Running an online store can be overwhelming when it comes to managing inventory and upfront costs. This often burns your pocket and keeps you back from scaling core operations. That’s why you need WooCommerce Print on Demand services.
With WooCommerce print on demand plugin, you can easily sell customized products without any upfront costs and skip the headache of inventory management. In this blog, we’ll cover the best print on demand WooCommerce plugins that automate your product creation and fulfillment processes.
What is Print on Demand for WooCommerce?
Print on demand (POD) is a business method that allows you to create and sell custom products without investing in inventory upfront. That is, when a customer places an order, the product is created (or printed) on-demand and shipped directly to them. This eliminates the need to store or manage stocks.
The integration between WooCommerce and print-on-demand services allows you to automate the process of custom product creation, fulfilment, and shipping easily.
Criteria to Choose the Best Print on Demand Plugin
Here’s a checklist of factors to consider when choosing a print on demand WooCommerce plugin:
Product Customization Features
Look for a plugin that allows you to personalize text, image, and full design template. This ensures that you can let customers effortlessly personalize their products.
Product Range and Variety
The right plugin provides a range of products for customization. This flexibility enables you to cater to different market segments and give variety of choices.
Branding and Packaging Options
Go with the plugin that offers custom branding options. This includes custom packaging, branded packing slips, or the ability to add your logo to products.
Marketing and Sales Features
Some print on demand plugins are integrated with marketing tools like email marketing, promotions, discounts, and affiliate programs.
Shipping and Fulfillment Functionalities
The plugin should integrate with a print provider that offers efficient fulfillment and shipping. Plus, it should let you track orders and offer customers multiple shipping options, including international delivery.
Pricing and Payment Models
Ensure the price of the plugin fits your budget as some print on demand plugins offer a pay-per-order model, while others charge a flat fee or subscription-based pricing.
Customer Support and Service
The plugin should offer responsive support in case of issues with orders, returns, or customization. So choose a plugin with expert customer support.
WooCommerce Print on demand plugins connect you with third-party printing and shipping companies that handle everything from printing the designs to packing and shipping orders to your customers.
Best WooCommerce Print on Demand Plugins
The 5 best print on demand plugins for WooCommerce are:
- Printful
- Zakeke Interactive Product Designer
- WooCommerce Product Options
- Printify
- Fancy Product Designer
1. Printful
Printful is a popular print of demand plugin that integrates with WooCommerce, allowing you to create and sell custom products without holding inventory. Its rich built with features to handle everything from printing to shipping.
You can offer a wide collection of customizable products, including t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, posters, phone cases, hats, and more. Plus, you can create high-quality designs for your products and provide a personalized shopping experience to your customers.
Features
- Create realistic product mockups for your store.
- Add logo to packing slips, labels, and inside the products.
- Automatically processes, prints, packs, and ships the items to the customer.
- Sync products, manage orders, and track shipments directly from your WooCommerce dashboard.
- Provides an online tool to create product mockups with various product templates.
- Track customers’ orders in real-time to provide updates and ensure timely delivery.
- Supports multiple payment gateways like Stripe, PayPal, credit cards, and more.
Pricing
- It has a free plan. The paid plan starts at $24.99 per month.
2. Zakeke Interactive Product Designer
Zakeke is the best WooCommerce print on demand plugin that offers interactive 3D product visualization and real-time customization. You can sell customizable products such as apparel, accessories, and home decor with live previews of the designs.
With its augmented reality feature, you can let customers view products in their space for a more immersive shopping experience. Plus, it offers unlimited design options with easy uploading and design tools.
Features
- Allows customers to customize products and view in 3D.
- Customize text, logos, colors, and designs on a wide range of products.
- Supports in both WooCommerce and Shopify.
- Intuitive design tool that requires no technical skills.
- Offers real-time inventory updates.
Pricing
- It offers a 14-day free trial. Pricing starts at $29 per month.
3. WooCommerce Product Options
WooCommerce product options plugin by Barn2 offers complete customization options for print on demand businesses. This plugin allows customers to personalize their items directly on the product page.
This plugin helps With support for a variety of custom fields, such as text inputs, file uploads, and image previews, this tool makes it easy to offer fully customizable print on demand products in WooCommerce store.
Features
- Allow customers to upload their own artwork, logos, or designs for print on demand products.
- Let customers add custom text to products like t-shirts or phone cases, offering complete personalization.
- Offer live image previews so customers can see how their design looks on the product.
- Include different custom fields like custom text, artwork, or image uploads.
- Create complex product options for bundles or kits.
- Configure product options for print on demand items.
Pricing
- The paid plan starts from $99 per year.
4. Printify
Integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce, Printify connects you with a global network of print providers, enabling you to offer a wide range of custom products. You can design products, set up your store, and begin selling with no upfront costs. This plugin is ideal for store owners who want to start a print on demand business quickly.
Features
- Built-in mockup generator to visualize products before listing on the store.
- Automatic fulfillment of orders with no need for manual intervention.
- Partners with print providers in 200+ locations worldwide.
- Print and fulfill orders on-demand without any minimum order quantity.
- Integrates with WooCommerce, Shopify, Etsy, and other platforms.
- Transparent product pricing with fulfillment costs clearly stated.
Pricing
- It is available for free. The paid plan starts at $29 per month.
5. Fancy Product Designer
As the name suggests, this plugin is a product customizer and design tool that integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce, allowing you to sell fully customizable products. It has a robust backend and an intuitive design interface. This plugin is perfect for stores looking to offer custom products on demand.
Features
- Allow customers to upload images, add text, adjust colors, and choose from various design elements to personalize products.
- Advanced color picker tool to pick any shade or use a predefined palette.
- Display multiple views of a product with customizable elements.
- Customize the tool layout and interface to suit your store’s branding.
- Export print-ready files, order data, and automate processes like sending files to Dropbox or AWS S3.
Pricing
- The paid plan starts at $15 per month.
Strategies for Print on Demand in WooCommerce
Implementing effective strategies in your WooCommerce print on demand business will help you stand out, increase sales, and build a loyal customer base. Some of the key strategies are:
1. Offer a Wide Range of Customizable Products
Diversify your product offerings to target different customer segments and their preferences. Provide a variety of items for customization along with unique designs and personalization options.
2. Create Niche Designs
Focusing on a specific niche can help you differentiate your brand. Create unique, targeted designs that suit a particular audience, like pet lovers, sports fans, or cinebuffs. This way, you build brand loyalty and stand out from the competition.
3. Upselling and Cross-selling Techniques
Suggest related products or upgrades when a customer selects an item. This encourages customers to purchase more, increasing the overall revenue per order.
4. Focus on Customer Personalization
The easier it is for customers to personalize their products, the more likely they will make a purchase. Include features such as real-time previews of the design, options to upload images or text, and simple drag-and-drop design tools.
5. Leverage Social Media Marketing
Promote your products on social media platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. Use targeted ads, influencer partnerships, and organic posts to build brand awareness and attract traffic to your store.
6. Focus on SEO for Print on Demand Products
Optimize your WooCommerce store for search engines by using relevant keywords. Optimize product descriptions, titles, and images to improve visibility in search results, helping customers find your products organically.
7. Implement a Reliable Fulfillment & Shipping System
Choose a reliable POD provider with accurate fulfillment timelines and reasonable shipping costs. Offer tracking information and provide excellent customer service to handle any fulfillment issues.
Summing Up
Choosing the best WooCommerce print on demand plugin depends on the range of products you sell, your customization needs, and how much control you want over the design process. By integrating the right plugin, you can automate your product creation, fulfillment, and shipping processes. Ultimately, this increases customer engagement, boosts sales, and scales your WooCommerce business without upfront inventory or logistics.
No, there is no minimum order requirement for print on demand products. Products are printed and fulfilled only when an order is placed, eliminating the risk of unsold inventory.
Print on demand services charge on a per-product basis, that is, you pay only when a customer makes a purchase.
Shipping times vary depending on the POD provider and the customer’s location.
Yes, most print on demand providers offer global fulfillment and shipping. This allows you to sell and ship customized products to customers worldwide, thus increasing market reach.
No, there aren’t any upfront costs with print on demand.