Customising Your Product Placement

i find, at least in the preview, the image often slides over to center again. or things like duvet's you can't adjust up and down. so like a pano is a stripe down the center.


otherwise, yeah, everyone should upload, then look at each product, make sure it fits, that it looks its best, don't always let the site choose the size of it. like a duvet cover i try to fill the whole thing so i don't have that weird stripe at the top. or mugs, it doesn't really show you the sides, but there is usually a big gap of nothing from the edge to the handle. its best to tweak it so it all looks good or you could be losing sales. and it doesn't take all that long.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

I rarely upload a second image but I ALWAYS position the art, or remove the price if it doesn't work on something (like artwork with text that doesn't fit). The only time I ever run into an issue is when new products are added that I decide to sell and bulk add the price. Those images are only being positioned when I have a reason to go into the edit page.

I do try to do that but it is a mammouth task when new products are added. I find that if I have uploaded a png file cut out for t-shirts the new product always defaults to the png file which looks terrible on things like jigsaws. I don't even like that on things like mugs. I then have to open almost 3000 images to change it. Is it possible when introducing a new product for us to tick a box that says use png file or use original image?

That's crazy. I would never let a customer be responsible for placing the image. That's just asking for trouble. It's not that hard.

Posting abstract works rarely requires special placement, but I always check, and do occasionally re-position artwork depending on the product, and if I think it looks better that way.

David, in the case of some, it just needs to make sure to reach the edges, or be bordered to a satisfactory degree.

I would try to make sure the images fit on the products during the upload process, but most times after adjusting an image to fit on a certain products (flip it from horizontal to vertical on a greeting card, for example) the site or my browser would automatically refresh and I would lose everything and was back at square one.
So I wasted the upload time, keywording, etc.... just because I adjusted my photo for a 'greeting card'.

It was frustrating, especially when you were uploading 5 at a time and this happens.....so I gave up trying to adjust the photos on the products.

Not sure if this is still an issue or if it was only happening to me, but just so everyone is aware.

That has never, ever happened to me. Are you sure you don't have some kind of plug-in loaded that refreshes your pages David?

When a new product comes out and people want to bulk edit all their images on that product, it's impossible to reposition all of them.

That's why I make a selection of images best suited to that product so I can position all of them.

And even though I take the time to do this there are buyers who decide to reposition the image themselves anyway.

I also reposition my images on every product I offer when I upload an image and remove prices if they do not look good on the product. (not that I have a bunch of sales, but I want them to look right if someone does pop in my gallery).

I agree with this and wish we could lock the customization into place so the customer could not mess with it. Did that make sense?

David Ilzhoefer, I too have taken time to position the image for the best look on products and at times they do completely reset to the default look. I have no idea why this happens and when I notice I do redo them.

I will sometimes zoom in like Mike is suggesting on duvet covers and mugs mostly and this will offer a more abstract look of an image rather then the cut offs at the top or bottom or seeing a new background color that doesn't match up with the background color of the image.

Certain products I won't sell of certain images, like yoga mats. They seem to be the hardest for me to get a decent look out of without customizing an image for them specifically.

PNG files with transparent backgrounds can be helpful in customizing certain images on products as well.

If you cannot present a nice image to sell on a certain product you are better off, just clearing the price out of it and not selling it for that image. Anything we can do to reduce returns is good for everyone evolved.

Abbie,

I assume if the images that I upload, are large, 4700 x 6200 or about, this isn't necessary.....just when a small file is uploaded....???

Rich

Almost all my images are at least 6000px on the short side. I position every one of 'em. I don't know why size should make a difference, you still want the best perspective on products and it's rarely the exact center of the artwork.

I do look and customize every product when I upload. However, there are a few things FAA could do to make this job easier (and make it more likely that it would get done).

1) Show the pixels so we don't have to go back and look to see how large the file is every single time we upload (or, more importantly, edit to customize for a new product). I would really love to see the dimensions prominently on the upload or edit page. The system knows - otherwise the wall art sizes wouldn't get "calculated". Tell us!

2) Show the pixel requirements for the products beside the product. It's a darned nuisance to have to click the templates to see this and then click back to continue the edit/customization. Put it out there! I hate the way web designers seem to think everything has to be hidden.

3) Ensure that a file intended for one single product NOT randomly appear on other products. This has happened to me and it's beyond annoying. I fix it when I come across it, but I can only recognize it in a very few cases. I'm sure that having it happen can mean that a too-small file is used for a particular product without our knowing it.

Gill is right about new products - virtually impossible for us to go back and do it when a new product is added if you have hundreds or, as in her case and mine, thousands of files up. So our choice is to NOT offer new products except on new uploads and then to edit and customize, one by one, on the old ones as they come up - or to enable the product and hope that most of the time the default position will work or the customer will realize there's a problem and customize himself. . . or not buy.

There are a couple of small ticket (to me) products I have decided not to have default prices on (mugs and stickers) because the default is unacceptable to me on too many of my images.

My images are adjusted to products but problems happen when a new product is introduced or when I decide to change a mark-up and bulk edit the prices.
It would be useful to have a quick edit option, for example to check and edit all mugs or all towels.

Rich

It is always necessary. At least to go through and check them.

As Susan says, not all work looks good

As for the thousands of images, there must be a couple you immediately think of when a new product is loaded..I know I have a couple. Do those first then slowly introduce more

"wish we could lock the customization into place so the customer could not mess with it. Did that make sense?"

Yes, Val that makes sense EXCEPT for the fact that there is bulk editing and because of that FAA has to allow the customer to reposition the image.

Another POD site does not have bulk editing so they can lock the customization into place.

And then some products are more forgiving of bulk editing than others.

I agree with Mike in the first post. I wish I could move things up or down or side to side in some cases when I resize it for printing. Especially with png files that I am creating a lot of recently. If I upload a square image because I like how it looks on apparel, it centers on a greeting card. I would love to be able to slide it down to the bottom of the greeting card. If I could upload an image just to this comment, I would show you what I mean.

That's what the templates are for

I don't use templates, but always position my artwork. If it doesn't look right on a particular type of merchandise I won't offer it for sale.

Being able to position artwork could be very effective, especially on t-shirts.

David, what you describe has happened to me multiple times as well.

I've been positioning artwork on products from the beginning. I've had a few instances where I've discovered after the fact that the positioning didn't hold, and have had to re-position and re-submit. But mostly things have been okay. I like to do this because some images just don't fit on some products, and mostly because I want the products to present well.

I do wish that the customer WAS NOT ABLE to adjust positioning. I wish the artist was the one to define how the image was to go on a product, period. Letting the customer mess with the controls leaves too much margin for error. I personally think customers don't want that responsibility (as shown by what Abbie reported)

I always do this, too. And thanks for the templates, Abbie. Here's a trick I found that I use a lot for the spiral notebook placement (maybe not a real trick, but I was happy it worked) - When I get to the placement for the spiral notebook, I click on "customize product", then the "image" tab, then "choose file", then I can right-click on the original image and "rotate left", then "upload image". This gives me a rotated image to upload which I seem to do frequently for the spiral notebook. And I don't have to create a new file - it just re-uses the original.

Joy, with bulk editing in place FAA can't really rely on the artist to position their images. So it is left to the buyer to do that, and they do that even after they are positioned by the artist.

Who has the time to use the templates for so many images? That is really unrealistic to expect I think.

There is no bug in the bulk editor. It's worked fine all the time

Make sure you're ticking all the boxes you need to tick

Abbie,

I am having an odd problem. I have four images with words. I have them customized on PNGs. Then customized. In the Shop features some of them show as completely white instead of the printed words with colored backgrounds.

Abbie, I, that's probably just me, didn't realize that when I customize a product it sticks that way. I thought I was wasting my time and that it would simply revert to the opening look. BWDIK. rd

Sorry if I am overlooking it but is there a list of all the template sizes provided anywhere of the products? Something I can copy, paste onto a doc and then print the list so I can have it handy for creating files from scratch over saving the template files already provided.

I have unfortunately not aligned centrally an image on a recent mask sale - this image must have gone under my radar as I do try and make sure the images are in place.
Subsequently, only a fraction of the image-a turtle --but just his foot is on the mask--is there anything I can do to send another as it is so obviously not what the customer thought they were buying. I know it's only a mask but feel bad at the product they will receive is faulty- I have since corrected the image placement?

I've been having fun playing around with placing images/ creating background colors... but wait a minute, I thought that the customer was allowed to re-adjust the image placement/ background color before buying something if they wished to? :O Or after I give it a certain look, is it stuck like that?

There are a few questions I missed in here, I'm so sorry

I'll be back in shortly to response to them all, even if you've already have had the response somewhere else.

Michelle, yes the customer can also readjust the images, but many customers don't realize that, and then they are disappointed with the product.

On the other hand when doing a bulk edit of product, artists just can't be bothered to adjust all their images on products. Imagine doing that for over 3 thousand images!

Abbie, any chance we could make this one a sticky? Lots of valuable info here and it would be a shame to have it sink into oblivion. It would also benefit new artists who come to the forum with questions.

OMG

I can't believe people do not want to use the templates!

I can't believe people might think it is the customers resposiblity to position the image on the product!

Just saying - I totally disagree!

This is why I use templates and do NOT use the bulk editor for new products.

I used the bulk editor once for a new product and ended up with a bunch of terrible looking designs on the product. I deleted them all. Why would I want my customers first impression of my offering to look off?

I am not a big seller but I would like to be! I don't think offering wierd looking things to my customers will help me get there so I take the time to use the proper template as needed.

I do not like to offer anything that depends on the customer doing something other than adding the item to their cart!

I wouldn't shop for something that I had to be resposible for making right. I think the artist should do this. I feel very strongly about it and do believe it will help everyone's sales to have sharp looking products instead of a bunch of badly placed images.

Since I am on a rant -

TEMPLATES are easy to find. In edit mode on any image click on the VIEW TEMPLATE beside each product and it will open a new tab with the dimensions. Easy!

It's the minimum file size that's of the most interest to me when I upload. I would like to see the dimensions right by the product - to have to open a window (often it simply won't load and takes forever) or to consult a printout every time you upload is silly. It's two numbers, for goodness sakes; put 'em where we can see them.

I finally simply took all the big products OFF my images because most of my files are at 6000 x 4000 or under and many products require more than that.

duvet covers - 8640 square
towels - 6800 long side
shower curtain - well over 7000, either side
tapestry - 5000 x 6000
blankets - big, too, but I can't get it to load for exact dimensions

I don't use templates. One picture that fits them all. I used to use templates on another site. I would make 5-7 different versions. It took me forever to edit and upload and it was never worth it. So I told myself I would only have 1 single image unless its maybe a cut out or something.

When I upload I edit it the best I can to fit the object and that's it. But we are always getting new things here, and going back to make templates would be a time waster. I find most customers like the placement fine. Or they move it around themselves. I'd rather be making new things then adjusting the fit on something.


----Mike Savad

As others have mentioned, it would be helpful if buyers clearly understood that they can control placement of images on products. There is no verbiage to that effect on products pages. How hard would it be to add a simple sentence advising customers that they can use their cursor to position images to suit themselves?

@Mike - you do put everthing on everything. You do sell a LOT more than I do so who am I to say not. But I still can only wonder how much MORE you would sell if you placed everthing properly.

That said I just spent a whole lot of time getting a mug template ready. Small profit margin but who knows if you sell a case or two. I don't know maybe I have some OCD but I just can't leave things looking all wonky.

@Nikolyn - Minimum size? How is that helpful?

I am just learning to use the template and making the transparent images. And do still think it is important, I do agree some wording to be careful if you touch the slider.

Maybe it could also use a RESET button just incase a customer plays with it and thinks "someone" will put it back?

Okay so I finally found where I can customize all the products for my image. I'll be honest i had blinders on because products are not my focus. But there is a HUGE hurdle to me shutting off products at the individual photo level that don't work for a specific image, and that's the inability to override the bulk price changer at the individual image level. Maybe this has changed, but I gave up after I couldn't keep the bulk price changer from turning on image licenses I had previously disabled, each time I updated prices. With 1500 images its just to much work to keep track of, and the cost goes exponential the more images you add.

Kathleen,

Yes, has been mentioned many times here! Just have a notice pop up, when the client is nearly finished ordering saying something like this" YOU" need to place this image on the product as you prefer! If you don't, the product will be produced and shipped as it appears now! Are you SURE you like this placement?"

Removes the onus from the artists to try and do all this themselves. The tools are there already for the buyers to place the image where they want it, just make it OBVIOUS to the buyer, that THEY have this choice!

Seems like a simple solution to me....

Rich

Val asks, "@Nikolyn - Minimum size? How is that helpful?"

It's my understanding that if you want a quality result on a product, you need to have a file that meets the template. So . . . if the shower curtain template shows that the file should be 7100 x 7400 pixels and I have a file that's 5000 x 3500, for example, I would expect that a shower curtain ordered from that file would probably be softer than the buyer might expect.

Frankly, I don't see many reviews for duvet covers or even shower curtains, but I do see quite a few for towels and it seems to me that the percentage of "unacceptable print quality" review for them . . . esp for the large "bath sheets" . . . is higher than I'm comfortable with. With the recommended mark-ups on products as low as it is (and yes, I do go higher occasionally, but not much), I don't figure I'm missing much.

Of course I may be completely off base on all of this, but you asked :)

I own a few duvet covers with my artwork on them. I don't think many of my images are bigger than 7000 pixels on the short side, and most of them are 6000 pixels on the short side. They print beautifully on a duvet, as well as on shower curtains.

Thank you Nikolyn. Somehow I wasn't understanding that. Now it does make sense.

It is harder for photographers to change your image sizes. As a digital artist I can make images more easily to fit or adjust them to fit.

One thing I wonder about is if what ever is printed on fabric will be softer because on the fabric itself no matter the file size?

Yeah, fabric is never going to show the same high resolution canvas or paper would.

Val Arie,

Yes, images printed on fabric will be different because of the substrate, cloth. This is true also of images on canvas vs fine art paper. Prints made on fine art paper can be printed at higher DPI, Dots per inch than on cloth. On cloth, prints can be 1/2 or even much less than the standard 300 dpi for most fine art prints, as low as 72 or less for large pieces like duvet covers, etc. Standard is closer to 150 dpi......

Rich

And further more....LOL!

Here's an example.....take some food coloring, an eyedropper, wash cloth and Saran Wrap/plastic wrap.

Now, take the eyedopper, fill it with food coloring and place a tiny drop on the piece of Saran Wrap(Fine Art Glossy Paper). It stays like a tiny drop, round and perfect! NOW, take the same eyedropper and put the very same tiny drop of food coloring on the wash cloth and see what happens! It spreads, and not in any tight patern!

This is what "printers" have to figure out when printing on cloth and other material!!! So, less ink/dots for the same image on different substrates....

Test on Tuesday.....open book....hey, we're "Artists".....

Rich

Thank you!

Rich that makes perfect sense! LOL

Hi Everyone.

Newbie here, so any followers would be appreciated.

About Customisation - I don't have the technical know-how or time at the moment to make all products perfect (so might choose not to sell some); but what I wonder is what are some people's personal preferences (or experience of what sells) - to leave a background space/border, or to fill the whole space with a less suitable sized image?

When I tried to adjust the size of my art to wrap around the coffee mug, I made sure that my art covered the whole area within the boundary of the template, but the 3D effect of the mug shows a blank vertical white stripe around the mug handle area. Does anyone have this problem? Is it possible to wrap the art around the whole surface of the mug? If so, how can I do that? It's not pretty to see that white stripe on the mug, especially if your artwork has a white background, but of course not exactly the same white as the mug itself. To choose a background color doesn't work either. I chose a teal color to match the art, but the mug still has a white background stripe. I'd appreciate your help! Thanks a lot!

The stripe is always there

Thanks, Jeff! I wondered so.