RISORSE
If you’re a print-shop or a converter, you’re probably familiar with the following scenario: you’re approached by a small business, such as a boutique bakery, family vineyard or any other small specialty store, that wants to print a label or a package for its products in a small batch. Your customer sends you the artwork, and you provide back a proof for approval.
What happens next can be nerve racking: although the customer has the proof right in front of them, they still hesitate in giving you the ‘go’ to run the press. That’s when the questions start surfacing up: how will the package really look? How can I be sure that the actual product is identical to what I’m seeing on my screen?
These questions and concerns are all valid. After all, the package is an inherent part of their product, with great impact on its ability to get sold and on the overall user experience. Any delay in the print production – let alone errors in the print file – can have dire consequences on the product. Your customers are expected to take a leap of faith when they trust you in delivering their product. From their perspective, they sign on a .pdf file and next time they see it it’s already on the store shelves. It’s scary.
But the customer isn’t the only one who’s concerned here. From the printer’s perspective, this hesitance is taking a toll on the profitability of Web-to-print, which is based on quick turnaround of many, small scale projects. The longer each project takes – the fewer projects the printer can commit to.
This is exactly the problem that XMPie’s 3D visualization preview comes to solve. It projects a perfect 3D model of the package you’re about to print, removing any guesswork from the process. To make the visualization as realistic as possible, it supports a wide variety of package types (pouch, tube, tuck box, bottle label, etc.) and materials (cardboard, plastic or paper). You can top it off with a matte, glossy or metallic finish for a realistic shimmer effect, using special colors such as gold, silver and spot colors.
And the best part: everything is done in real time. Customers can zoom-in and rotate the 3D image in 360 degrees, getting an almost physical sensation of how the product will look and feel in the hands of the shopper. You can even place degassing valves, hanger holes, and zipper openings for products such as a stand-up pouch, for a total WYSIWYG experience.
Check out this video to get a sense of what the 3D visualization feature is all about:
The innovative 3D visualization tool is the latest feature in XMPie’s PersonalEffect StoreFlow – a robust, industry leading web-to-print solution. This feature is not limited just to printers in the packaging and labeling business: commercial printers can also benefit from 3D visualization, showcasing a high-end brochure finished with selective varnish, a gilded wedding invitation or an embellished business card on their website in a 3D view that lets customers interact with their artwork like never before.
This is far more than just another cool feature. It drives real business value, by assuring customers, giving them the confidence they need before approving the order. Since any uncertainties are eliminated in advance, your customers will tend to be more satisfied with their end result, bringing them back for future print projects. 3D visualization also helps streamline your operations: since customers get a hyper-realistic sensation of their product, the approval process is shortened, eliminating all those time-consuming pre-production back-and-forth phone calls and emails. This, in turn, enables higher capacity of print projects at any given month.
The flexibility doesn’t stop here. Customers can either customize an existing package design, use a flexible template to create a new design, or upload an entirely new design to the pre-defined product dieline. For those customers who prefer to create their own designs, the system offers a built-in preflight tool that ensure quality control of the uploaded file, by scanning all design components and flagging the ones that can create any issues during the print run (missing fonts, wrong color palettes, etc.).
As with all XMPie products, our 3D visualization preview comes with full VDP capabilities, that enable you to customize and personalize each package, creating a “wow factor” that drives real engagement with consumers.
Want to experience first-hand the XMPie 3D visualization tool? Drop us a note below!
