Define your purpose

To get the most out of your POD design, be it profit or impact, you need to think about why you’re doing it in the first place.

If you want to start a print-on-demand business, you need designs that are eye-catching, pique curiosity, and align with your customers’ interests.

Consistency is key. If you already have an established brand, your designs should align with your current visual aesthetics, values, and personality.

Choose your colors

Colors are important – unconscious or otherwise, color can evoke emotions and inspire reactions. All advertisers know this. Google color psychology and you’ll find a wealth of interesting and useful information.

Although it may be tempting to add a lot of colors, this can backfire. You should try to achieve your design goals in the least amount of colors possible to avoid colors clashing that can make your designs unappealing. Two to three is a good amount.

If you already have a brand, your chosen colors should reflect your brand’s values and speak to your target audience.

Pick your fonts

The right font can make a big difference – whatever text your design has, it should be easily readable and visually appealing. If the font isn’t legible and people have to strain their eyes to read it, it’s no good.

When it comes to designs, typography is equally important. Basically, it’s the art of arranging letters in a way that makes sense. The text should be clear and look aesthetically pleasing.

Ask yourself:

• Is the font readable?
• Is it trendy?
• What fonts are others using?

Your font choice can convey certain ideas and evoke emotions – we attribute certain characteristics to certain fonts. However, don’t go overboard, using two different fonts is usually enough.

Scale your fonts

Your fonts, compositional features, or shapes may require a bit of scaling. By scaling these elements, you can make your design more dynamic, add additional emphasis, and give it a bit of visual order.

You can use colors to enhance this technique, but make sure that the typeface looks good when increased in size.

Pick your graphics

If you want something more interesting than a text-based design, incorporating graphics into your design is a great way to go about it.

You can keep it simple and let your brand speak for itself, as we often see with companies like Nike, Calvin Klein, or Adidas.

If you want to experiment with illustrations or other visual graphics, you can add illustrations, geometric shapes, and wild colors.

Adding visuals is a great way to make your designs more playful, fun, and effective. Additionally, visuals are processed 60,000 times faster than text. Your visual design can leave a lasting impression far more quickly than text alone.

Align objects properly

If you want your design to look structured, presentable, and harmonious, pay attention to alignment. Despite its importance, it’s often overlooked.

Your design may have elements that are different shapes and sizes, which won’t look good unless aligned properly.

If done right, nobody will notice. However, if done incorrectly, everyone will be able to tell that something is not right.

Mockup your design

This is the part where you’ll preview how your design will look on your product. Usually, it’s the last step in the designing process. Always follow your print-on-demand provider’s design requirements.

Before finalizing your design, ask yourself:

• Is the spacing between design elements even?
• Is the layout balanced and visually appealing?
• How does the overall composition work together?

Never be afraid to ask for feedback from your friends or family. This can make or break your final product.

With our Product Creator, you can easily create realistic mockups of your custom product and see how they’ll look once printed. You can use these mockups for your online storefront. We’ll introduce you to this simple yet powerful tool further in our article.

Although there are plenty of other graphic design tips, if you take these into consideration, you’re off to a good start.

Make it happen today!

Start designing

Canva

Canva is a browser-based graphic design platform and tool.

It is easy to use and enables you to design anything from logos and social media graphics to posters, t-shirts, and other visual content. Canva is a useful tool for creating POD designs.

The free version has minimal features, while the paid version allows you to download images with a transparent background, has a background remover, additional templates, and so on.

Pixlr

Pixlr is a free, browser-based photo editing tool.

It is easy to use and has modern editing capabilities. If your print-on-demand designs need only a few touch-ups, it’s a great tool.

Pixlr can help with social media designs, web posters, and even t-shirt designs.

GIMP

GIMP is a free and open-source graphics editor.

It is used for image editing and manipulation, free-form drawing, and more. Although it’s not as intuitive as previous tools, it’s not difficult either.

You can find educational resources that show you the basics of making designs for print on demand.

Adobe Photoshop

Photoshop is a graphics editor that’s considered a gold standard in photo editing software.

It is used to edit photos and create original graphics. Although learning the basics of photoshop isn’t hard, it might seem confusing at first and requires a lot of focus.

However, it’s not free and comes with a steep learning curve. It is a more suitable option for advanced designers. If it’s something you’re interested in, Adobe offers free tutorials.

This isn’t by any means a comprehensive list, but it should give you an insight into what options you have.

Printify’s free designs

All of our designs are 100% free and print-ready.

These designs can be used on products immediately – they are under Creative Commons license with commercial use. If you like, you can modify them to suit your needs.

They’re perfect for your custom print-on-demand products and can be directly uploaded on your merchandise.

Shutterstock integration

This integration provides you with near-unlimited and high-quality print file options.

With Shutterstock integration, you can create your first design with no effort at all.

In short, it allows you to use and customize images provided by Shutterstock, which can be published to your preferred sales channel at no up-front cost to you.

Whenever you sell a product containing a design from Shutterstock, the Printify product cost will contain a small fee, which will go to Shutterstock.

Create your own merchandise today!

Start designing

Create designs by using design elements

If you simply want some additional resources that you can combine yourself, various design and font bundles might be the right choice for your project.

A word to the wise – always make sure to read their licensing agreement.

Consider hiring a freelancer

If you have a special design in mind, but don’t really have the skills nor the patience to do it yourself, hire a freelancer.

Before you start scouting for talent you should start with properly identifying your needs and listing the design ideas you already have.

Based on this, you should be able to identify the essential design skills the ideal freelancer would have. Always make sure to communicate the project specifications clearly.

Here are some freelancing sites you can use:

• Fiverr. A popular freelancing site that allows you to hire a freelancer for your print-on-demand designs. It is an affordable option, but you must carefully review the offers and choose the one that meets your demands and quality expectations.
• 99designs. An online marketplace for graphic design services. It connects independent freelancers with clients in need of creative work. A good option for print-on-demand businesses, because it has a whole category dedicated to Clothing & Merchandise.
• Upwork. The biggest freelance marketplace in the United States. You can find outstanding talent, but it will require diligent research and portfolio browsing. You should always test the freelancer with a smaller project to check their skills.

However, freelancing sites aren’t your only option. You can reach out to your local community, ask around in your inner circle of friends, and on relevant forums and groups online.

You may find that hiring a freelancer based on personal recommendations is the quickest and easiest way to go about it.

If you’re interested in hiring a freelancer, our in-depth article will provide you with valuable insights. It is a handy guide that will help you to navigate the market and find the talent you need.

Browse our Catalog and select a Print Provider

Explore our ever-expanding catalog and pick a product that’s most likely to resonate with your target audience.

Select a print provider. You can compare them by location, price, available colors, sizes, and more.

Afterwards, click “Start designing” on the product page to open the Product Creator.

Explore the Product Creator

Once the tool opens, you can view the print file requirements, available print areas, prices, variants, and other settings.

Upload your design

Simply click on the “Add your design” button or drag & drop them from your device, Google Drive, or Dropbox. Your designs are automatically saved and available in the Product Creator library.

Always position your design correctly within the print area to avoid issues with production. Make sure to follow the print file requirement instructions.

Adjust your design

Adjust the placement of your design, and choose the color and size of your item. You can click “Add design” to complement your current product with custom text or another design.

Preview the final product

Once the size is right, and the colors look good, click “Preview” to see a real-life mockup of your product. You can use these product images in your online store.

To view the final product and see whether you’re happy with the design, we recommend ordering samples before launching a new product in your store.

100% Free

You don’t need any up-front investment. Anyone can use our platform for free.

Wide range of products

Our catalog has over 900 customizable, high-quality products, and we’re continually adding more.

No minimum order quantity

Thrive and sell without any limitations. You can order as few or as many items as you like.

24/7 Merchant support

The customer is our compass. We’re here to help you along every step of the way.

1. Photographing in the digital age

Consider using these details when shooting. They all add up to a significant difference in the final product’s outcome. Please remember, these are recommendations, not necessities.

• Use a timer rather than pressing the button. Sometimes, a small shake can occur in the camera — resulting in a slight blurring effect.
• Use clear, even lighting. If there is shadowing or shading, things could render improperly.
• Avoid using flash. This can cause a reflection to shine unevenly from various colors or angles.
• Shoot your photo albums (or individuals) at the highest resolution possible for your camera. This way, you’ll be able to work with more sizes on products.
• Line up the camera’s lens with the middle of the artwork being shot. With this in place, the framing of the artwork will come out better.
  • ISO + Aperture: These camera settings adjust how sensitive the camera is to light by adjusting the dimensions of their diaphragm. To digitize the image crisp and clear, consider using a lower ISO. Studios often shoot at ISO 100 or so.
  • DSLR Tip: For these devices, it may be a good idea to use an f-stop (light allowed into the lens) of f-8 to f-10.

2. Scanning to digitize an image:

Unlike some conventional printers, scanners are usually pretty easy to use. Unfortunately, they’re traditionally limited to an A4-size (piece of writing paper) scanning area. So, you’re more limited than a photo in scope when walking down memory lane.

How computer screens read: Red green blue (RGB)

This is how a computer screen projects various colors. Every device is powered by a light source within that shines those rays through various segments of color. It’s called the additive color model. 

First, only a dark light is shown. But, by adding controlled tones of red, green, and blue, a wide range of colors can be created. However, even with the current reaches of technology, we cannot recreate the diversity and wonder of the human eye within a screen. Nature still manages to amaze.

How printing computers create merchandise

This is how printing machines create colors on a garment or product. Unlike merely projecting a color, physically creating a colored ink and causing that ink to bond with various fabrics is a bit more complicated. As such, the large-scale printers that create print-on-demand products rely on combinations of cyan, magenta, yellow, and key (black). 

While screen-based processes use the additive concept, physically creating an image relies on subtractive mixing. This begins with a pure white, with colors subtracted as layers of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are removed until the proper color is uncovered.

Troubleshooting early problems

When you upload, scan, or transfer a printed photo or image to be digitized, you’ll usually be looking at an RGB (human vision) picture. Remember, this will usually be transferred to CMYK once it’s in digital files.

So, one of the best ways to ensure your artwork looks the same on both sides is to use CMYK from the beginning. This provides the most accurate final products.

Uploading images to the Product Creator

Uploading a printing file as either a JPEG or PNG is possible. Please be aware that both files have differing capabilities. 

• JPEG: Supports RGB, sRGB, and CMYK for all Printify products. Transparent backgrounds are not supported. 
• PNG: Supports RGB and sRGB for all Printify products. Transparent backgrounds are supported.

Shutterstock

This is a digital library containing millions of high-quality images. If you find a photo you’d like to work with, their pay-as-you-sell system means you won’t have to pay to use anything until it sells. 

Furthermore, several cutting-edge editing tools allow you to crop, isolate, and even manipulate image backgrounds. Even if you don’t end up using one of their digitized documents, it can be worth looking through for some inspiration.

Text editor

Using digital technology to make cool printed photos or digitizing images can be tempting, but it can be difficult. Fortunately, products that have simple, text-based messages or branding often sell very well.

Free designs

Everyone has to start somewhere. And, while these designs may be far from ideal for your store’s final destination, they’re perfect for trial, mockups, and even making a few sales. While it may say that they’re just for t-shirts, these designs are perfect for any Printify product.

Digitizing services

This may be the best bet for those who believe you get what you pay for. If cash isn’t a problem, getting an expert opinion (and work) is a wonderful option.

Fortunately, this choice can be difficult to scale over time. If a brand wants to develop and spread over time, these professionals are always ready to lend a helping hand.