As a decorator, you’re already well aware of the numerous capabilities that direct-to-substrate technology offers your shop. For starters, you can quickly print full-color images directly to T-shirts, caps, and other substrates, without hassling with emulsions, screens and other tasks associated with traditional screen printing. But those advantages don’t necessarily translate into anything meaningful to most of your customers. In other words, they don’t care whether you have to burn screens, they just want their orders quickly and affordably.

That said, how should you market your shop’s direct-to-substrate services? How can you turn the technology’s numerous decorating advantages into profits? The key—as with all successful marketing efforts—is building the message around the customer’s needs and concerns, and showing how the technology addresses those issues.

Full article by Don Copeland is available in the November 2008 issue of Printwear magazine or online in our article archive see: Marketing Direct-to-Substrate Services