Impressions - Team & Active Wear - Fall 2020 - 10

A team web store means customers order when it's convenient for them,
and it becomes a hands-off process for you once the store is created.

s of press time, all team sports currently have been canceled
due to the COVID-19 virus. While the loss of income is
painful and requires sacrifices, time away from the shop
also is giving decorators an opportunity to think about their businesses with an eye toward improvement.
The team market is a solid, dependable source of income, as sports
never will permanently go away; however, it also presents some
challenges. It's a flurry of small orders that must be produced and
delivered in a short timeframe. Shirts/uniforms often are highly personalized, which adds to the labor cost. And no matter how much
time you spend educating your clients on submitting orders early,
you always will get those requests for last-minute changes, fill-ins
and add-ons that cause extra work and added frustration.
Are you using paper order forms, making lots of phone calls,
holding meetings with parents and coaches, and waiting until
uniforms are delivered to get paid with a check (that might
bounce)? If so, now is the time to update your systems to automate, increase efficiency, reduce errors, boost overall profits and
make it more convenient for teams to do business with you.
In the 21st century, team orders should be done via a dedicated
web store that not only automates many of the steps in the sales
process, but also reduces errors, ensures you get paid upfront and
is not only more convenient for you, but also for the overwhelmed
team organizers.
The easier you make it for a parent or coach to do business with

you, the more likely you are to keep their business and attract
more. A team web store means customers order when it's convenient for them, and it becomes a hands-off process for you once
the store is created.
In addition to saving time, a web store also gives the shop
owner an opportunity to boost sales by offering fan cloth (also
known as spiritwear), as well as needed accessories such as gear
bags, caps, helmets, stadium cushions, blankets, towels, headbands, stickers, water bottles, banners and the like.
Many teams are struggling to come up with the funds to pay
for equipment and supplies. With a team web store, you also can
help players create a fundraiser allowing friends and family to buy
fanwear that will raise money.
Taking this strategy one step further, once you have your foot
in the door with a school or organization's team orders, you then
have opportunities to contact subgroups. If it's a school, you can
reach out to the French club, choir, debate team, chess club and
school newspaper.
Another way you can bring your business into the 21st century
is by getting paid up front electronically, as opposed to half down
when ordering and the remainder paid on delivery. Today's online
consumers have been trained to pay in full, which creates less
friction and completely eliminates the issue of bounced checks
and unpaid balances.
With social separation being a mandate at this time, decorators

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Impressions - Team & Active Wear - Fall 2020

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