Agfa Graphics StoreFront 4.5, the new version of the cloud-based web-to-print star solution, now features increased security and improved order fulfillment
Printers in pursuit of a sustainable competitive advantage succeed by offering their customers an intuitive online purchasing environment. With StoreFront, they can do just that. As an e-commerce solution for commercial printers, sign and display professionals, full-service providers and creative agencies, StoreFront is all about reaching a broader audience by offering the much-expected convenience of buying and personalising products online 24/7. Printers have two options: they can build a personalised online shop for specific B2B customers, or set up a public web-to-print store.
Whichever type of online store print businesses create, they are guaranteed a secured website that inspires confidence. While StoreFront previously already used HTTPS for critical content such as login and checkout pages, the 4.5 version now ensures that all traffic is encrypted. This full reliance on HTTPS comes with complete protection against hackers prowling for private information and confidential data – especially convenient for print businesses with security-conscious clients such as banks, international corporations and governmental organisations.
To extend this HTTPS-based security to stores using a custom domain, StoreFront 4.5 automatically requests and uses SSL certificates issued by ‘Let’s Encrypt’ – an automated, open certificate authority backed by major industry players. This saves printers the trouble of ordering and installing certificates separately.
StoreFront 4.5 also avoids the hassle of estimating the expected shipping dates of orders. Based on the preferred shipping service and production schedule, the web-to-print solution displays the target shipping date avoiding any confusion about what 48-hour shipping, for example, implies.
In shops powered by Apogee StoreFront or Asanti Storefront, nearly 30 percent of all products offered by printers are customisable. Like before, StoreFront 4.5 includes an online editor that enables print buyers to customise these products online, either by entering data in a form or working directly on the page lay-out. Only now, the online editor is fully HTML5-based and therefore compatible with all recent browsers. Customers interested in personalising documents, cards, flyers, datasheets, POS displays and more will conveniently be able to do so using their tablets or computers.
Although online orders can be processed using any print production system, StoreFront truly shines when combined with other Agfa Graphics solutions such as Apogee Prepress workflow software for commercial printers and the Asanti production workflow solution for sign and display printers. Automatically downloading and processing online orders, these workflow tools seamlessly integrate with StoreFront 4.5, saving print businesses valuable time and effort.
Tight integration with printers’ entire production chains remains a focal point for further optimisation. StoreFront has been enhanced in such a way that it shares even more order information with MIS and stock management systems.
