What printer wouldn’t love a shortcut that would expand their profit on every order? Many shop owners think that the obvious way to accomplish this is to raise their prices.

Although that can be done, there are unpleasant side effects to simply raising prices. Customers who are price sensitive may leave and go elsewhere if you don’t communicate the price increase properly. If that happens, whatever extra profit is gained from raising prices will likely be lost with a drop in future business.

The simple truth is you can grow your profits on your orders, and in many cases without a tremendous amount of pain. It takes a combination of objectivity, curiosity, out-of-the-box thinking and a dose of old-school frugality. A good way to start is to review pricing and cost reduction options, then look at efficiency systems that include some integrated marketing to boost potential profits.

Here are four key takeaways on how to grow profits:

• Before trying to raise prices, fully map out your true costs (materials, labor, setup, downtime, energy, shipping, etc.) so you know where profit margins currently are.
• Use order‐expansion strategies like volumization (encouraging larger orders), cross‐selling (offering related products) and follow‐ups to increase the value of each order without alienating customers.
• Timing and messaging matter: Suggest upgrades or extras when customers are finalizing order volumes; show how adding a few more items or using different product styles can lower their cost per unit.
• Follow up after delivery – not just to check satisfaction but to open doors for reorders, offer additional items and build customer relationships that drive repeat business.

Read the full story on Apparelist, a publication of PRINTING United Alliance, ASI’s strategic content partner.

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