Page 207 - Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals

Graphic Design 195
Technology Is the Key

Web2print completely automates the print ordering process by integrating online orders with print
production. Using the Internet automates order entry and provides time savings to both the customer and
the company.

Electronic commerce offers the possibility of breakthrough changes: changes that so radically alter customer
expectations that they redefine the market or create entirely new markets (Gunasekaran, Marri, McGaughey, &
Nebhwani, 2002, p. 195).

This technology allows businesses to interact with customers in a new way in addition to more traditional
forms of ordering such as email, file transfer protocol (FTP), phone, fax, and face-to-face meetings.
While web2print removes the need for more traditional ways of ordering, it does not replace them. Some
customers may prefer these ways because they may not know, or be comfortable with, the online options
that are increasingly available to them. It is advantageous to a company to inform and educate customers,
encouraging them to evolve their buying habits. Traditionally, purchasing involved gaining knowledge
about print companies through their sales reps, selecting the appropriate company, and trusting that
the sales rep would ensure the product was delivered on time and for the best price. Today, many
customers use search engines to obtain information about and decide on which print company to use.
Using web2print ensures that the production time frame and the price match what a customer is looking
for.

A printing company has to work with and implement many complex and interconnected systems in order
to generate a printed product. From the inception of a new item to its delivery to the end-user, there are
many opportunities for streamlining. Web2print creates efficiencies at the beginning of the print process,
and those benefits trickle all the way through to imaging. The ultimate goal is for the data collected from
the customer to proceed directly to the raster image processor (RIP) that drives the production process.
A print company that takes advantage of this type of automation is positioning itself for smoother and
more cost-effective print runs.