Agfa Graphics launched version 3.1 of Apogee StoreFront and Asanti StoreFront, which includes several new features, like support for kitting, discounts and promo codes.
A product kit groups different products into one single offering. For example, a stationery kit may contain a point of sales display with printed contents and matching window stickers. Agfa’s StoreFront is unique: it uses a wizard to take the print buyer through all the necessary steps to simply and efficiently personalise each item in the kit.
Andy Grant, Global Head of Software, Agfa Graphics said, ‘To make web-to-print a success for the print provider, online ordering must be simple for the user. The kitting wizard is a good example of how the software helps to simplify the ordering process for novice users and helps avoid shopping cart abandonment or incomplete orders.’
Apogee StoreFront and Asanti StoreFront 3.1 also feature support for promo codes, which entitle discounts to users on one or more orders. They can be one-time seasonal promotions, or permanent discounts for high-volume customers. There is also support for degressive option pricing, which lets a wide-format printer add options to a product and lower pricing based on volume of the sale.
‘Discounts and promo codes are essential features for B2C stores that can also be very effective in private B2B environments that are operated by trade printers or target print brokers and creative agencies,’ said Grant.
Printoff Graphics Arts is a UK based high-quality print service provider. The internet plays a central role in their communication with customers. John Spencer, Technical Manager, said, ‘Apogee StoreFront is offered as our ‘PrintBank’ platform, to create private password protected stores for business customers and organisations. We use it for our e-commerce stores in the educational market, a niche that we focus on. We will definitely be using product discounting in the new version from the get go.’
Long-time users of StoreFront have been monitoring their online business ever since the reporting service in StoreFront became available. In the new version they can now export order data from their entire order history as an Excel spreadsheet. This makes it easier to analyse long-term sales data and detect trends in customer’s purchasing behaviour. It allows the print provider to advise which products on the web shop are (less) popular and if they can be replaced by successful alternatives.
