Podza vs Printful: Drastic Changes Podza Brings to Your POD Business

Marina Vasilyeva, Client Manager in Multi-Programming Solutions  •  7 min read

Today’s POD companies can hardly reach impressive results and show consistently growing sales without relying on dedicated B2B print on demand software. Some startupers avoid investing in additional equipment, warehouses, and land-based stores. They consider Printful a reputable partner for building a successful business. Others decide to handle everything from production to sales and shipping on their own, enhancing outcomes with Podza. Regardless of the business model entrepreneurs choose, automating routine processes with a flexible print on demand platform is a must for those who want to manage workflows cost-effectively and reach high performance.

Do these two options serve the same purpose, both receiving positive reviews on the print on demand software market? Can they benefit a POD company that hosts production? Keep reading this article to find the answers. We’ll reveal the main results of the Podza vs. Printful comparison.

Table of Contents

Tool vs. Service - the difference explained in simple words

Printful and Podza main features overview

How may Podza benefit your POD business?

Conclusions

Print on demand tool vs. Print on demand service - the difference explained in simple words

Although both Printfull and Podza are associated with the printing industry in customers’ minds, they are not the same. What is Printful? It’s an independent online POD service that handles all the tasks from manufacturing to fulfillment before the end user receives custom-made printed goods. 

Then, what is Podza? It’s an automated tool widely used by stand-alone entrepreneurs who want to streamline their business processes and become as popular and competitive on the market as sites like Printful.

Those enthusiasts who want to create their own POD brands, selling unique items from clothes to pets’ accessories, but don’t plan to produce and deliver orders on their own, leverage websites similar to Printful. The service is also often used by ordinary buyers who purchase personalized print on demand or embroidered gifts. The company creates, packs, and ships goods to the final destination, hosting dozens of facilities worldwide, including Latvia, the UK, Canada, and Mexico. So, if you are already a successful printing brand that wants to increase its reach, Printful or its alternatives like Teespring are not the right decision for your case.

Instead, explore Podza, managed print service software specifically designed and customized for the unique needs of each independent POD production line. While MPS Solutions can brand and adjust the tool according to specific business requirements, printing companies can then provide software solutions for dropshippers and establish a reliable selling chain for custom goods. Connected online stores may utilize the branded application to diversify their product listings, create collections, and sell them to other businesses or individuals via marketplaces.

So, the key difference between Podza vs. Printful is that the former doesn’t print or deliver orders itself. Instead, it enables other POD companies to fulfill these tasks and connect dropshippers, which will help distribute products and increase turnover.

Suppose you are a beginner or a running b2b printing business owning the equipment and fully responsible for the production and shipping process. Podza is a proven way to optimize your workflow, find regular buyers, and unlock new business opportunities. The tool is specifically designed for top print on demand services that want to offer their dropshippers the same level of customization and convenience as Printful does. Using Podza, you can upgrade your service and collaborate with online stores to create and sell branded items on various e-commerce platforms. While your company will focus on fulfillment and quality, dropshippers will handle sales and marketing to generate more clients.

With Podza, creating a POD hub like Printful is low-cost and faster, as you don’t have to build the software from scratch. Moreover, Podza can scale along with your company, as you may add or adjust required functionality expertly and quickly.   

Printful and Podza main features overview

Analyzing Podza vs Printful functionalities will help POD firms better understand the main differences between the two software. While they have many common setups, they support different business models. One that owns the equipment and another that delegates the main tasks to a third-party service. Let’s start by investigating Printful features:

• Print on demand. It accepts bulk and single-item customer orders for POD clothes and accessories and ships them directly to the buyer.
• Product catalog. A wide range of ready-to-order products with a convenient search and filter system, and clients’ reviews to help buyers make their choice.
• Order fulfillment. Sync orders from connected online stores and distribute them to the nearest stakeholder.
• Branding options. Allows adding unique logos, labels, business cards, and personalized flyers.
• White-labeling. Products may not have any Printful signs. The service will fulfill orders under your name.
• Product customization tool. Online mockup generations and a variety of features for creating unique illustrations.
• Warehousing and fulfillment. Allows entrepreneurs to store their products in the company’s facilities and ship them to buyers when sold.
• E-commerce connections. Printful and Shopify are two of the most widespread integrations, along with Printful and Etsy, WooCommerce, Wix, and other platforms for selling online.
• Global fulfillment centers. Depending on the buyers ' location, the service delegates orders to facilities in Europe and the US for smooth and fast production and delivery.

In the case of Podza vs. Printful, the first platform offers different features depending on the role-based access. Thus, the set of Podza functions for administrators (managed print service providers) includes:

• Creating product catalogues, managing styles, colors, and size charts.
• Real-time task monitoring.
• Automated artwork generation or uploading from Google Drive/Amazon S3.
• Setting up prices for different locations and calculating discounts/currency conversions.
• Managing orders, customers, and affiliates.
• Invoice generation.
• Manual and automated messaging with dropshippers.
• Exporting orders to Shipstation or Shiphero, tracking the shipping process.

On the other hand, owners of connected online stores also have a massive set of functions that can simplify their business management and free time for more essential tasks like promoting their brands. If you are a dropshipper, discover how to use the Podza app offered by a supplier. Main features for online shops include:

• Integrating collections from the connected POD service within seconds (including photoes, descriptions, etc.). Mockup generation for product customization.
• Creating branded custom slips that help dropshippers promote their online stores faster and expand recognition.
• Accepting customers' orders right from Shopify or other integrated marketplaces and redirecting them right to the admin for fulfillment and delivery.
• Messaging with potential buyers and system notifications. 
• Profit calculation and price adjustment depending on selling zones.
• Full payment history and notification.

The dropshipping business model already benefits entrepreneurs, as buyers pay for goods ahead of time via integrated PayPal or Stripe gateways, and investments are reduced to a minimum. Moreover, the Podza print on demand app allows online stores to streamline routine operations like accepting orders and redirecting them to the supplier, saving time on managing product listings and creating invoices.

The Podza vs. Printful comparison shows that the first option can help POD companies establish their own multichannel selling network, as every linked dropshipper will promote custom products to their clients.

How may Podza benefit your print on demand business?

Today’s highly competitive POD industry requires high efficiency and a qualitative service from entrepreneurs, which may be challenging for some business owners. This is where Podza, order fulfillment and shipment software, may help print on demand companies thrive, build lasting relationships with partnering stores, and adapt to rapidly changing market tendencies. Whether you are just making first steps in the niche or evolving your reputable brand, Podza can benefit you in several ways:

• Online print service automation. The app allows entrepreneurs to reduce the volume of manual work, such as creating product listings, accepting orders 24/7, setting prices, and much more, saving time and resources for more essential purposes.
• Leverage data-driven decisions. Podza offers diverse analytical tools that can provide overwhelming information about the POD service performance, customer behaviour, and product popularity, enabling thoughtful decision-making and targeted development strategies.
• Enhance online visibility. Podza links with top e-commerce platforms. Shopify and Etsy integrations ensure your product receives more attention, which leads to potential traffic and increased sales.
• Build customer trust. By offering 24/7 order processing, shipping, and parcel tracking, Podza users establish credibility and force repeated purchases.
• Expanding global reach. International shipping options allow POD services and connected dropshipping stores to enter the global e-commerce market with more opportunities for business growth.
• Building a consistent brand image. Creating a recognizable custom print service is crucial for long-term success. Podza, with its unique product branding, packaging, and personalized notes, helps companies establish a strong identity that forces popularity among the target audience.

Conclusions

If you run your own POD business, it's crucial to understand how Printful and its alternatives (Printify, Gooten, Gelato, etc.) differ from the Podza app and why the latter can become a trusted tool in your scaling. While Printful is the all-in-one solution for online shop owners without production capabilities, which prints, stores, packs, and ships orders, Podza is a tool helping existing POD businesses grow, automate their processes, find and connect dropshippers, and generate more profit. Podza is a cost-effective and efficient print on demand software for printers that stands out with its flexibility, control, and scalability, crucial in the modern market for adapting to changing demands and building lasting B2B partnerships.