How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business in 2024?

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business in 2024?

The concept of print-on-demand sounds great and super easy – anyone can start their own business risk-free. How? All you need is an idea and some spare time. You don’t even need a product – finding one is part of starting a print-on-demand business.

You’ll be safe from worrying about keeping inventory or fulfilling and shipping orders. Print-on-demand sites will take care of all of that, leaving you free to focus on growing your brand and revenue.

This simple step-by-step guide will help you launch your own store in 2024.

What Exactly Is a Print-on-Demand Business?

Print on Demand is a system that prints individual copies of items to order. A lot of print-on-demand services offer additional features like no order minimum and shipping. What this means for you, in simple terms, is that you only need to pay for an order after it is placed and your customer has paid.

We’ll explore the benefits and disadvantages, and learn how to start an online business with no upfront investment.

Make It Happen Today!

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business in 2024?

If you want to sell custom products online, print on demand is one of the most powerful ways to do so. It’s easy to start, costs hardly anything, and you can personalize the products you sell, gaining an edge over your competition.

Although print on demand can seem tricky at first, anyone can achieve success as long as they are driven to work hard.

If you want to learn how to start a print-on-demand business, follow these simple steps, and you’ll be well on your way.

1. Pick a Niche

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Pick a Niche

A niche is a specialized market segment for particular products. Defining a niche has many benefits – higher profits, reduced competition, and less money spent on advertising.

If you’re not sure what niche you’d like to pursue for your own brand, start with something you’re passionate about. It can be anything – fitness, camping, grumpy cats, or true crime.

Choosing a profitable niche is one of the most important challenges you will face in your eCommerce journey.

Where should you look for that profitable niche idea? You can start by:

  • Examining the best-selling products of 2024. Start with a simple Google search and check out other print-on-demand sites. If you take time to deep-dive into their details, you might also discover trends that are teetering on mass popularity.
  • Using Google Trends and comparing products. It is a very useful tool to quickly assess the popularity of any topic as it visualizes search queries across different regions and languages.
  • Analyzing Search Engine Results. Use Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, Semrush, or other similar tools to find out what people are searching for.

If you are trying to sell to everyone, you most likely won’t succeed. This is why identifying your target audience and picking a niche is so important.

Our in-depth article explains how to find the right niche market for your business, what niche marketing strategies are, and gives a few examples of niche print-on-demand business ideas.

2. Decide What to Sell

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Decide What to Sell

There’s a seemingly endless number of products you can customize and sell with print on demand. It’s not limited only to t-shirts, hoodies, or coffee mugs. Check out some of the most popular items to customize and sell:

Take a look at our Product Catalog to see even more relevant items. We add a batch of new ones every week!

Whatever you decide to sell, keep your customers in mind so your items don’t get lost in an overcrowded market. Always stick to your market needs. The products you choose need to make sense for your niche.

These are some of the best places to kick off your research and see what sells:

  • Amazon – you can check every department individually for additional ideas.
  • eBay – a good place to see what’s trending.
  • Etsy – easily find gift and product ideas.

Don’t forget to take a tour on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, or any other social media platform and other print-on-demand sites to see what people are saying about certain products and niches.

If a certain niche-based community is quiet, then it’s wise to pick one that’s more lively.

3. Create Designs

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Create Designs

Although print on demand relies heavily on unique designs, you don’t need artistic skills to start an online store. You also don’t have to be an experienced designer to come up with design ideas.

Doing your own research and extracting the best ideas from the internet and your social network is a key step in creating profitable designs for print-on-demand products.

You can draw inspiration from sites like:

A word to the wise – you should only use your research as a starting point to create your own original designs. Never plagiarize a design you find somewhere or claim the work as your own.

If you don’t want to spend your time creating designs, you can always hire a professional designer. However, before you start scouting for talent, make sure that you’ve properly identified your needs.

You can use sites such as:

  • Fiverr – a well-known site that allows you to hire a freelancer to create your designs.
  • 99designs – a marketplace for graphic design services.
  • Upwork – the largest freelance marketplace in the United States.

Don’t forget to check your designs – what may seem like an awesome idea in your head might be completely misunderstood by your customers. The most common way to test-run ideas is by sharing designs on social media, online forums, or within your personal network.

If you’re interested in creating a best-selling design from scratch or sites that offer ready-made designs, this in-depth article offers a wide variety of information, resources, and advice so you can easily create – or simply buy – your first design.

4. Decide Where to Sell

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Decide Where to Sell

Printify easily integrates your online store with some of the world’s most popular eCommerce marketplaces and platforms:

When using print on demand, you can either sell your custom products on a marketplace or create your own store on an eCommerce platform.

What’s the difference? Let’s find out.

eCommerce Marketplace

Many print-on-demand companies get their start by selling custom products on an eCommerce marketplace. These function like an online market, where merchants gather to sell their goods. You list products and add the right keywords to ensure that your customers easily find you.

Take Etsy and eBay as good examples of online marketplaces.

eCommerce Platform

Alternatively, you can use an eCommerce platform to build a more personalized website for your products that looks exactly the way you want it to. 

This is a separate online store hosted on an eCommerce platform. Your customers will be able to access it only through a direct link, which is why you’ll need to share it through other public accounts.

A good example of an eCommerce platform is Shopify and WooCommerce.

5. Set Up a Store

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Set Up a Store

After you’ve done your due diligence exploring sales channels and picking the one that’s right for you, it’s time to set up your store.

Although the setup differs for each platform, it’s often a pretty straightforward process that only requires a bit of your time. Most commonly, you’ll have access to a finished platform or pre-built and customizable templates.

All of this can take a while, but make sure to do it properly – it’s essential for the success of your print-on-demand business.

6. Pick Your Supplier

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Pick Your Supplier

When it comes to starting a print-on-demand business, you can’t do without a reliable supplier that will fulfill all of your incoming orders. The importance of this can’t be overstated – your reputation as an entrepreneur depends on it.

This is where Printify comes in. Whatever you aim to achieve, Printify’s mission stays the same – to help merchants make more money with less effort.

Our easy-to-use print-on-demand and dropshipping platform lets people from all walks of life design and sell custom products without worries. Once you make a sale, our print providers do all the heavy lifting – printing and shipping.

Our team works diligently to make sure that you’re getting the highest quality products, best prices, and lowest shipping costs.

You don’t need any upfront investment. Anyone can sign up and use our platform for free. You pay for a product only after you’ve sold it.

You can integrate Printify with some of the world’s most popular eCommerce marketplaces and platforms.

Our catalog has more than 900 high-quality products, and we’re constantly adding more.

You can thrive without any limitations – order as few or as many products as you like.

Our merchant support team is always on standby, and they’ll gladly answer any questions you may have.

With Printify, you’re in the right hands – our service is trusted by over two million merchants worldwide, with more signing up every day.

7. Set a Price

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Set a Price

The amount of profit that you make depends on how high you set your product retail prices.

Whenever you price your products, here are some things to consider:

  • What’s the average price of similar products on the market? Try to research current market trends and compare product costs for similar items.
  • Where are your customers located? If you choose a local print provider, you can cut down on both delivery time and shipping costs.
  • Will you offer free shipping? If so, it’s a good sales trigger, but make sure to add that amount to the product’s retail price to absorb the actual shipping cost.

With proper product pricing, you’re setting yourself up for success. If you’re curious to have an in-depth look at how it’s done, our handy guide will teach you everything you need to know about setting prices.

8. Check the Quality of Your Products

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Check the Quality of Your Products

When you plan on starting a print-on-demand business, checking the quality of your products is essential. Unless your products serve their intended purpose well, you’ll have a hard time getting more sales than one. Your customers need to have confidence in your products.

As a rule of thumb, the primary step to maintaining the value that customers see in your products is by choosing reliable print providers.

If you want your eCommerce store to have a good reputation, it’s highly recommended to order samples so you can check the print quality, style, colors, and the whole end product.

9. Market Your Products

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Market Your Products

To get your business off the ground quickly, incorporating some basic print-on-demand marketing strategies can make it or break it.

Your goal is to get noticed, drive traffic to your site, provide people with reasons to buy from you and convert visitors into customers.

Here are a few ways you can market your business:

  • Social media – You can easily find and engage with your target audience by maintaining a social media presence. Don’t forget to consistently create new content, engage with users, and leave positive comments on other accounts. Social media is a smart way to grow your business.
  • Influencer marketing – a universal tool that can be effectively applied to gain broader exposure. By collaborating with influencers who endorse your products, you can gain your audience’s trust more quickly.
  • Content marketing – a common strategy used by entrepreneurs. If you consistently publish relevant content – blogs, articles, product reviews – you’ll build trust and have authority in your niche.

10. Monitor Your Digital Store’s Performance

How to Start a Print-on-Demand Business - Monitor Your Digital Store’s Performance

If you want to be – and remain – a successful entrepreneur, you should include in your print-on-demand business plan ways to measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.

Analyzing your digital store’s performance is important – our handy guide explores a wide variety of eCommerce analytic tools that you can use to better understand how your website is performing so that you can make better decisions and improve your sales.

Make It Happen Today!

Frequently Asked Questions

It’s a business model in which products get printed only after an order is placed. Print-on-demand services like Printify allow you to save both time and money running your business because you won’t need to deal with keeping inventory, order fulfillment, or shipping.

Yes. The only thing you’ll need to worry about is increasing your store revenue and being competitive in a crowded market. Finding your niche and targeting potential customers with relevant content significantly improves your chances of success.

Sign up with Printify – it only takes a few minutes to create your account.

Once that’s done, you can set up connections with popular eCommerce platforms and marketplaces, choose products from our Catalog, place them in your store, and start selling.

It is if you set the right profit margins on the products you sell. When pricing products, keep all associated tax and service fees in mind.

Check out our blog on how to price your products for ultimate success.

Pros and Cons of a Print-on-Demand Business

Pros and Cons of a Print-on-Demand Business

As a tried-and-true way of printing for profit, using print-on-demand services has many benefits for a budding eCommerce company. That said, it also has its downsides.

Let’s take a look at some of its advantages first.

Easy to Start

You don’t need extensive entrepreneurial, marketing, or artistic experience. Print-on-demand services are interested in having you as their customers – they often offer simple guides and instructions.

No Risk

With print on demand, no advance investment is required. You don’t have to rent premises, keep stock, hire staff, or worry about logistics.

No Inventory

Whenever you make a sale, a third-party supplier ships products directly to your customer’s doorstep. You don’t need to keep stock of merchandise or spend money on storage space.

Global Reach

Print on demand allows you to effortlessly sell both locally and internationally. The right designs will attract customers from all over the world.

While the advantages might seem great, you should also consider the downsides of using print-on-demand.

You Can't Control Quality

You will have limited control over print and product quality. The best way to counter this is to order samples. If you’re not happy with the result, you can switch your supplier.

Longer Production Time

Since orders are printed only after a sale goes through, they can’t be packaged and shipped immediately. This is the downside of having no stock.

Lower Profit

Due to the nature of the print-on-demand business model, costs per product will be higher than if you purchase products in bulk, which directly affects your profit.

Split Responsibility

While suppliers handle order fulfillment, customers will turn to the merchant whenever there is an issue. The supplier is invisible to customers – it’s your responsibility to right any issues your customer experiences.

When you start your business, pay attention to details and choose your print-on-demand platform wisely.

Closing Thoughts

When done right, print on demand can be a very profitable endeavor. Due to its many perks, it’s a go-to eCommerce business model for entrepreneurs, artists, and content creators all across the world.

Whether you’d like to start a new business or scale your existing one, print on demand has something to offer everyone.

Start Your Own Print-on-Demand Business Today!

Share the article

Topics

64 comments

  1. Ravos
    February 5

    Hello there!, I’m from India. I’m planning to set up a store on printify, I want to know about the tax implications regading it. Do I have to register for anything ?

    1. Ariel Summers
      February 7

      Hi Ravos,
      Please contact our Support team, and they will be more than happy to help you with tax implications.

  2. Clare
    October 15

    Hi there – I would like to sell tote bags but the supplier for the bag I am interested in is based in Poland. How would that work with shipping to different countries eg UK, US, Australia etc? I’m struggling to get my head round that bit. Don’t you find suppliers local to the buyer to fulfil the order? Otherwise it might takes weeks to ship? Thanks.

    1. Ariel Summers
      October 27

      Hi Clare,
      Certainly! Printify works by automatically routing orders to the nearest print provider to your customer’s location if you choose the order routing feature. This ensures quicker and more efficient order fulfillment, no matter where your customers are located. If you have any more questions, please feel free to reach out to our support team.

  3. Danielle Batista
    September 16

    Hi there … do I need to be part of the e marketplace or plataforms to use printfy? Or can I connect to my own website ?? I use hostinger… thanks ☺️

    1. Ariel Summers
      September 18

      Hi Danielle,
      You don’t have to have a sales channel as you can connect your own website with Printify API. Please check the help center article “How can I generate an API token?” (https://shorturl.at/BEJQV) for more information. If you need futher help, please reach out to Printify support.

  4. Fred
    September 9

    Once a sale is made, is the amount automatically deleted from my bank account for the transaction or do I have to go to my account and transfer the funds before the transaction goes ahead

    1. Martha Simmons
      September 11

      Hi Fred,
      The way Printify payment process works, is the payment received by your store for an order includes the product retail price (production price + profit) and the shipping fee.

      Once the order is received on your sales channel, it is automatically imported into Printify and sent to production based on your order approval settings. However, as Printify can’t directly withdraw funds from your sales channel, the production price of the product and its shipping fee are charged to your linked credit/debit card or your Printify balance.

      To sum it up: your customers buy from you, and you buy from us.

  5. Marie
    September 2

    Can you integrate an Etsy store that is only part POD and stocks other stuff too?

    1. Martha Simmons
      September 4

      Hi Marie,
      Yes, you can do that. 🙂

  6. Sandro Coimbra
    August 14

    Hello. I’m thinking of creating a POD business, but my company is in Portugal. I want to enter US niches and use distributors from that country and not from Europe. I have some questions:
    1) Is it possible?
    2) How does it work in terms of billing, do I need to create my company in the US to declare sales?
    3) Who/where generates the invoice to que customers?
    Thank you very much

    1. Florence Kingsley
      August 15

      Hi there Sandro,
      Yes, it is possible and you can sell worldwide. For more detailed information, please reach out to our Support team via 24/7 live chat on your Printify account or here and our team will gladly answer any questions you might have. 🙂

  7. Jeffrey Lee Bell
    July 16

    Is there a company that will set it up for you for a fee? I’m finding it difficult to do with my limited abilities. Thanks! jb

    1. Martha Simmons
      July 17

      Hi Jeffrey,
      You can probably search on Fiverr, but please know that Printify doesn’t have official partners that would offer this.

  8. Rogenette Lee
    May 28

    Hello,

    I hope all is well with everyone at the office. Can I sell products without having a LLC or Sole Proprietorship license?

    1. Florence Kingsley
      May 29

      Hi there!
      Yes, you can.

  9. tammy
    May 4

    what if there is something wrong with the product and the customer wants to return?
    what would the process be?

    1. Florence Kingsley
      May 5

      Hi Tammy,
      Printify is a print-on-demand company, which means that all products are unique and produced only once ordered. This also means that returns and exchanges are not supported if your customer ordered the wrong size, color, or simply changed their mind.
      However, in case of a damaged product or a manufacturing error, we offer a free replacement or a refund if you contact us within 30 days of product delivery. Please see more information here.

  10. IMT
    March 10

    Hi there, thanks for the info! How does getting paid work? How do i get paid once my products are being sold?

    1. Martha Simmons
      March 13

      Hi there,
      When a customer submits an order in your connected store, your store receives the payment consisting of the product retail price (production price + profit) and the shipping fee.

      Then the order is automatically imported into Printify and sent to production according to your order approval settings. However, since Printify can’t pull funds directly from your sales channel, Printify charges your linked credit card or your Printify balance with the production price of the product and its shipping fee.

      To sum it up: your customers buy from you, and you buy from us.

  11. Missy D
    February 3

    Just wondering if there is an option to order product myself in bulk to sell at an in person vendor show?

    1. Florence Kingsley
      February 3

      Hi there!
      Yes, you can place a manual order and read more about bulk order options here.

  12. Loreen
    January 29

    Thanks for the information

  13. Jo
    January 20

    Where do I find UK pricing please?

    1. Florence Kingsley
      January 20

      Hi there!
      All prices can be found on our catalog, please see here.

  14. Bhavika
    December 14

    Hi thank you for this information!

    I am writer looking to collect some information to write an article to publish at my “Medium” account. I am really surprised to read this article. I learned here how say your words in a few word. Thank you!

    1. Florence Kingsley
      December 15

      Hi there,
      Happy to hear that!

  15. Six4
    December 11

    How are concepts ideas protected?

    1. Florence Kingsley
      December 20

      Hi there!
      Perhaps a lot of useful information can be found here in our webinars, where some POD experts are sharing their experience, different tips and tricks.

  16. Bernice Moore
    December 16

    I like the tote bags inspirational words on them like (always look up to the sky ) something like this. When can I star my platform.

    1. Florence Kingsley
      December 16

      Hi there Bernice,
      You can open a store any time. Here are some useful articles about it and if any other questions arise, feel free to get in touch with our Merchant Support team via email [email protected] or live chat on your Printify account.

  17. James Parker
    May 26

    I remember once in time when buying a personalised t-shirt would be expensive unless you purchased it in bulk. As technology has become more readily available, services have become widespread and circulated our lives also. I’ve never used Printify myself, but now I’m curious. Do you guys sell business cards curiously?

    1. Naomi
      May 26

      Hi James!

      We are continuously adding new products to our Catalog, however we don’t offer business cards yet. Our team will definitely consider adding this product, thank you!

  18. Jarret Whitbread
    January 21

    Is it possible when using the printify plugin with shopify, to give the power to my customers to customize their own brand, vs me selling a specific brand? Example My store niche is say sports teams and I select a few specific products/colors/etc, but my clients still have the ability to add their own custom logo and text to the T-shirt or Ball cap. Is this possible?

    1. Naomi
      January 22

      Hello Jarret!

      Currently, we do not offer end-customer customization, however you can process custom orders manually by editing items before sending them to production. Here is our guide.
      Let us know if you have any questions!

  19. Rosa
    December 14

    Hello, does Printify work with the Webflow platform?

  20. Joshus
    July 27

    Hello! I was wondering if I needed to set up a corporation or LLC in order to sell shirts using prinitfy?

  21. Ugo
    July 16

    Hi dear. Must I have a website to sell the POD products or can I list them on other online marketplace? If yes , like which ones ? Thanks

  22. Stanley Okaine
    June 25

    Do I need to register my business with the state first?

  23. Jayanth G S
    June 18

    Hello Elina, Hope you’re doing well..
    i have a query… Do i need to register trademark for my brand if i’m selling pod products online..??

  24. Bobbie McCoy
    May 26

    Hi,

    If Printify is free why do you need to buy a premium subscription and how much is it? If you charge the user for T-shirts is that an extra charge?

    1. Elina Stafecka
      May 29

      Hi Bobbie! Printify is 100% free and we charge only when you have a sale. With Printify premium you will have a discount for blank products, so it means you can earn more with bigger profits. – Elina

  25. kira
    May 5

    hi there, is there a way to edit the inside pages of a book ?

  26. Heather
    January 27

    Hi! I am starting a custom designed tote bag business and I wanted to know if I am able to view all available bag options prior to choosing a POD printing and fulfillment service. Am I able to choose any product on the market? I’m looking for high quality bags that come in various colors and sizes.

    1. Elina Stafecka
      January 28

      Heather, thanks for the question! Yes, you can see all the bags on our catalog – https://printify.com/app/products/accessories/bags

      You can see available base colors, print providers when you click on each product.

      Thanks,
      Elina

  27. maya S
    January 3

    I am wondering if you have integration with Amazon? I am not seeing it anywhere as an option. Is this something you are planning on doing in the future? Thanks.

    1. Elina Stafecka
      January 3

      Maya, thank you for your questions. We are working on multiple new integrations. We can’t mention names yet, but we will keep you updated and notified. 😉

  28. Ray
    December 3

    No Gumroad integration?

  29. MICHAEL LINEBERGER
    October 25

    how much will it cost me to start

  30. Nicole
    September 26

    I don’t see it as an option and wonder if I’m missing it or if maybe a product you might add in the future would be a good quality yoga mat. I have designs of my own and yoga mats available at Society6 but would love to be able to have my shirts and mats available in the same place.

  31. Natalia
    September 19

    Hey, I JUST need help in shipping setting. I have built a shopify store and offered free shipping to USA. When I connected printify it has been set for free shipping too. Which I don’t want. How can I fix it?

  32. Tony Orlando Little
    August 22

    I have a Character with lots of colors.
    Is there a limit on the amount of colors going on a t-shirt.

    1. Elina Stafecka
      August 28

      Hi, Tony! Unless you use embroidery, there is no specific limitation of colors on a design. But keep in mind – each print provider will have slightly different colors. You can read about it here – https://help.printify.com/hc/en-us/articles/4483617515793 .

  33. jazzie
    August 18

    I noticed there are not any real design platform, so you should have your designs ready for upload correct?

    1. Elina Stafecka
      August 28

      Yes, you should have designs ready. But we will publish a new article soon ( next week) – where to get free print designs.

      Best wishes,
      Elina

  34. Adamos Efthymios
    August 9

    I would like to know if you are paid by the buyer before you execute and deliver the order. What happens if the customer who ordered has a change of mind and does not receive the order? My question is if the customer pays you or us directly?

  35. Laura M
    August 2

    Hi there,
    Some great Info thankyou!
    Any tips on how to actually market the products once the store is up and running?
    It’s hard to find info on that. I don’t have any followings on social media etc and wondering if there’s other ways.

    Appreciate further tips!

  36. James Petrillo
    July 16

    How much money do I have to spend once I’ve designed my T-Shirt? In otherwords, do I have to buy the T-Shirts first, then sell them?

    1. Elina Stafecka
      July 17

      Hi James! No, Printify is free, so you don’t have to pay anything before a real customer purchases a product. You can read more here – https://help.printify.com/hc/en-us/articles/4483638151569

  37. Ayanna
    May 23

    I need help setting up

    1. Phil Brown
      May 24

      Hi Ayanna, maybe this is helpful to you – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2d3o13tnxI

      Or you can contact our customer care agents and they will help you – [email protected]

  38. TJ
    May 21

    Where can I find part 2?

    1. Phil Brown
      May 22

      Hey, TJ! We are currently working on Part 2. Is there something specific you want to know? I can suggest some other useful resources.

      KR,
      Phil

  39. Incognito Magnance
    May 14

    I wasn’t looking for clothing concepts. I was and am looking for print on demand for board games or card games. I design those. Can you do that?

Comments

Write a comment