KWIK KOPY TARGETS B2C WITH WEB-TO-PRINT

National print franchise group Kwik Kopy is using a new web-to-print portal to enable its franchisees to engage with small businesses and the consumer market through its website.

The new e-commerce site, based on the MarketDirect Store Front from eProductivity Software, reflects the style of the company’s main website, which it is linked to.

The new e-commerce site features all the main product types that most stores can produce. Kwik Kopy says this will give consumers an easy option when wanting work such as short-run bound documents, posters, or pull-up banners.

Victor Guignard, IT manager at Kwik Kopy, and Travis Gardner, eCommerce specialist at Kwik Kopy, presented the new B2C eCommerce solution at Connect 2024, the eProductivity Software conference. They said, “We have been running for less than a month, and already results have exceeded expectations.”

One of the features of the new e-commerce site is a visualisation of the job so the customers can see what they will be getting as they go along. For instance, if they specify a white ring bind, the visualisation will present with white; if black, then they are shown black. Even better is flicking through the pages of a document you have uploaded and seeing exactly how it will look when printed and bound. This live representation of your actual artwork is outstanding.

Pricing also adjusts as the customer adjusts the parameters, such as changing between different sizes or paper stocks for a poster.

When customers access the site, they are given the names of the stores nearest to their location. They select the most convenient store for them, and they start interacting on that site, which will remain for future engagements. Gardener said, “The new B2C e-commerce platform will be a real lead generator for the franchisees, a sales tool to sell the store and what they can produce in a customer's local area.”

The new e-commerce site has an easy-to-follow guide for all products, with all options explained. For instance, business cards will have 135gsm matt or satin options and explain the difference between matt and satin to the customers.

It will also prevent incorrect specifications. For instance, in the brochures area, it will only allow brochures of a maximum of four pages, and again, it will explain why.

It enables customers to upload their own artwork or use the Picsart Design Tool or templates, which they can choose and edit to their liking. Kwik Kopy established a relationship with Picsart a year ago and has worked on a range of exclusive design templates that speak to the type of customers looking for a more value-driven design solution for their micro business or side hustle.

Kwik Kopy has been successfully running web-to-print in the B2B sector for some time. It did try an e-commerce solution for the consumer market a decade ago, but it didn’t work out; Guignard said, “The issues that we had back then of pricing, customers without artwork, and link to the main site are all resolved with the new system using MarketDirect Store Front. We’ve had it up and running for a month, and it works beautifully.”