirt is $12.90, and it comes in around 20 different colors. Now, aside from the color issue, if you look at the cost you can see why we're switching. At $18.99, if we add a $5 markup to the product for our design, the customer is going to be paying $23.99 plus s&h charges at Cafepress. The same $5 markup at Spreadshirt is going to end up being cheaper for the customer than the Cafepress price, even after you figure in s&h.
3. The store builder. Spreadshirt's store builder is somewhere between Cafepress and Zazzle as far as ease of use and functionality. Cafepress is clunky at best, and for the price they charge they really should be displaying products in a more appealing way. Zazzle has a much better display than either of the other two, since they actually show the shirts on a model, but their design process is a bloody nightmare to deal with. Spreadshirt is somewhere in between; no model displays, but several views of the shirt and an easier to use interface than Zazzle, with a more functional design process than Cafepress.
Of course, there are downsides. Even if you promote your store and make a lot of sales on Spreadshirt, you're not going to be getting any quick money. Spreadshirt only pays quarterly, unless you crack the $100 mark in revenue, in which case you can request an early payout. Also, Spreadshirt doesn't have the amount of product selection that the other two have. They are mainly t-shirts, with a few accessories such as laptop sleeves and coffee mugs thrown in, while Zazzle and CP have a much wider range of products. Then again, I don't know many people that want to pay $17 for a coffee mug (by the time you add in s&h).
Again, just thought I'd give the rest of the Warriors the results of my research, since I've seen a few threads about POD services here. I'll probably leave the products that we've already created on Cafepress and Zazzle, just to see if they get any sales, but I'll be making the Spreadshirt store my main focus in the future.
1. Better marketing. Spreadshirt, in comparison to Zazzle and Cafepress, is more likely to get your product on the front page. Whether this is due to a better rotation of new items or to the fact that Spreadshirt isn't as well-known as the other two, I have no idea. What I do know is that I'm seeing more newly created products from basic sellers hit the front page at Spreadshirt than I am at the other 2 companies. Zazzle and Cafepress both tend to focus on featured sellers and pre-paying premium members than they do on the newer shops and those that pay as they go.
2. Cost to customers. The base price of the most basic t-shirt on Cafepress is $18.99, and that shirt comes in exactly one color: white. Unfortunately (for them) we like to place our designs on other colors as well. The base price of a basic t-shirt at Spreadshirt is $12.90, and it comes in around 20 different colors. Now, aside from the color issue, if you look at the cost you can see why we're switching. At $18.99, if we add a $5 markup to the product for our design, the customer is going to be paying $23.99 plus s&h charges at Cafepress. The same $5 markup at Spreadshirt is going to end up being cheaper for the customer than the Cafepress price, even after you figure in s&h.
3. The store builder. Spreadshirt's store builder is somewhere between Cafepress and Zazzle as far as ease of use and functionality. Cafepress is clunky at best, and for the price they charge they really should be displaying products in a more appealing way. Zazzle has a much better display than either of the other two, since they actually show the shirts on a model, but their design process is a bloody nightmare to deal with. Spreadshirt is somewhere in between; no model displays, but several views of the shirt and an easier to use interface than Zazzle, with a more functional design process than Cafepress.
Of course, there are downsides. Even if you promote your store and make a lot of sales on Spreadshirt, you're not going to be getting any quick money. Spreadshirt only pays quarterly, unless you crack the $100 mark in revenue, in which case you can request an early payout. Also, Spreadshirt doesn't have the amount of product selection that the other two have. They are mainly t-shirts, with a few accessories such as laptop sleeves and coffee mugs thrown in, while Zazzle and CP have a much wider range of products. Then again, I don't know many people that want to pay $17 for a coffee mug (by the time you add in s&h).
Again, just thought I'd give the rest of the Warriors the results of my research, since I've seen a few threads about POD services here. I'll probably leave the products that we've already created on Cafepress and Zazzle, just to see if they get any sales, but I'll be making the Spreadshirt store my main focus in the future.