How To Start A Print On Demand Business Philippines

How To Start A Print On Demand Business Philippines.

**Note: This is Part 3 of 3 of my series on How To Earn Through The Internet without Too Much Skills or Knowledge.

To head to Part 1, click on this link: Dropshipping in the Philippines: How to Start

To head to Part 2, click on this link: Drop Servicing Business: How to Start

Engaging in businesses has never been the easiest of tracks to tread on how to earn money. Yes, the revenue may potentially be big, however, that would still be dependent on many factors. Let’s say you retail your own clothing line, the profit will be affected by the economies of scale, the supply and demand, and also the existing market competition. These are things one must consider first before running a clothing store, or any store for that matter.

It is normal that in every businessperson’s minds are the underlying fear that the cost of production may possibly go beyond the revenue.

Therefore, the goal in order to still earn profits, is to minimize the charge in producing, packaging, and shipping the products without in turn making your products cost a fortune.

If only there was a way to still sell your clothing brand without having to worry about the corresponding payables. Let me tell you this, there is a way. That’s why you’re reading this post right? It’s called print on demand.

What is Print On Demand in the Philippines?

Print on demand is an e-commerce business model where your products are sold through a conduit platform. This same platform is then sought by customers to place orders for your products.

By definition, it is essentially a form of dropshipping but this time, you are the one that supplies the items.

Doesn’t sound as enticing huh?

However, in this line of business, all you have to do is apply under a POD Print Provider and the main perk is that they will be the ones responsible in handling the printing, the packaging, and the shipping of your products.

Here’s a POD illustration I made so you can get a clear view of how it works:

The principle behind this business is PRINT ONLY UPON ORDER FROM A CUSTOMER. The revenue will be based on the demand for your item, thus, no demand is no production. And since someone else will handle the processing of your product, having a physical inventory is no longer necessary.

All you have to do is sit back and manage the incoming requests for whatever you’re selling (or not if you want the platform to also do that for you). Let us dig deeper into how it works.

How does Print On Demand Work in the Philippines?

If you have your own clothing line then most definitely your designs are exclusive to your brand. The same goes if you are a writer, pretty sure your contents are copyright-free and would slip through plagiarism checkers. These features of apparel businesses and of book creation are targeted in POD.

Like mentioned above, all your designs and contents will be the ones sold to the market by the platform. If you are an artist that has a knack for shirt designing or a writer that is passionate in writing books then this method will save you from the burden of physically selling your products and still earn, nonetheless. On the other hand, if you are an expert in neither of the aforementioned skills, you can always outsource people who can make the designs or books for you and still engage in POD.

 How To Start A Print On Demand Business?

1. Set up your online store

Before anything else, an online store where customers can view your items should be established. This can be done through your website. If you don’t have one then find E-platforms where you can showcase your items. E.g Shopify.

2. Upload your designs

After making your store, your designs must come next. You can try t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, face masks, caps etc. You can start with 2 to 3 items then try out a different kind once you check which products are heavily ordered.

3. Choose your Print Provider

You can choose from popular Print Providers (listed at the latter part of this post.

4. Promote and sell your products

The manner of promoting your products totally depends on how you set-up your online store. The more people who know your beautiful designs, the more they will engage with you. The more you advertise online, the wider your target will be.

Various products can be candidates for POD and the choice of POD service provider is dependent on the product you are trying to sell. These can be printed shirts, sweaters, hoodies, or any other apparel for that matter. Customized items may also be sold like printed pillows and mugs. On the other hand, books may also be items to print on demand.

 List of Print On Demand Platforms in the Philippines

The POD industry in the Philippines hasn’t been as wide as those abroad. Most of the POD in the country also focus on apparels and merchandise but not on other products like books. A notable few are:

• PrintDrop
• Merchiful
• Transferit
• Printify
• Printful

If we go on an international scale, a wider variety of choices are presented. Printful and Printify for shirts and merch printing while Lulu Xpress can be utilized for books. But of course, dapat #SupportLocal muna tayo.

Pros and Cons of Print on Demand in the Philippines

Pros

1. It is fairly easy to establish since no need to have physical inventory of the items.
2. No fulfillment stress because the platform will manufacture, package, and ship the item for you.
3. More time for other activities but still get paid.
4. You can work remotely.

Cons

1. Lower profit margins.  The platform (and possibly the third party supplier) will may or may not get a piece of the profit so you get less for the equally less work you exerted.
2. Confined control. Since the POD print provider will handle everything, the liberty of the flow of the products is their prerogative. Though of course, some may even let you put some freebies or add-ons for uniqueness’ sake.
3. Limited data. Some sellers might need some feasibility analysis to better implement their businesses, if that’s you then POD might not be the best option. Opt for regular dropshipping instead.
4. Fixed variety of materials used. The service provided through POD is confined to the materials available with their White Label suppliers. So if you want an exquisite, exotic material sewn to some extraordinary and unique type of cloth, then your chances of getting the right supplier for the job are slim to none.

Is A Print on Demand Business Profitable in the Philippines?

Print on Demand is one of the best marketing strategies in this age. Especially with the onset of the pandemic where budgets are wound too tight and a source of income with little to no start-up cost are highly demanded. This is the job for you, get to do what you want and potentially earn big doing it. If you are not too picky with the materials used, that is. Nevertheless, a  Print On Demand Business is a great strategy. You just have to be eye-catching and budget-craving in whatever you’re trying to sell and choose the right platform in selling it.

I hope you have put into action all the knowledge you have gained in my 3-posts series. Please share this with family and friends, and I wish for your success and prosperity!

**Note: This is Part 3 of 3 of my series on How To Earn Through The Internet without Too Much Skills or Knowledge.

To head to Part 1, click on this link: Dropshipping in the Philippines: How to Start

Part 2, click on this link: Drop Servicing Business: How to Start

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• How to Start Dropshipping in the Philippines
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• 20 Ways to Promote & Market Your Business in the Philippines

How To Start A Print On Demand Business Philippines