What Is A Trade Printer

Printed materials still have their role to play in the modern-day business world. Even though digital marketing is trending and has taken over a significant sector of more traditional promotional methods, there are still a lot of these old-school marketing strategies used today. Whether that includes vinyl banner printing to promote an event or to get a few menus printed for a local restaurant, physical material is still a useful way of informing consumers on what your business can do for them.

Those individuals who are part of the printing industry often turn to a trade printer in order to ensure they are able to make adequate profits. For anyone only entering this industry, there might be some confusion as to the specific role that a trade printer plays. In this post, we take a closer look at what exactly a trade printer is and why you should consider opting for the services of one.

What Exactly Is A Trade Printer?

Regardless of the potential that digital marketing strategies play in today’s world, where technology rules, physical media is still needed in various ways to ensure the ultimate success of any business. Recent studies have found that billboards, signage, direct mail, and many other forms of physical marketing techniques are quickly making a comeback.

This is exactly where trade printers come into the picture. Companies specializing in branding, marketing, and other types of design-related services often need to ensure they are not only able to offer their customers the ability to have great graphics on the internet, but also in the physical world. When printing services are required, the expenses on the company’s side can quickly pile up – and this would ultimately have an impact on the profits that are made from a sale.

Trade printers are large companies that specialize in wholesale printing services. These companies offer printing materials and actual print services to resellers – that would be the company that offers the services to their consumer. The major benefit that a trade printer offers is the fact that they tend to charge wholesale prices on the services that they offer. In turn, the company that is offering printed materials to the consumer is able to save a significant amount on the expenses that they have to incur to provide the expected results.

Another benefit offered is the fact that the trade printer will never communicate directly with the consumer. The reseller would communicate with the consumer in order to understand what is expected from a project. The printing services required would then be outsourced to the trade printer. The reseller communicates with the trade printer, thus acting as a middle man between the two.

Who Can Take Advantage Of The Services Offered At A Trade Printer?

When it comes to taking advantage of services that a trade printer offers, it is important to understand that not just every person or company is able to make use of the printing solutions that are offered here. While each trade printer will have its own specific terms regarding who they are able to provide their services to, the reseller that comes to the company in search of printing solutions will usually have to be a business that is involved in the printing industry.

There is a significant number of companies who do qualify for the services that a trade printer is able to offer. Here is a couple of examples of companies that are considered to be in the printing industry:

Print brokers
Marketing firms
Ad agencies
Graphic designers
Copy shops

This is, of course, only a very limited list of companies. There are many other businesses that would also fall within this category, providing them an opportunity to save a significant amount on the costs involved with printed materials.

How To Choose The Right Trade Printer?

Even though choosing to utilize the services of a trade printer can be exceptionally beneficial for a company that frequently deals with printed materials, it is important that we note here the fact that not all of the trade printers out there can offer a reliable service. When it comes to utilizing a trade printer, there is a couple of factors that definitely have to be taken into consideration.

You do not want to end up with a trade printer that will produce low-quality products for your customers — quality matters in the business world. You also want to ensure that the trade printer you choose to trust with the printing for projects that you are working on will not have significant delays. Since you are the one communicating with the consumer, it is your brand that will ultimately be affected in a negative way when there are delays in the delivery of printed materials.

Take a closer look at the factors that we share below. Consider each when you are looking to choose a trade printer. This will help you ensure the company you decide to go with will be able to deliver on time and provide you with a good experience – ultimately building on the reputation that you are building for your own brand.

Customer Service

It would be a good idea to start by considering the level of customer service that is offered by the trade printer. You do not want to wait multiple days for a response on a simple question. You need a trade printer that is very responsive and able to assist with any queries without any type of delay.

Reach out to each of the trade printers in your area that you might consider using for the printing services that you are offering your customers. Ask the company a couple of questions that you might have in mind – questions like what materials they offer, how long they take with certain printing projects, and an overview of their pricing will definitely be useful information to have on hand.

Transparency

You also want to ensure the trade printer you end up choosing is transparent in terms of pricing and what they are able to do for you. When you get in touch with the company, see if they are able to provide you with a complete overview of their pricing on different services that are available.

While pricing is often adjusted based on order volume and even the relationship that you have with the company, they should have a basic structure for new customers who come to them. You want to know how much you should expect to pay for services before you decide on which particular trade printer you want to use.

Expertise

Taking the risk of using a new trade printer just because they are able to provide you with a lower rate for printing services is not a good idea. You want to give your customers access to high-quality printing services, so you should ensure the trade printer you end up using is an expert in this industry.

If you are able to get your hands on a couple of samples that have been printed by the trade printer in the past, this will definitely be useful. Reach out to them and see if they are able to provide you with a portfolio or even references. You could also see if it is possible to pay a visit to their local offices to see how they run their operation.

Guarantees

Errors can happen in the printing industry. How a trade printer handles these errors and faults is critical. When an error shows up on print work that you have ordered, you need to be able to get it fixed quickly. Make sure you take a closer look at guarantees that are offered by a trade printer. A good company will offer you the ability to get in touch with them and get such an issue fixed without causing a lot of disruption in your ability to give your customer what they are looking for.

If you cannot find information about guarantees on the trade printer’s website, be sure to reach out to them. Ask a detailed explanation about how these scenarios would be dealt with.

Conclusion

Trade printers offer anyone in the printing industry an opportunity to save on the costs involved when it comes to the print of physical materials, ranging from business cards to banners and more. Understanding the specific role that a trade printer plays and how you can take advantage is important, as this could ultimately give you an opportunity to make your prices more competitive and to create a larger profit margin for your business.