By partnering with Varispark, 4Front Engineered Solutions provides on-brand, on-demand print collateral for their entire distribution network
About 4Front Engineered Solutions
4Front Engineered Solutions (4frontes.com) 4Front Engineered Solutions is a leading provider of entrance solutions, including dock levelers, dock seals and shelters, impactable dock doors, dock and yard management software, and an extensive line of aftermarket products. Their goal is to supply the critical needs of customers across warehousing, manufacturing, retail, and distribution centers.
The Challenge
4Front Engineered Solutions prides itself on the quality of its products and the ability to fulfill customers’ mission-critical needs. In order to educate customers about the products 4Front manufactures, the company provides branded collateral to their distributors. Previously, the company offered these materials via a print partner who would provide offset materials in bulk, store them in a warehouse, and ship to distributors as needed. Because materials were stored for long periods of time instead of printed on demand, they ran the risk of becoming obsolete.
4Front wanted to provide marketing collateral to their distributors more quickly and easily through a convenient storefront so that their distributors had easy access to marketing collateral with consistent branding. This way, materials would ship on-demand, lowering maintenance and production costs. To address this challenge, they partnered with Varispark.
The Partnership
Together, 4Front and Varispark set up a digital storefront where new or updated files are uploaded in a streamlined workflow and the company’s distributors can print on demand through Varispark’s web-to-print (W2P) solution.
By adopting on-demand printing and shipping, they are able to offer a larger number of marketing print pieces on their site for distributors to order. They now provide distributors with seven templates for 80 products including sales sheets, brochures, and booklets of varying lengths. Templates are designed and uploaded to their online store, where they can be ordered on-demand by distributors. Orders are printed and shipped when needed, allowing distributors to pay only for what they print.
Varispark also provides a budget function, as well as targeted support forms and communication features for 4Front, including:
- Budget support
- Storefront support
- Scheduling a tour at 4Front headquarters
- Improved navigation and online selection of products
- Option to download an alternative single page PDF for quick office desktop printing
The budget feature allows 4Front to manage distributor spending. It clearly shows distributors how much of their budget they have available to spend on collateral, giving them greater visibility and control — and saving 4Front on unnecessary print costs for accidental overages.
The Results
With the addition of 4Front’s digital print storefront, the company has been able to lower costs for monthly maintenance, printing, and production. Thanks to a true digital print-on-demand solution, the business has saved the hefty up-front print costs associated with conventional offset printing and warehousing. Ongoing costs should be lower, too; other Varispark customers that have implemented similar W2P portals have seen a 30% lower cost of printing and production on average.
Through their partnership with Varispark, 4Front can ensure that distributors have access to collateral with consistent design and quality, helping to maintain continuity of branding and business rules. Their solution provided by Varispark is streamlined and cost-effective while with providing easy ordering for distributors — a true win/win.